Tremaine Edmunds returns to practice, but Cole Kmet exits as the Chicago Bears’ injury pileup continues

For the last three weeks during an unfortunate training camp limbo period, Chicago Bears linebacker Tremaine Edmunds has challenged himself to win each day, to make positive strides toward getting fully healthy.

So it was encouraging Wednesday afternoon to hear Edmunds deliver the latest result after a two-hour practice at Halas Hall.

“I would say I won again today,” Edmunds said with a smile.

That was a step in the right direction for one of the Bears’ best defensive players and most important leaders. Edmunds’ return to practice Wednesday marked his first time on the field since Aug. 2, ending a stretch of 11 consecutive missed practices. And while he was limited in what he was allowed to do, Edmunds feels like he’s building momentum.

He wouldn’t share the ailment that sidelined him — “Just had a couple things going on” — but nodded when asked if he thinks he’ll be on the field for the season opener Sept. 10 against the Green Bay Packers.

“Yeah,” he said. “I’ll be good.”

At this stage, the Bears need all the healthy bodies they can get as they finish the preseason with a rash of injuries. Tight end Cole Kmet was the latest to go down, exiting Wednesday’s practice at the Walter Payton Center with an undisclosed injury.

Kmet’s departure came on a day when the Bears were already practicing without 20 players, including starters Darnell Wright, Nate Davis, Teven Jenkins, Chase Claypool, Eddie Jackson, Jaquan Brisker, DeMarcus Walker and Yannick Ngakoue as well as notable backups Lucas Patrick, Velus Jones Jr., Dante Pettis, Rasheem Green and Travis Homer.

Asked about that pileup, Edmunds offered the old NFL shrug.

“This is my sixth year in, man,” he said. “That’s just training camp. Things are going to come up. That’s life in the NFL.”

Ideally, the Bears want to have their defense at full strength when Week 1 arrives, looking to grow the nasty edge they built through training camp. Edmunds knows he must be a presence at middle linebacker with his length, instincts and range. And he’s eager to bolster a unit he has watched gather momentum in his absence.

“It’s good to see,” he said.

Linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi said he has been impressed since the spring with the way Edmunds carries himself and how his experience shows up.

“He has played a lot of football,” Borgonzi said. “He has won a lot of games. His confidence and the way he approaches the game helps give the rest of the guys confidence.”

Edmunds has remained active in walk-throughs to help the defensive chemistry and communication and has been consistently engaged in meetings. He was unfazed by the notion that the first-unit defense might walk into Soldier Field for the opener without having been at full strength during August for practices or preseason games.

“Some things you just can’t control,” Edmunds said. “Those are things that obviously you’re going to have to work through. But it just goes back to us relying on the trust factor we have as far as the practices that we’ve put in, the walk-throughs, the meetings.

“As far as flipping the switch (for Week 1)? We’re professionals, man, and doing what we have to do to have our bodies ready and to make sure we’re on one accord.”