Commanders quarterback Carson Wentz will start Thursday night's game against the Bears, despite dealing with a biceps tendon strain near his throwing shoulder that raised questions about his availability on a short week, per sources.
Wentz is sore and not 100 percent, sources say. It was unclear early in the week if he'd be able to go, but he looked good throwing the ball in practice -- albeit in a walkthrough setting. The plan now is to get through this game and then try to heal up with extra rest coming off the Thursday night game.
Washington's next game is 10 days later -- at home Oct. 23 against the Packers.
The Commanders listed Wentz as a limited participant on their estimated participation report Monday and Tuesday because of a right shoulder injury before upgrading him to a full participant Wednesday and removing him from the final injury report.
Wentz suffered the injury in last week’s loss to the Titans -- which was one of his best games of the season, as he threw for 359 yards and two touchdowns before a late interception at the goal line ended Washington's chances.
The Commanders are 1-4 and have injuries on offense, including to receiver Jahan Dotson and tight end Logan Thomas, who are both out Thursday night. But they've shown signs of explosiveness on offense, ranking third in completions of 25 or more yards (14) and second in wide receiver touchdowns (nine) behind only the Bills.
Wentz and Washington are also taking the field for the first time since comments by head coach Ron Rivera caused a stir earlier in the week.
Asked Monday why other NFC East teams, who are each 4-1 or better, are faring better this season, Rivera answered, "Quarterback." Rivera, who underscored that he had no regrets trading for Wentz, went on to explain that successful teams build around quarterbacks and the other division signal-callers had familiarity with their clubs, which is not the case with Wentz at this juncture. After the comments caused an uproar, Rivera spoke with his quarterback.
"Coach addressed it, handled it. Nothing for me that I'm overly concerned about," Wentz said earlier in the week. "Coach is very straightforward, up front guy. He addressed it in a team meeting, which I thought was really cool and what he meant by all of it. I feel very confident."
Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter.
