Will Kyle Monangai Return in Week 7? Injury and Timeline Updates for Chicago Bears RB

The Chicago Bears once again didn't have the services of running back Kyle Monangai for the Week 6 game against the Atlanta Falcons.

Monangai suffered a turf toe injury in Week 4 against the New York Jets and that kept him from playing in Week 5 versus the Green Bay Packers.

There was no progress for Monangai in Week 6, at least in terms of his practice participation, as the former seventh-round pick did not practice at all before being ruled out.

After two absences in a row for Monangai, here's what we know about his return timeline moving forward.

Kyle Monangai's return timeline

As head coach Ben Johnson said again this past week, there is no plan to put Monangai on injured reserve, which would have forced him to sit out a minimum of four games.

That means the Bears don't expect Monangai to sit out more than three games, which on the surface puts him in play to return in Week 7 against the New England Patriots.

However, the Bears have to play on a short week, with the game versus the Patriots taking place on Thursday, so Monangai won't have as much time as he normally would to get right, and it looks like he's going to need every day he can get since he still hasn't practiced since his injury.

Knowing all that, it's safe to assume that Monangai is going to be back in Week 8 against the Seattle Seahawks, at the earliest, instead of Week 7.

With the short week, the Bears will release their first injury report on Monday, and that injury report will likely be an estimation.

That said, any semblance of estimated participation would be good news for Monangai's chances of suiting up.

Kyle Monangai injury update

Last week, head coach Ben Johnson provided a positive update on Monangai.

While Johnson said once again that Monanga is week-to-week, he also noted how the Bears running back should avoid injured reserve and he's progressing in his recovery.

"It wasn't something we felt required an IR stint. It remains a week-to-week situation, but as far as I know, he's continuing to trend in the right direction," Johnson told reporters.

While it remains to be seen if Monangai will be back for Week 7 — again, we're skeptical that will happen — Johnson's update shows Monangai is getting better and that leaves us optimistic he won't be out longer than Week 8.

The Bears could certainly use their second-year back, as Chicago does not have another player like him on the roster and the offense just isn't the same without the Monangai-Swift duo.