Bears tight end Cole Kmet will miss rest of season with knee injury
The Bears said tight end Cole Kmet will miss the rest of the season with a right knee injury sustained late in their 30-24 win over the Patriots. Coach Ben Johnson said Kmet will be sorely missed, and quarterback Caleb Williams described Kmet’s importance to the team.
AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 5 outlets' reporting · Article text read from 1 of 5 outletsHow it's made
View timeline · 6 entriesWhat happened
Key facts
- Cole Kmet will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury (per suntimes.com, ESPN, AP News).
- Kmet injured his right knee late in the fourth quarter of the Bears’ 30-24 win against the Patriots (per suntimes.com).
- Coach Ben Johnson said Kmet would be sorely missed (per suntimes.com, USA Today).
- Quarterback Caleb Williams said he could not describe Kmet’s importance to him, the team and the organization (per suntimes.com).
- Kmet had 10 catches for 87 yards this season and was described as the Bears’ most reliable blocking tight end (per suntimes.com).
- Kmet is signed through next year and has a $15.4 million salary cap hit and a $5.4 million dead cap charge (per suntimes.com).
The brief
The Bears said tight end Cole Kmet will miss the rest of the season with a right knee injury. The injury came late in the fourth quarter of Chicago’s 30-24 win against the Patriots, after Kmet caught a nine-yard pass along the Bears’ sideline, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The team took him to the locker room by cart.
The Sun-Times reported that testing confirmed the season-ending injury Friday morning. Its account identifies the injured knee as Kmet’s right knee. Kmet is 27 and was drafted in 2020 in the same second round as teammate Jaylon Johnson, the newspaper reported.
Coach Ben Johnson said Kmet would be “sorely missed.” Quarterback Caleb Williams also spoke about Kmet’s importance, saying Thursday night that he did not have words to describe what Kmet meant to him, the team and the organization. The comments came after the injury during the Bears’ win. Kmet had 10 catches for 87 yards this season, according to the Sun-Times.
The newspaper described him as Chicago’s most reliable blocking tight end, adding a measure of his role beyond the receiving figures. The Bears’ announcement means he will be unavailable for the remainder of the season. The Sun-Times reported that Kmet is under contract through next year. His salary cap hit is $15.4 million, while the dead cap charge is $5.4 million.
Those figures describe the contract terms cited in the account; the article does not connect them to the team’s decision about Kmet’s season-ending injury. ESPN’s headline also says Kmet will be sorely missed after a season-ending knee injury.
Headlines from AP News, USA Today’s Bears Wire, and The New York Times likewise identify the injury as season-ending; The New York Times characterizes it as serious. The Sun-Times account supplies the game sequence, the coaches’ and quarterback’s remarks, and the listed season and contract figures.
Why it matters
- Kmet’s season ends after he recorded 10 catches for 87 yards, removing a player the Sun-Times describes as the Bears’ most reliable blocking tight end.
- Coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams both emphasized Kmet’s importance to the team.
- Kmet’s contract runs through next year, with a reported $15.4 million salary cap hit and $5.4 million dead cap charge.
What to watch next
- Whether the Bears announce how they will cover Kmet’s tight end role for the rest of the season.
- Whether the Bears provide further information about Kmet’s right knee injury.
- How the Bears use Kmet’s contract terms, reported as running through next year, in future roster decisions.
How it's being covered
Coverage analysisShow details6 source articles · 5 unique outletsOutlet political mix: Mostly Center· 1 Left · 4 CenterWhere the outlets are based: US/Canada 60% · Global 20% · Other 20%
- Coverage is currently concentrated among Center-rated outlets (4 of 5 rated sources); comparatively few Right-rated outlets have published on the event.
One source is from a wire service (AP, Reuters, AFP or Bloomberg), whose reporting other outlets often republish.
How outlets' accounts compare
Timeline
Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.- The Chicago Bears selected Cole Kmet in the second round of the NFL Draft.Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
- By 2023, he had set career highs with 73 receptions and 719 receiving yards, and the Bears’ extension made him one of the NFL’s highest-paid tight ends at the time.Background · from our historical context
- In 2024, Kmet played alongside rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who had been selected first overall in that year’s NFL draft.Background · from our historical context
- The Bears named Williams their starting quarterback for the 2024 season.Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
- Williams made his NFL debut in the Bears' season-opening win over the Tennessee Titans.Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
- The Bears hired Ben Johnson as their head coach.Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
How we got here
Before the 2026 season, Cole Kmet had established himself as a long-term part of Chicago’s offense: the Bears signed the tight end to a four-year contract extension in July 2023, keeping him under contract through 2027. In 2024, Kmet played alongside rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who had been selected first overall in that year’s NFL draft.
Kmet’s Bears career began when Chicago selected him 43rd overall in the 2020 NFL draft. By 2023, he had set career highs with 73 receptions and 719 receiving yards, and the Bears’ extension made him one of the NFL’s highest-paid tight ends at the time.
Original sources
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