The injury-ravaged Bears lost another key player Sunday when inside linebacker Danny Trevathan hurt his right knee late in a 27-21 defeat to the Tennessee Titans.
Trevathan was injured while defending a running play with 2:10 remaining in the fourth quarter. He was helped off the field by Bears medical personnel.
"At this point, it appears to be serious," coach John Fox said after the game. "But we do not have all the tests run to give you a real solid prognosis at this point."
Losing Trevathan will further deplete a Bears team that already has 14 players on injured reserve, including quarterback Brian Hoyer, receiver Kevin White, tight end Zach Miller, right guard Kyle Long, center Hroniss Grasu, defensive linemen Will Sutton and Ego Ferguson, outside linebacker Lamarr Houston and cornerback Kyle Fuller.
In addition, quarterback Jay Cutler, left guard Josh Sitton and outside linebacker Leonard Floyd were unable to play Sunday due to injuries, while receiver Alshon Jeffery and inside linebacker Jerrell Freeman are both serving four-game PED suspensions.
There was some good news on the injury front, Sunday, however, as right tackle Bobby Massie and nose tackle Eddie Goldman both returned to the starting lineup. Goldman made a key play late in the game, forcing Tennessee to punt after limiting DeMarco Murray to a 1-yard reception on third-and-two.
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The first time:** There were a lot of firsts for the Bears Sunday: Quarterback Matt Barkley made his first NFL start and threw his first three pro TD passes, while receiver Deonte Thompson and tight end Daniel Brown both recorded their first NFL TD receptions.
The Bears claimed Brown off waivers from the Ravens Oct. 24. He had six receptions for 64 yards in eight games the past two seasons for Baltimore, but Sunday marked the first time he's been active for the Bears this year.
Brown's 7-yard TD reception from Barkley on third-and-goal gave the Bears a 7-0 lead with 4:27 left in the first quarter Sunday.
"Your first touchdown is always something you're going to remember," Brown said. "I can't really put it into words. It's kind of like an out-of-body experience."
No moral victories: Defensive end Akiem Hicks wasn't interested in trying to find any positives in Sunday's loss, which dropped the Bears to 2-9.
"I think we've taken that road a couple of times this year," Hicks said. "Quite frankly, a lot of guys are tired of having to look for the bright side in it. We want that result. I know I do. It's part of this game and it's something that's hard to swallow. But as much as we're fighting through things, I know we're ready for a result. I'm ready for the result."
News and notes: The Bears lost the coin flip Sunday for the ninth time in 11 games this season. ... Since Cutler arrived in 2009, the Bears are 52-52 in his starts and 6-15 in games he's missed. ... The attendance Sunday was just 48,408 with 11,086 no-shows. ... Barkley helped the Bears convert 9-of-17 third downs (53 percent), their most third-down conversions and best percentage in any game this season. ... The Bears did not record a sack or a takeaway for the second straight game. They have forced just one turnover in their last four contests.
