Chicago Bears training camp: Takeaways from Day 6

USA Today

29-07-2025

The Chicago Bears were back at Halas Hall for the sixth practice of training camp on Tuesday, which featured some intriguing developments from their second padded practice.
The Bears ramped up the intensity on Tuesday morning, where the offense got off to a strong start while the defense put a stamp on practice during team and two-minute drills. There were plenty of highlights to come out of this sixth practice, including quarterback Caleb Williams' continued progress, position battles heating up and Chicago's young weapons turning heads.
Here's what we learned from the sixth practice of training camp, from the most physical practice so far to Williams' progress to Colston Loveland already making waves to the defense's strong finish.
Most physical day of training camp so far
The Bears were in pads for the second straight day, but just as head coach Ben Johnson promised, the intensity and physicality ramped up Tuesday. According to Greg Braggs, it was the most physical practice of training camp so far. There was "tough tackling, loud pads being popped and good competitiveness." Da Windy City Productions noted that you could "hear the pads thumping." Matt Zahn noted there was "live tackling" for the time in camp. And the best part was there weren't any injuries sustained. According to Alex Shapiro, T.J. Edwards, Elijah Hicks and Tysheem Johnson had the biggest hits of the day.
Defense finishes strong with two-minute drill
While it sounds like the offense had a strong start to practice -- once again led by quarterback Caleb Williams -- the defense put an exclamation on practice with an impressive two-minute drill. According to Bear Report, the "offense struggled in team drills and two minute," where the defense ramped up the intensity. According to Greg Braggs, the first-, second- and third-team offenses "had no answers" for the defenses during the two-minute drill. As for the first-team offense, things really heated up, per 79th & Halas Podcast, where "even Montez Sweat was barking," yelling, "get y'all a** off the field!" The two-minute drill went like this, per Zack Pearson: "Throwaway, incompletion, sack, pass for 10 yards, turnover on downs." Still, it was "overall still a good day for Caleb and the offense" where "it's very evident that he's starting to click."
Caleb Williams had his best practice of camp
Technically, this was the same takeaway from Monday. But it's once again true as quarterback Caleb Williams had another impressive practice with the pads on. According to Greg Braggs, "You can see how much he's working on the play action game and getting his head turned around to get his eyes where they need to be." Williams "wasn't perfect but you can see clear improvement." Williams nearly connected on a deep touchdown to wide receiver DJ Moore, but cornerback Kyler Gordon was called for defensive pass interference. Williams also continues to build his bond with receiver Rome Odunze and rookie tight end Colston Loveland. Before Tuesday's practice, head coach Ben Johnson talked about Williams' progress to this point, and he raved about the work the second-year quarterback is putting in -- and they're seeing the dividends on the field.
Luther Burden participated in team drills, but made mistakes
Rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III participated in team drills for the first time during training camp on Tuesday, but he wasn't without his mistakes. According to Zack Pearson, head coach Ben Johnson "wasn't happy with Burden" and pulled him out of a drill after it appeared Burden had trouble lining up in the right spot. You know, the things the offense struggled with earlier in training camp. According to Greg Braggs, "Burden appeared to have two different line of scrimmage penalties" with Johnson's outburst coming on the first one. But Johnson talked about Burden being behind in the on-field aspect of things after missing the first four practices and most of the offseason program. It'll take Burden some time, but it's clear he's working through things behind the pace of the offense right now. Luther participated in team drills, but he wasn't part of the live tackling portion of 11-on-11. That's expected to come later in the week as he continues to ramp up.
Colston Loveland could be very special
It's been three days of full-go for rookie tight end Colston Loveland, and he's made headlines on each day. Loveland had another impressive outing during Tuesday's padded practice, where Greg Braggs was impressed by his "combination of speed and size," while noting that Loveland "shows wide receiver tendencies at the line of scrimmage." Loveland had an impressive third-down grab from quarterback Caleb Williams over the middle of the field during 11-on-11. It's been just a short time, but Williams and Loveland are developing a good connection that could make them a special duo. It also sounds like Loveland worked primarily with the first-team offense on Tuesday while Cole Kmet got work with the second team, per @PolesIsHim.
Bears finding ways to get DJ Moore in space
Before Tuesday's practice, head coach Ben Johnson said the team was exploring ways to get wide receiver DJ Moore the ball in space. And that's exactly what transpired on the field on Tuesday, where according to @ilannfl, "DJ Moore was in motion consistently" and "expect more of that during the season." Like Monday, Moore saw some carries while continuing to showcase his pass-catching talent. Moore also showed he can excel in the deep passing game as quarterback Caleb Williams threw a beautiful deep ball that Moore would've caught in stride had cornerback Kyler Gordon not taken him down on a defensive pass interference call.
Left tackle resolution could be taking shape
Before Tuesday's practice, head coach Ben Johnson said they're "getting more clarity every single day" on the left tackle competition. On Tuesday, rookie Ozzy Trapilo and Kiran Amegadjie split some first-team reps, where (according to Greg Braggs), "Ozzy had the better day." That included Trapilo going toe-to-toe with edge rusher Dayo Odeyingbo, where the rookie won most of them. But it still sounds like veteran Braxton Jones has the upper hand in the competition. According to Herb Howard, the left tackle battle "may be starting to crystallize just a bit" as he noted Jones took most of the first-team reps on Tuesday. But that could also be part of the rotation. Still, it's hard to deny his experience will be a benefit in this competition.
Injury updates
The Bears were without rookie defensive tackle Shemar Turner (ankle), offensive lineman Bill Murray and rookie cornerback Zah Frazier (personal) once again. According to Brad Biggs, Turner is expected to miss four weeks with a high ankle sprain. So that'll give other plays, including Chris Williams and Zacch Pickens, a chance to step up in his absence. Defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon and offensive lineman Doug Kramer were back at practice on Tuesday. Meanwhile, rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III participated in team drills for the first time in training camp, and he's in the middle of his ramping up period.