The Chicago Bears could be without a key weapon as they kickoff off the 2019 regular season, the franchise's 100th in existence, on Thursday night against the Green Bay Packers. According to ESPN's Jeff Dickerson, tight end Trey Burton will be a game-time decision for Week 1 as he continues recovering from a groin injury.

The veteran receiver underwent sports-hernia surgery in late May, missing the entire offseason. Bears coach Matt Nagy initially expressed optimism that Burton would be ready for training camp, and later stressed that Chicago was merely exercising caution when it was announced in early August that he was unlikely to play in the preseason.

It's unclear whether or not Burton's absence from his team's 16-15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round of the playoffs was related to his subsequent surgery. Considering he was sidelined with what was deemed a groin injury, however, it seems likely the past injury and more recent procedure were indeed connected. Chicago, though, has insisted that Burton's current injury does not stem from going under the knife.

Burton enjoyed a career season under Nagy in 2018, taking full advantage of the first-year head coach's innovative offensive concepts. He notched career-highs across the board of 54 catches for 569 yards and six touchdowns, proving difficult for defenses to matchup with wherever he was on the field given his unique combination of size, speed, and agility.

Bears offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich told reporters on Monday that his team is preparing for Green Bay with a contingency plan in place if Burton is ultimately unable to play.