The Bears' 2016 season just went from bad to worse.
The NFL announced on Monday that wide receiver Alshon Jeffery has been suspended for four games for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing substances. The suspension will cost Jeffery a reported total of $3.4 million in lost salary.
Jeffery released a statement following the announcement of his suspension.
"As a professional athlete, I have been careful about what I put in my body. I took a recommended supplement to combat inflammation. Unfortunately this supplement contained an ingredient that was on the NFL's banned substance list. I take full responsibility and I'm deeply upset with myself for not doing the proper research."
"I want to apologize to my family, the Bears organization, my teammates, and Bears fans. I will work hard to earn back the respect and trust of the Bears nation and look forward to being back on the field."
The suspension means that the 2-7 Bears won't have their leading receiver for the next four weeks when they play the Giants, Titans, 49ers and Lions. Jeffery isn't allowed to return to practice until Dec. 12 and won't be eligible to play in a game until Dec. 18, when the Bears host the Packers.
>>Giants Best Bengals on MNF
Eli Manning threw his third touchdown pass of the game on a fourth-down, fourth-quarter roll of the dice by Ben McAdoo, and the Giants beat the Cincinnati Bengals 21-20 on Monday night for their first four-game winning streak since 2013.
Manning threw scoring passes of 10 yards apiece to rookie Jerrell Adams and Odell Beckham in the first half, and a game-winning 3-yarder to rookie Sterling Shepard on a daring call with New York (6-3) down 20-14 early in the fourth quarter.
The six wins match the Giants' total in each of the last two seasons under Tom Coughlin, and it bodes well with Chicago (2-7) and Cleveland (0-10) on tap the next two weeks.
The Giants defense took over, closing it out on Landon Collins' fourth interception in the past three games and two stops, the last on consecutive sacks of Andy Dalton with less than five minutes to play.
Dalton threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green and Jeremy Hill scored on a 9-yard run that was set up by an 84-yard kickoff return by Alex Erickson to start the second half. Mike Nugent kicked two field goals for Cincinnati (3-5-1), the second giving the Bengals a 20-14 lead early in the third quarter.
The Giants finish a three-game homestand with a matchup against Chicago.
