Lisfranc Injury Reported for Eddie Jackson

Despite unfounded speculation about an Achilles injury for Bears safety Eddie Jackson, it appears he has a Lisfranc injury in his foot.

The nature of the injury was reported Tuesday by NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. Whether this is just a Lisfranc ligament issue or also involves a broken foot wasn't reported.

This apparently is the reason the Bears said they're still awaiting word on the injury's severity.

Asked Monday whether Jackson was out for the last five games, coach Matt Eberflus couldn't offer much.

"If it does happen that way then we'll have to get some young guys ready to play," he said.

Jackson suffered the non-contact injury while dropping into coverage on a 54-yard TD pass to Garrett Wilson.

The younger guy would be Elijah Hicks. Hicks and DeAndre Houston-Carson were the only two healthy safeties the Bears had left at game's end Sunday.

The Lisfranc ligament is band of tissue connecting metatarsal and tarsal bones in the foot but it is not the Achilles.

If surgery is needed, then Jackson's season would be over but his recovery from that injury wouldn't be as great of an issue as coming back from Achilles surgery. If no surgery is needed, he'd still be likely to miss the rest of the year because he'd need to keep the foot in a cast for an extended period.

It's often said players can recover from an Achilles tear in about the time it takes for an ACL tear but coming back from Achilles surgery with full speed and mobility can sometimes take more than a full season.

The Bears signed Larry Ogunjobi in free agency before this season after he had Lisfranc surgery due to an injury in the playoffs. He couldn't pass the Bears physical in free agency but it had only been a short period since his surgery.

Ogunjobi has gone on to start 10 games for the Steelers this year, although not with the kind of impact statistically they might have liked. He has half a sack and two tackles for loss.

Jackson was leading the Pro Bowl fan voting for safeties in the NFC and has four interceptions, tied for third in the league.

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