The Chicago Bears practiced for the first time since Saturday’s preseason victory at Buffalo, getting in a 1 hour, 51-minute session in shells Tuesday morning at Halas Hall.
Here’s a rundown from practice and the news conferences afterward.
News of the day
The Minnesota Vikings experienced the worst-case preseason scenario as they announced quarterback J.J. McCarthy, the La Grange native drafted with the No. 10 pick this year, will require surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee.
The injury could sideline the former Michigan star for part or potentially all of his rookie season and comes on the heels of an impressive showing Saturday, when he completed 11 of 17 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns in a victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. It’s unknown when or how McCarthy was injured.
How does it apply to the Bears? They face the Vikings, who also have Sam Darnold at quarterback, in Weeks 12 and 15. More immediately, the Bears front office and coaching staff need to figure out to what extent — if at all — they want to play starters in the last two preseason games.
The Bears will host the Cincinnati Bengals for a joint practice at Halas Hall on Thursday, two days before the teams square off at Soldier Field. There’s a chance of inclement weather Thursday, which might force the teams inside the Walter Payton Center and could limit what they have planned.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor told Cincinnati media he doesn’t anticipate playing his starters Saturday. Bears coach Matt Eberflus, who was not available after practice Tuesday, held his starters out of the preseason game in Indianapolis last summer after two days of joint practices with the Colts.
Coaches like joint practices because they can dial up specific situations that might not come up in game flow. Of course, live reps don’t involve tackling and the quarterback is off limits.
“We want to continue to see the defense, the guys we’re going to be counting on and guys that are competing to make the team,” defensive coordinator Eric Washington said Tuesday. “We want to continue to see them in live action and in different situations, so I think the experience of a preseason game is important. Obviously, Coach Eberflus will make the final call on the specifics of that.”
Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams got 20 snaps in Saturday’s 33-6 victory at Buffalo, and it will be interesting to see how the Bears weigh the risk/reward of exposing him and other frontline players in games that won’t shape the future of the organization or the coaching staff. Yes, preseason reps have value, but McCarthy’s situation is a reminder of the potential downside.
Player in the spotlight
Third-year left tackle Braxton Jones feels more comfortable handling power off the edge, a focus since his rookie season in 2022. It’s not just getting stronger but also having elite timing and understanding what’s coming. As the game slows down for Jones, he’s better prepared to handle a bull rush.
“As camp has progressed, I definitely think it’s gotten a lot better for myself,” he said. “I’m starting to really see the numbers (on the defender’s jersey). When I get back in my set and I really see those numbers and starting to punch them and anchoring down on that a lot better. I’m starting to see a lot quicker.
“I still think there’s some improvement when they’re attacking my inside shoulder, but other than that, I’m definitely getting better each day.”
You can’t overstate the significance of Jones’ development this season — for both himself and the team. The Bears drafted Yale’s Kiran Amegadjie in the third round, and while he remains on the non-football injury list, the team is curious to see how he looks once he’s cleared, which could happen soon. Amegadjie won’t push Jones for the job in the near future, but this season will help shape Jones’ career arc.
“I think Braxton’s advanced,” offensive line coach Chris Morgan said. “He’s done a really good job in the offseason. He’s actually gained some weight during camp, the right kind of weight, and he’s just playing faster and more confident every day. It’s good to see where he’s at.”
Caleb Williams watch
After the first-team offense reached the red zone twice at Buffalo and settled for a field goal both times, the Bears focused on red-zone drills.
The defense did a nice job in 7-on-7 with linebacker Tremaine Edmunds reaching high to intercept a pass Williams lofted toward the left corner for Dante Pettis. Terell Smith and Jaylon Johnson had deflections on consecutive snaps, but Williams connected with tight end Gerald Everett for a touchdown on a wheel route when Johnson and safety Kevin Byard appeared to have a mix-up.
In a two-minute drill at the end of practice, Williams took advantage of a free play (a defensive player was offside) and hit Rome Odunze for a 30-yard touchdown. Odunze was streaking down the sideline wide open after a double move on Smith at the end of a strong practice for the second-year cornerback.
Williams also hit Keenan Allen in stride on a short slant over the middle. That’s the kind of completion the offense hasn’t taken advantage of a lot in recent years. Having a crafty veteran to work in the middle third of the field should help change that.
Quote of note
Defensive end Dominique Robinson, entering his third season, was asked if he arrived at training camp with a now-or-never approach after his 2023 playing time was cut nearly in half from his rookie season.
“Being realistic? Yeah,” Robinson said. “I’ve been put in a position to where, in my head, it’s either I take the spot or … it’s football. It’s a business. I came in trying to prove a point.”
Robinson bulked up in the offseason, adding 15 pounds to get to 273 with 8% body fat. That will help him be more stout when it’s time to set the edge.
“I wasn’t getting it done at the weight I was, and I knew I could put weight on and still be explosive and get faster at the same time,” he said. “So why not? The more you can. To be able to come in at that weight and to get stronger over the offseason, it just helped me become a better football player overall.”
Robinson stuffed Bills running back James Cook for a 2-yard loss on third-and-2 in the first quarter Saturday, a highlight of his 14 snaps.
Seen and heard
- Kicker Cairo Santos was good from 56 yards at the end of a two-minute period with the second-team offense at the close of practice. He was 5-for-5 in special teams drills earlier, with the distances ranging from 33 to 48 yards.
- Washington is enthusiastic about where rookie defensive end Austin Booker is. The fourth-round pick has shown well in practice and had 2½ sacks at Buffalo. But after about five questions regarding Booker, Washington tapped the brakes on the hype train.
“He’s making good progress,” Washington said. “And I’m going to make sure that I maintain perspective with him. I don’t want to get ahead of myself with Austin. He’s had a couple of good showings, and I’m not trying to diminish what he did. But there’s a long way to go in this process of being game-ready when it’s outside the preseason.
“He’s doing a good job. Even today, this practice, just going from that performance and coming back down to earth and blocking out all of the noise. Some of the praise and adulation, those things can be as toxic as listening to some of the negative things. We have to make sure we maintain a level head and just continue to work.”
- With three starters in the secondary missing most of the last two weeks, plenty of players have rotated through with the first team. It’s notable that Elijah Hicks has gotten a lot of time in place of strong safety Jaquan Brisker. Maybe that’s because Jonathan Owens missed some time, but it was Hicks running with the ones again Tuesday. Washington also singled out Josh Blackwell for his improvement at the nickel position in Kyler Gordon’s absence.
Injury report
- Perhaps more noteworthy than who missed practice was who returned, at least as partial participants. Right guard Nate Davis, who has missed the majority of training camp with a groin injury, was on the field for some team drills. The Bears likely will bring him along slowly to avoid a setback, which he encountered the last time out, but it was a step in the right direction for the veteran, who is due a guaranteed base salary of $8.75 million this season.
- Davis’ timing was good as Ryan Bates, who has been getting most of the work at right guard, was sidelined. Matt Pryor got a little bit of work as well with the first unit.
- Defensive end Montez Sweat (elbow) warmed up and went through some individual drills with most of his work done on the side. It was the same for Gordon (calf), which was encouraging as he has missed nearly all of camp.
- Brisker, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, defensive back Adrian Colbert, wide receivers DeAndre Carter and Collin Johnson, running back Roschon Johnson, linebacker Noah Sewell, long snapper Patrick Scales, defensive end Jacob Martin and guard Theo Benedet were sidelined.
