The Chicago Bears continued to progress through the ramp-up period of training camp and held a short non-padded practice Sunday morning at Halas Hall.
The team is now 10 days away from its preseason opener against the Houston Texans in the Hall of Fame game and is pushing to create momentum across all three phases.
After Sunday’s practice and subsequent interviews with several players and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, here’s a snapshot of the camp proceedings.
Caleb Williams watch
The sample size is far too small right now to begin drawing conclusions about Caleb Williams’ camp progress. But the rookie quarterback continues to show daily flashes of his arm talent with his best throw Sunday coming during a 7-on-7 period when he threw a picture-perfect deep ball to Tyler Scott on a corner route to the left side of the field.
Williams is also showing proficiency in the quick game within the passing attack, using his quick hands and displaying an obvious feel for how to get the ball out fast and on target to his pass catchers.
Said Bears offensive coordinator Shane Waldron: “His ability to change his arm angle, get the ball out quick and adjust to different throws — whether they’re bubble (screens), slants, quick game (stuff) all in that area of the field — is something he demonstrated a high level of ability at in college.”
Williams’ practice Sunday ended on a down note when he turned the ball over on his final pass of an end-of-half 2-minute drill. After driving the Bears to the brink of field goal range with a big third-down throw to Keenan Allen plus a pair of subsequent checkdown completions to Roschon Johnson, Williams tried sling-shotting a pass to DJ Moore over the middle with a sidearm delivery. Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson made a great jump and dived in front of Moore to intercept the pass.
That play began with 16.8 seconds remaining and the Bears needing roughly 7-10 yards to get into field goal range. Those situational details add context to Williams’ pick.
Waldron called it “a good chance to be aggressive” and is hopeful the rookie quarterback’s continued exposure to similar situational challenges this summer will increase his game awareness.
“(It’s developing) the mindset and knowing when those (throws) are the right opportunities,” Waldron said.
News of the day
The Bears continue to rotate Ryan Bates and Coleman Shelton as their centers with the first-unit offense with Shelton seeing more extensive time in that role Sunday. Waldron called that depth chart battle “a great competition with two able players who can start in this league.”
“We have two guys who are just great pros and have a great overall understanding of it,” Waldron said. “So Caleb has a great comfort level with either/or right there.”
Waldron was later asked when he would like to shift the Bears’ focus on the offensive line from competition to continuity and stressed the value of the competition as a means of fortifying depth. Establishing a clear starter, he said, will come later.
Player in the spotlight
Safety Kevin Byard, 30 years old and now in his ninth NFL season, is a man of routine, a professional who takes immense pride in never missing practice time with a consistent routine he uses to squeeze the most out of each day. For Byard, that includes a regimented approach to eating during training camp with a “same thing every day” breakfast to create consistency.
“Oatmeal, berries, throw a little cinnamon and some honey on there,” Byard said. “(Then I) cut up like, six small pieces of bananas. It’s got to be six.”
Why six?
“I just started doing it and I stick to it for some reason,” Byard said.
Byard sticks to his routine as a means of aiding his longevity whether it be with his clean diet or the way he takes care of his body before and after practice. With 130 career regular-season games under his belt — and zero missed — it’s safe to say Byard’s methods work. His dialed-in approach to training camp is part of the formula, which includes a self-imposed “no pacing” edict.
“I don’t pace myself,” Byard said. “I try to empty the tank every day then fill it back up and do it again.”
The Bears are banking on Byard being a reliable leader and playmaker on the back end of a defense that seems to be coming together nicely.
“(We have) a lot of pieces, a lot of talent,” Byard said. “I see a lot of confidence. (It’s a) very confident group. Expectations have been talked about a lot this offseason. And I think we all kind of understand that and are working to live up to those expectations.”
Seen and heard
New running backs coach Chad Morton has quickly established himself as one of the more energized and boisterous members of Matt Eberflus’ staff and got the label from Byard on Sunday as the biggest trash talker among the Bears coaches. Even in the earliest and relatively tame stages of training camp, Morton’s voice has been easily heard by players on the defense. He also continually makes his presence felt by inserting himself into the defensive huddle with some competitive playfulness.
Photos: QB Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears at their 1st practice of training camp
On Sunday, when Morton popped in on the D before a 7-on-7 period, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds shot a glance toward running back D’Andre Swift. “Tremaine kind of looked at me like, ‘Come get your coach,’” Swift said.
Added Byard: “The next time he might get scooped up a little bit just to let him know to stop getting in our huddle.”
At this stage, Morton’s enthusiasm is providing a welcome injection of juice into the training camp grind.
Quote of note
Safety Jaquan Brisker has been thrilled to feel the edge that has been building within a starting secondary that includes him, Byard and cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson, Tyrique Stevenson and Kyler Gordon: “I feel like we’ve got something special,” Brisker said. “We call ourselves ‘The Avengers.’ We’ve got a lot of superheroes out there as you can see. And really we want to establish the physicality out there that nobody can mess with us.”
Injury and participation watch
After missing Saturday’s practice due to personal reasons, rookie receiver Rome Odunze was back in action Sunday morning.
Players who did not participate in practice included linebacker Noah Sewell, receiver Nsimba Webster and tight end Marcedes Lewis. Head coach Matt Eberflus was not available to the media following practice to offer a status update on any of those players.
Tight end Gerald Everett, meanwhile, was activated off the non-football injury (NFI) list.
The Bears return to the field Monday morning for the third of what will be a four-practice stack to open camp before the team’s first day off Wednesday.
