Smith Says Too Early to Tell on Knox

Johnny Knox's injury in the Bears' loss to the Seahawks was ugly. His body was bent in half in a way that made anyone who saw it wonder if he would ever walk again, much less play football.

For that reason, reports he would start the season on the physically unable to perform list were not surprising.

Bears coach Lovie Smith did not agree with the reports, saying it is way too early in Knox's recovery from spinal fusion surgery to know where he is headed.

"It would be hard for me to go into that right there," Smith said from the NFL owners meetings in Palm Beach, Fla. "Are you a religious man? Do you talk to God? He can probably tell you. Besides that, it's going to be pretty hard. Doctors know? Give me his number and I'll call him as soon as we stop talking. I just know that Johnny is working hard each day. He has made a lot of progress. That's all we want, for Johnny to keep rehabbing, which is what he's doing. It's amazing how people are already diagnosing when he's coming back." 

Knox's wife was also not happy with anyone saying her husband wouldn't be ready for season in March.

She tweeted her displeasure

Where did this Johnny Knox is "struggling" to recover from back injury come from??? Cause I'm with him EVERYDAY & I know for a fact he's not struggling, but ok. Johnny has came a long way from 12/18/11 & HAS NOT had a setback, he's going no where but up!

Knox is wearing a back brace, and has been at Halas Hall rehabilitating his back every day. With training camp not until the end of July, it's way too early to know if Knox will or will not play in 2012. Even if he does start the season on the PUP list, he can play if he is healthy enough to by the sixth week of the season.

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