Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams spoke candidly about the viral video Clocker Sports shot of him going through a drill in a recent practice in which he seemingly “missed” his target on every pass and showed visible “frustration” after.
The drill, according to Williams, pertained to speed, not mechanics or accuracy, as his was picked apart ad nauseam in the aftermath.
Moreover, the frustration was in jest and due to a competition among the team’s QBs.
Bears Ready to Hit Somebody Else After Physical Week of Practice
What to Watch For in Bears’ Joint Practice With Dolphins
Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen echoed just about every other figure who has taken the podium in the last week, including Williams and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, both of whom spoke on Thursday, saying he was eager to see the Miami Dolphins.
The Bears have been in camp since July 22 (July 19 for the team’s rookies), and have gone through 13 practices, all of which were against one another. That changes on Friday.
The Palm Beach Post’s Joe Schad posted an image of Dolphins star Tyreek Hill practicing.
Hill had missed practice on Wednesday with an undisclosed injury, but appears prime to take part in the joint session on Friday in some capacity. Notably, the Bears are still without top cornerback Jaylon Johnson.
They also saw top nickelback Kyler Gordon exit Thursday’s practice early with an undisclosed injury of his own.
That puts even greater onus on a Bears secondary still looking to lock down its CB2.
Gordon will play there in base sets. But with the amount of nickel teams play, the Bears’ third corner, like many teams, is essentially a starting job. Tyrique Stevenson has been playing opposite Nahshon Wright as the latter fills in for Johnson.
They could face a stiff test in Hill and fellow speedster Jaylen Waddle in practice, and even more if Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel plays any of his starters in the preseason opener.
It will be interesting to see how the Bears’ duo fares against Miami’s whenever they match up.
LT Rotation Whittled Down by Default?
Thursday marked the fifth practice that 2024 third-round draft pick Kiran Amegadjie, who has been in the mix for the starting left tackle job in a competition that also includes Braxton Jones and rookie second-round pick Ozzy Trapilo, missed due to injury.
With Amegadjie out, Trapilo had led the first-team reps in practice.
Over the last couple, though, which includes the release of the first unofficial depth chart, Jones has been back in his spot.
The Bears continue to rotate both, but Jones has begun rounding into form after missing the offseason program recovering from ankle surgery. Trapilo, meanwhile, continues to develop enough to keep the competition going.
The question is how far Amegadjie has fallen, especially relative to where he was before.
The Bears may not get much of a test from the Dolphins’ pass rush, a group that produced the sixth-fewest sacks and ranked 17th in blitz rate, per Pro Football Reference.
Teams are also very vanilla in their game planning in the preseason. Still, the Bears will surely be looking for more moments that will help them make their decision before the regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football.
Big Day for Rookie RB
The Bears did not have third-year running back Roschon Johnson on Thursday, which meant a heavy dose of rookie second-round pick Kyle Monangai.
Monangai has seen increased work with the first-team offense in recent practices, and he has drawn strong reviews from coaches and teammates, both for his approach and his playing style, which complements the more dynamic ability of starter D’Andre Swift well.
Johnson still figures to have a role as the short-yardage and goal-line back.
Monangai, though, appears primed for a notably contributing role in Ben Johnson’s offense during the regular season.