Bears TE Kmet to be 'sorely missed' after season-ending knee injury
Bears tight end Cole Kmet will miss the remainder of the 2026 season after he suffered a serious right knee injury during Chicago's 30-24 win over New England.
Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet will miss the remainder of the 2026 season after suffering a serious right knee injury during Chicago's 30-24 win over New England, coach Ben Johnson announced Friday.
The Bears placed Kmet on season-ending injured reserve following testing Friday morning. With 5:46 to play in the fourth quarter, Kmet caught an 8-yard pass from Caleb Williams before colliding with Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and linebacker Robert Spillane as he ran up the Bears' sideline. He immediately grabbed his knee and had to be carted off the field; teammates gathered around as he was loaded onto the cart, and he gave the crowd a thumbs-up.
"He's everything we want to be about here," Johnson said. "He's one of the glue guys." Kmet, 27, was drafted by Chicago in 2020 and has missed only one game across seven NFL seasons.
Without Kmet, Chicago will lean on Colston Loveland and rookie Sam Roush, with Stephen Carlson and Qadir Ismail on the practice squad and undrafted free agent Hayden Large eligible to come off injured reserve.
The Bears use some of the highest rates of 12 and 13 personnel — multiple tight-end sets — in the NFL. "We trained all our tight ends to be able to do all the jobs," Johnson said.
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