BOURBONNAIS, Ill., Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Veteran cornerback Jerry Azumah of the Chicago Bears likely will miss 3-4 weeks after undergoing arthroscopic hip surgery.
The team said Thursday Azumah had the operation Wednesday after missing four of five practice days with a sore hip, and likely will not return until Aug. 24 at the earliest.
"They went in and cleaned (the hip) out," said Coach Lovie Smith. "That's basically all that they needed to do. We expect him to be back in plenty of time for the first (regular season) game, so we're excited about that."
Chicago will begin the regular season at Washington Sept. 11.
Azumah, who has played his entire six-year career with Chicago, has 276 solo tackles, 10 interceptions and one touchdown.
Smith also said he is frustrated by the holdout by the Bears' No. 1 draft pick, running back Cedric Benson from Texas.
