The Chicago Bears took the field for their 20th practice of training camp without pads. They are on a short week with a trip to Kansas City to face the Chiefs on Thursday.
The Chiefs are not playing Patrick Mahomes and the starters.
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus has yet to make it official either way for his guys. He is slated to speak on Tuesday But the team upgraded their planned walkthrough on Wednesday to a full-fledged practice. That could indicate an intention to rest the 1s with two-plus quarters of preseason reps.
Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, nickelback Kyler Gordon, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, and tight end Gerald Everett all spoke ahead of Monday?s practice.
Bears Training Camp Notes: Kyler Gordon?s Next Step
Kyler Gordon?s Evolution Can Take Bears? Defense to New Heights
Gordon is entering his third NFL season, and he has already showcased his multi-faceted skill set on several occasions. But Gordon is seeking to reach another level, one that comes with Pro Bowl and even All-Pro honors, per Bears nickelbacks coach David Overstreet II.
Overstreet cited a need for Gordon to up his ball production from his current 2.5 interceptions per season to four and even five picks to achieve his goal.
Gordon also has one fumble recovery in his career.
He showcased another dimension of his game against the Cincinnati Bengals, teeing off on quarterback Logan Woodside for a jarring sack. Gordon has 1.0 career sacks, which came in 2023, and spoke about the hit ahead of Monday?s practice.
?Everyone love to blitz, get aggressive, sack the quarterback, sack fumble, tackle for losses,? Gordon told reporters on Monday. ?Yeah, everyone loves that.?
He also agreed they are doing more blitzing so far in training camp.
That could be a wise choice for a Bears squad that ranked 31st in sacks and tied for the 10th-lowest blitz rate in the NFL, per Pro Football Reference. Gordon getting home more often is sure to lead to some turnovers.
He laughingly confirmed the sideline got on him about not punching the ball out on the sack on Woodside. And when he fakes the blitz, opponents have to respect it.
That could lead to some hurried throws that could land in Gordon?s lap.
Even more encouraging, the adjustment is not specific to having Gordon on the field as evidenced by Josh Blackwell?s sack recorded in the win over Cincinnati. An increased willingness to bring pressure would go a long way to alleviating concerns about the pass rush.
Montez Sweat is but one player and the options opposite him will have to capitalize on the opportunities he creates.
Short of someone stepping up to bookend Sweat, bringing additional pressure makes sense.
Tremaine Edmunds Knows the Bears? Job is Not Done in Training Camp
Edmunds spoke eloquently when asked about the defense?s level of readiness, noting that there is still another week of training camp after the Chiefs game and how important this time on the practice field is.
?I think we’re in a good space as far as the work that we’ve been putting in,? Edmunds said Monday. ?Obviously, we don’t play next week, so still a whole lot more work to be done. I know we get a couple more guys back that’s been you know kind of hurt throughout training camp. But it’s been good you know for the most part. A lot of guys have been able to be out there just cling together the whole training camp and just kind of just developing that chemistry, that bond that we need to go out there and win games.
?We’re not done working yet. We still have a lot more time until our first game. So that’s what the focus is right now: continue to get better.?
The Bears dealt with injuries heading into the 2023 campaign that proved detrimental.
Their secondary was banged up, forcing backups into key roles at every position at one point or another. The Bears got Gordon and second-year corner Tyrique Stevenson back in the mix ahead of the showdown with Cincinnati.
They got safety Jaquan Brisker, who like draft classmate Gordon has dealt with injuries in his still-young career, back for Monday?s practice.
On the whole, the Bears enter the week of their preseason finale in better shape than in 2023.
Bears Developing Unlikely OL Continuity
Injuries kept the offensive line from developing cohesion early in 2023. This preseason, Caleb Williams has played all of his snaps with four of his five starting offensive linemen: (left to right) Braxton Jones, Teven Jenkins, Coleman Shelton, and Darnell Wright, per Pro Football Focus.
The lone player to miss time is right guard Nate Davis, who was seemingly mired in a position battle before his competition, Ryan Bates, suffered an injury of his own.
Davis logged every starting rep versus the Bengals.
Eberflus went as far as to insist that continued absences as Davis endured earlier in camp could open the door for someone else to step up. That was Bates, a leader in the locker room who was supposed to battle Shelton for the starting center job.
The question is, when healthy, does Bates stay in a reserve role for the sake of continuity which is paramount for an offensive line?
Davis and Shelton?s respective play will go a long way toward determining that.
Notably, Bates is the only one of the three who has played both center and guard. That also figured to be a significant factor in who ultimately won those spots before the former Buffalo Bill?s injury.
Gerald Everett Talks ?Pressure? on Caleb Williams
Williams drew rave reviews for his 6-for-13, 75-yard performance versus the Bengals that saw the first-string offense go three-and-out on its first three possessions. Williams & Co. bounced back after that with the rookie going 4-for-7 for 63 yards in the second quarter.
That resolve has been a staple of comments about Williams from teammates and coaches alike, and on Monday, it was Gerald Everett?s turn.
He was asked what he learned about Williams in the Bengals game after the slow start.
?Just being able to just keep going no matter what’s thrown at him,? Everett said. ?Being a rookie quarterback, I can’t imagine the pressure that’s on him. But going through an NFL install from training camp to now, leading up to Week 1, just seeing him handle it, just roll with the punches is a sight to see.
?Watching them perform on Saturday ? was also a sight to see. And rolling out, pocket presence, vision down the field and hitting Rome [Odunze] stride. I can’t say enough about Caleb and I’m sure he’ll be even more exciting in the future.?
Williams, who told Sports Illustrated?s Albert Breer that he keeps screenshots of his doubters for motivation, has gone from needing to improve his cadence to dazzling in preseason moments.
His next test ? whether he faces KC or not ? will be Week 1 versus the Tennessee Titans.
Bears Injury Round-Up & Former Bears News
The good news is the Bears also got rookie Kiran Amegadjie back. He suffered his injury in 2023 while still at Yale and had missed all of the on-field work before Monday.
The bad news is that ironman Kevin Byard was with the side work group during practice.
The Bears are also still without Bates and a slew of reserve options, including wide receiver Collin Johnson, corners Jaylon Jones and Leon Jones (no relation), pass rusher Jacob Martin, long snapper Patrick Scales, and offensive lineman (Canadian Eagle) Theo Benedet.
Former Bears general manager Ryan Pace received a promotion to vice president of football operations/player personnel of the Atlanta Falcons. It is his second promotion since joining the organization in 2022.