GLENDALE, Ariz. — When cornerback Tyrique Stevenson found out Wednesday he was going to be benched against the Cardinals, he briefly left the Bears’ walk-through for the locker room before returning to finish practice.
“I feel like if you don’t hear something that you want to hear, I feel like everybody has the opportunity to walk away and collect themselves,” Stevenson said Sunday after the Bears’ 29-9 blowout loss to the Cardinals.
Stevenson said he didn’t sense any annoyance from his teammates Wednesday. He claimed no one said anything to him about going to the locker room. Many veterans had already talked to Stevenson about his inexcusable mistake against the Commanders, when he was busy gesturing to fans when they snapped a Hail Mary they’d eventually convert. Noah Brown, the man Stevenson was supposed to guard, caught the 52-yard game-winning touchdown.
Stevenson didn’t start Sunday’s blowout loss to the Cardinals, but the plan was for him to cycle in and play limited snaps. Terell Smith started and played well, breaking up a third-down pass, before the Bears inserted Stevenson for the third defensive series. Smith then hurt his ankle, leaving Stevenson to play the rest of the game.
Stevenson said he didn’t know how much he’d play Sunday.
“[The benching] was up to the coaches and I respect their decision,” he said. “I’m still a part of this team and they made me feel that all week.”
Coach Matt Eberflus said Stevenson had a good week of practice and played well Sunday.
“He put his best foot forward,” Eberflus said. “His teammates and his coaches and all of us in that circle have got his back.”
Stevenson knows he won’t be able to shake his Hail Mary gaffe.
“You don’t put things like that aside,” he said. “You take ‘em as they go and you just add them to the résumé. I feel like this is going to be on my résumé to always keep me locked in on every game until the end of the game.”
No Sweat
The Bears were hopeful star defensive end Montez Sweat would play Sunday, one week after his shin was stepped on by a Commanders player’s cleat. But he was made inactive after working out on the field before the game.
Sweat missed two practices last week and had his shin bandaged over where the cleat punctured his skin.
“When you’re a defensive end, your ankle has to have flexion, and you gotta make sure that you’re able to have that mobility in your lower extremities to be able to play the way he plays,” Eberflus said.
No targets
For the first time all year, tight end Cole Kmet didn’t have a single target.
“I’m never going to be one to complain for targets …” Kmet said. “I would love to be more involved in the pass game, but there’s a lot of layers to that. I don’t think it’s a lack of trying.”
This and that
• Nose tackle Andrew Billings hurt his pec in the third quarter and was quickly ruled out. Right tackle Darnell Wright (knee) and cornerback Jaylon Jones (shoulder) left the game in the fourth quarter.
• In his NFL debut, slot cornerback Reddy Steward forced a fumble in the second quarter when he punched the ball out of Marvin Harrison’s arms. Safety Elijah Hicks recovered it.
“He had the ball loose and I reacted to it and punched it out,” Steward said.
• The NFL’s trade deadline is Tuesday afternoon. Running back Khalil Herbert, who was only one of two healthy players scratched Sunday, remains a candidate to be dealt. So does guard Nate Davis, who was active for the first time since Week 5.