Bears healthy as they prepare to face Eagles

It’s a safe bet that the Bears will never be healthier than they’ll be when they face the Eagles on Monday night at Philadelphia.

What remains to be seen is how the newly healthy players will be assimilated into the lineup.

Rookie offensive right tackle Gabe Carimi and wide receiver Earl Bennett will be active in Philadelphia for the first time since Week 2, when Carimi suffered a partially dislocated kneecap and Bennett went out with a bruised chest.

They were the only two Bears unavailable because of injury against Tampa Bay in Week 7.

“We have our 53-man roster, for the most part, intact right now,” Bears coach Lovie Smith said after his team returned to the practice field Tuesday following a four-day weekend.

“This is the group we started the season with; that we wanted to win football games with. To have everyone eventually get in their role that we started off with is big. Most teams can’t say that halfway through the season.

“We’re in pretty good shape.”

When the season began, Carimi was in a starting role, but there’s no guarantee he will get his job back immediately. Lance Louis has performed well the past two games after moving from right guard to right tackle, and Chris Spencer has done the same filling in at right guard.

“We don’t have to make any of those decisions yet,” Smith said. “We’ll let (Carimi) tell us exactly how far he’s come along.”

Carimi says he’s fine with that.

“I just have to keep on playing hard,” he said. “The stability (of the knee) is fine, the pain’s low, so everything’s coming along good.”

Bennett was off to a slow start, catching just 3 passes for 20 yards before he was injured early against the Saints. But he was second on the team last season with 561 yards and third with 46 receptions.

This is his fourth week back on the practice field, so he’s itching to get back into the action after being held out the past two games.

“The coaches just thought I wasn’t ready to go,” he said. “That’s what it came down to. Just have to live with it and keep going, but nothing will hold me back from Monday’s game.”

As the No. 3 receiver last season, Bennett was often on the field as much as the two starters.

But it’s a more crowded position this year, with Devin Hester and Roy Williams (when he has been healthy) starting, Johnny Knox playing a lot and rookie Dane Sanzenbacher stepping into Bennett’s spot in the slot and playing well.

“He’s a starting (caliber) receiver,” Smith said of Bennett. “We don’t have to wonder what he can do; we’ve seen him in just about every situation. Whatever we’ve asked him to do, from returning punts for touchdowns to (playing) the slot receiver, (he’s done).”

ŸRunning back Armando Allen was re-signed to the practice squad Tuesday.

He originally was signed to the practice squad Sept. 5, where he spent four weeks before being released Oct. 11. Allen entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with Tampa Bay out of Notre Dame.

ŸFollow Bob’s Bears reports via Twitter @BobLeGere and check out our Bear Essentials blog at dailyherald.com.