Nick Foles may have escaped serious injury, but whether he is able to keep his job as the Chicago Bears starting quarterback remains to be seen.
Foles was carted off with just over 30 seconds to go in the Bears' ugly 19-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Monday after landing hard on his right hip while being taken down on a hit by defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo.
Bears coach Matt Nagy confirmed Tuesday that Foles is "day to day" with a hip and glute injury and added that it "isn't as bad as we once thought."
The injury appeared serious and Foles was "in a lot of pain" after Monday's brutal performance by the Bears. In losing their fourth straight game to fall to 5-5, Chicago finished with a season-worst 149 total yards while Foles was 15 of 26 for a season-low 106 yards with an interception.
At the moment, the Bears do not plan to put Foles on injured reserve and the veteran quarterback has some additional time to recover with a bye this weekend ahead of their Week 12 game at the Green Bay Packers.
Earlier this month, that Bears-Packers matchup at Lambeau Field looked like it would play a significant role in determining the NFC North winner, but that is no longer the case as Green Bay has opened up a two-game lead atop the division over the stumbling Bears.
There is also no guarantee Foles will start against the Packers as Nagy left the door open when asked if he would consider going back to Mitchell Trubisky.
"When you lose four in a row, everything's on the table," Nagy said.
#Bears HC Matt Nagy says QB Nick Foles injury not as bad as first thought. Has a hip/glute injury. It's a strained right hamstring for Akiem Hicks, PR/WR Dwayne Harris(possible torn tricep). @WBBMNewsradio
— Jeff Joniak (@JeffJoniak) November 17, 2020
Like Foles, Trubisky is also battling an injury. He was inactive for the Vikings game with a shoulder problem sustained in a Week 8 loss to the New Orleans Saints, though the Bears are hopeful both Foles and Trubisky will be healthy when they return from the bye.
Trubisky started the Bears' first three games of the season before being replaced by Foles in the second half of their Week 3 comeback win over the Atlanta Falcons.
While Foles sparked the offense in Atlanta, he has not been able to replicate that magic since being named the starter.
Since Week 4, the Bears are 31st in both total offense (271.1 yards per game) and offensive touchdowns (nine) - beating out only the winless New York Jets in both categories.
The Bears' run game has been especially dreadful since Week 4, rushing for 368 yards - 129 fewer yards than the next-closest team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, despite playing one more game.
Chicago's 368 rushing yards since Week 4 is the franchise's lowest total in a seven-game span in a single season since 1950, and the longest run by Bear in the last two games was an 11-yarder by linebacker Barkevious Mingo on a fake punt against the Tennessee Titans in Week 9.