The Facts: Meredith suffered thumb ligament injury today. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the wideout will miss the team's off-season program, but expects to be ready for camp.
Diehards Line:
A former college QB, Meredith was thrust into a major role on offense last season after going undrafted in 2015 and finished the year leading the Bears in receptions and receiving yards (and tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns). He showed signs of being a solid option in the passing game in his rookie season, but few thought he would make as big of a jump in 2016 as he did. After losing Alshon Jeffery in free agency, Chicago added Victor Cruz, Kendall Wright and Markus Wheaton to compete with Kevin White, Joshua Bellamy, Deonte Thompson and Daniel Braverman for playing time, but Meredith is set to be the guy in the passing game in 2017. Given that, we'll be watching for more on this injury going forward.