Guard Chilo Rachal, who left the Chicago Bears on Wednesday after being demoted in favor of Chris Spencer, is done for the season after being placed on the reserve/non-football injury list Thursday.
Rachal was back at Halas Hall on Thursday morning, according to a league source. The Bears were seriously concerned about his emotional state, the source said. According to NFL rules, Rachal had five days to report back to the team after leaving Wednesday.
By putting Rachal on the reserve/non-football injury list, the Bears have the option of not paying him for the rest of the season. Rachal would have been a candidate for termination pay if he'd been released.
Meanwhile, right tackle Gabe Carimi was told he won't start Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings. Jonathan Scott will replace Carimi in the lineup.
"It's disappointing," Carimi said after practice Thursday. "But I'm good. I'll be back."
The Bears also signed guard Chris Riley -- a Wadsworth native who played at Illinois State and was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 2011 -- to the practice squad.
Rachal started the last eight games after replacing Spencer at left guard. The coaching staff praised Rachal for the toughness he immediately brought to the line, but he took a significant step back in Monday night’s 32-7 loss at San Francisco. Penalties also have been a problem for Rachal.
The biggest issue, however, might be Rachal’s state of mind at this point. Tribune columnist David Haugh documented Rachal’s troubled past in this story.
Rachal signed a one-year, $700,000 contract in April after spending the previous four seasons with San Francisco. He was a second-round pick of the 49ers out of USC.
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