The Chicago Bears are continuing through an adjustment-filled week and held their usual Thursday practice at Halas Hall. They are headed on the road to play the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday in the first game under interim coach Thomas Brown.
As the team looks to snap its six-game losing streak, here are three things we learned Thursday in Lake Forest.
1. Chris Beatty will take on a heightened role with game management.
Beatty, the Bears receivers coach-turned-offensive coordinator, still plans to remain on the sideline during games but asserted Thursday that he will be taking greater responsibility as an in-game resource to Brown, particularly with clock management and other game-management duties.
The Bears have struggled with those throughout the season under the watch of former coach Matt Eberflus and director of research and analysis Harrison Freid, most notably in the final minute of last week’s 23-20 loss to the Detroit Lions. Thus Beatty and Brown have been at the forefront of a shake-up, aiming to improve the headset-communication processes among coaches to, per Beatty, “make that a little less hectic.”
“When (Thomas) became in charge,” Beatty said, “it was easy for us to say, ‘Hey, we need to clean these parts of our organization up and be able to be in a position to where we don’t have those same things happen to us.”
Beatty has had clock management and game management responsibilities throughout his career dating to his high school coaching days in Virginia more than 20 years ago and continuing into a two-season stop at Wisconsin under Gary Andersen in 2013 and 2014. (Brown was also part of that Badgers staff in 2014.)
Both have made the improvement of the Bears’ game management system a priority.
“One of the first things Thomas and I talked about was how to streamline that and make it smoother,” Beatty said. “We have gone through the process of simulating how we’re going to do that in a game and try to get that to where it’s not an issue.
“And stay a play ahead. That’s part of the issue. We haven’t been ahead of the game. We’ve been a bit late.”
2. Quarterbacks coach Kerry Joseph has seen Caleb Williams handle last week’s late-game breakdowns with resilience.
Joseph did not fault Williams for any part of the 6-yard sack he took on the penultimate play of the Bears’ loss to the Lions on Thanksgiving with defensive end Za’Darius Smith coming untouched to tackle Williams 1.94 seconds after he took that snap for a called quarterback draw.
“When he realized that guy was right on him, he did the best thing he could,” Joseph said Thursday. “We always talk about protecting the football. And he did the best thing he could right there to do so.”
Joseph also expressed confidence in the way Williams will respond and grow from the final 32 seconds of that game, an astonishing sequence during which the Bears failed to use their final timeout and, by Williams’ own admission, he wasn’t hurried enough in getting what turned out to be the final play off.
“We could have helped him out as coaches in that situation,” Joseph said. “And he understands (that situation) now. That’s one of those first-time deals that happened to him that he’s always going to remember. He’s always going to remember that and he’s always going to learn from that.
“I always talk about RAM, which is repetition and mistakes. That’s wasn’t a mistake by him but that’s a repetition he’s always going to remember and he’s always going to remind himself, ‘If I’m ever in that situation again, I know how to handle it now.’ He did everything he could. We have to help him with communicating and working on things so that doesn’t happen to us again. It’s just one of those, you know? You just learn from it.”
3. Eric Washington is all business as he takes over the defensive play-calling.
Washington has been the defensive coordinator since the season began but now will call the plays in the wake of Matt Eberflus’ exit. Those responsibilities aren’t entirely new to Washington, who called plays as the Carolina Panthers coordinator under coach Ron Rivera in 2018. (Washington also did so for the Bears during the preseason in August.)
“Looking back at that (season in Carolina) and my first time having the opportunity to function in that role, there’s no easy part of calling a game,” Washington said Thursday. “But the gotta-have-it situations, the fourth-down plays, the calls that you make down in the red zone are critical. Because those things can lead to points. So you have to make sure you have a really decisive plan to give your guys the best call that really accentuates what we can do and manages that situation. And then let them go play.”
Washington emphasized his desire for the Bears defense to be confident, connected and consistent as they work toward Sunday’s game against an always dangerous 49ers offense. He also has sensed an energy spike during practice this week.
“I get the impression that the guys are eager to go out and play,” Washington said. “From what I’ve been able to glean, they’re in a good spot. I don’t mean to speak for them. I’m just talking from what I’ve observed. Our last two practices were excellent. There was a lot of energy, a lot of smiling.
“That isn’t to compare and contrast where we are now against where we’ve been. I’m just telling you that I believe the guys are eager to go out and prove they can be a dominant defense.”
Extra point: On the injury report, offensive starters DJ Moore and D’Andre Swift both missed practice Thursday with quadriceps injuries. Elijah Hicks (ankle), Ryan Bates (concussion) and Roschon Johnson (concussion) also were out.
Receiver Keenan Allen was a full participant after missing Wednesday’s practice with an ankle injury. Right tackle Darnell Wright also was a full participant after being limited by a knee issue Wednesday.
Kevin Byard (shoulder) and Coleman Shelton (knee) were limited for the second consecutive practice.
