Bears WR DJ Moore’s viral mid-play walk-off was due to a rolled ankle, says Matt Eberflus

Chicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore was responsible for one of the weirder moments in Week 9 when he walked off the field in the middle of a play against the Arizona Cardinals. Wednesday we finally got an explanation from head coach Matt Eberflus and Moore himself.

Eberflus told the media that Moore had rolled his ankle during the play, which happened with 11:13 left in the first quarter. While quarterback Caleb Williams was scrambling, Moore felt something in his ankle and limped off the field before the whistle sounded.

That’s different than what he said about the incident Monday. At that time he said he hadn’t been aware of the play, and figured that Moore had stepped out of bounds and just decided to stay out for the rest of the play.

Moore gave a more detailed explanation about what happened when asked about it Wednesday. He had already been running during the play when he felt a tweak in his ankle, and decided to let his momentum carry him off to the sideline.

Moore said the initial roll of the ankle was painful and it didn’t clear up right away, but it wasn’t bad enough for him to stop. He did exercises on the sideline to keep himself warmed up before the offense went back onto the field.

Moore has trouble keeping a straight face while he’s talking, giving the sense that he may not be telling the entire truth about what happened, but the whole episode had no bearing on the outcome of the game or Moore’s availability. He was able to reenter the game, played for the duration, and the Bears lost 29-9.

The Bears face the New England Patriots on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.