Recapping Day 13 of Chicago Bears training camp
The Bears had a lighter practice after Tuesday's padded session as they prepare to welcome the Miami Dolphins for a joint practice on Friday. There weren't a whole lot of takeaways from this session, where Ben Johnson's trickeration was both good and bad. Although, the end to Thursday's practice certainly seemed fun as some offensive players went to defense and some defensive players switched it up to offense.
Let's recap Day 13 of Bears training camp:
What we learned
The Bears wrapped a lighter practice on Thursday ahead of the Dolphins coming to town for a joint practice on Friday. But that doesn't mean they didn't have some fun. During the final period of practice, head coach Ben Johnson decided to play around with moving guys around -- and it's not just offensive linemen catching passes. Johnson put some offensive guys on defense and some defensive guys on offense for the final rep of 11-on-11. According to Nicholas Moreano, quarterback Caleb Williams led the defense as the offense. Facing third-and-5, William completed a pass to cornerback Nick McCloud, with Olamide Zaccheaus in coverage, to get the first down. The offense's punishment? Push ups.
The Bears got great news with the return of tight end Cole Kmet, who exited Tuesday's practice with an apparent injury. Unfortunately, there were two other key starters who exited Thursday's practice early: Cornerback Kyler Gordon and right tackle Darnell Wright. According to Scott Bair, Gordon was spotted heading to the locker room and didn't return to practice. The Bears have a deep cornerback group, but they're potentially down their top two corners in Jaylon Johnson and Gordon. Johnson suffered a leg injury while training before camp kicked into gear. Meanwhile, according to Brad Biggs, Wright "came up awkward" during the final team period of Thursday's non-padded practice. Wright is the lone returning starter from last year's disastrous offensive line, and the former first-round pick is entering his third season where he's looking to take another step forward.
The Bears starting offense has had its struggles during the two-minute offense at times this summer, but they had a successful attempt on Thursday. According to Greg Braggs, quarterback Caleb Williams led the first-team offense into field goal position where the operations and snaps were clean and everyone was organized at the line of scrimmage. Williams connected with wide receiver Rome Odunze a couple of times while also finding receiver Olamide Zaccheaus.
Rookie tight end Colston Loveland continues to make plays during training camp, and it's not even a surprise anymore. Mark Carman noted that it was another day of Loveland catching multiple balls out on the field, which included a completion on a "side arm missile" from quarterback Caleb Williams. Greg Braggs said that Loveland "makes at least one nice play every day of practice." 670 the Score's Chris Emma said Loveland "doesn't look a tight end. He doesn't even look like a wide receiver. He's a mismatch out there. He's such a natural route-runner. You see his ability to separate from a defender." Loveland has had immediate success during practice, and the hope is that translates to the field. It's even more impressive considering Loveland didn't participate in any of the offseason program as he rehabbed from shoulder surgery.
Veteran defensive end Montez Sweat has been having a quietly, dominant training camp, where he continues to challenge right tackle Darnell Wright. According to 79th & Halas Podcast, has gotten the best of Wright during Thursday's practice. "In a game, he'd probably strip sack Caleb." Sweat has been a problem for opposing tackles throughout training camp, and he's also making Wright better. It's clear Sweat is healthy and ready to get after opposing quarterbacks this season.
The battle for the starting left tackle job rages on between veteran Braxton Jones and rookie Ozzy Trapilo. Today, it was Jones' turn to start with the first-team offense, but Trapilo did rotate in every other team period. It certainly sounds like Jones is getting healthier, as Mark Carman noted, and he had some "physical blocks" during Thursday's practice. But he did face some challenges from defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo, who beat Jones on back-to-back plays, according to Greg Braggs, showing "impressive burst at the snap." Although, Jones bested defensive end Austin Booker during his rep with the second-team offense. Friday's practice will be a big one as Chicago welcomes Miami to town. Whoever is starting with the first-team offense could have the edge, although the expectation is both Jones and Trapilo will get reps with the starters.
Standouts
HC Ben Johnson: After Tuesday's intense practice, things were a bit quieter on Thursday. The Bears didn't practice in pads and weren't going at full speed. Still, head coach Ben Johnson made his mark on this practice with some of the drills he had his players doing. Near the end of the session, Johnson added a fun wrinkle by putting defensive players on offense and offensive players on defense. D'Andre Swift was at linebacker, Joe Thuney was playing defensive tackle, and Tremaine Edmunds was the halfback during some interesting and entertaining plays. That's the balance Johnson is striking in these camp practices. One day, it's a physical practice with more hitting than people can remember. The next, players are literally switching positions.
DE Dayo Odeyingbo: Even though the pads weren't on, offensive and defensive linemen still got after it on Thursday. That included defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo, who had a few nice reps against the tackle he was going against. According to CHGO's Greg Braggs Jr., Odeyingbo got past Braxton Jones multiple times to get to the ball carrier. Both plays came in team drills, and while one of the reps still resulted in a big gain by Swift, it's good to see one of the prized free agents make his presence felt.
DE Montez Sweat: It doesn't matter if the Bears are practicing in full pads or in shells because Montez Sweat will make a big play one way or another. Sweat has been a mainstay on our standout lists throughout camp, and he showed why yet again on Thursday. According to the 79th and Halas Podcast, Sweat was giving fits to tackle Darnell Wright all day and likely would have gotten a strip sack of Williams in a live setting. Sweat has had a tremendous camp up to this point and has earned the praise of the front office over the course of the entire offseason. All of it is shaping up to be a big year for No. 98.
Injury updates
The good news is the Bears did get back tight end Cole Kmet, who avoided an injury after leaving Tuesday's practice. But cornerback Kyler Gordon and dright tackle Darnell Wright did exit Thursday's workout, and their statuses are unknown. We should know come Friday's joint practice. Meanwhile, the Bears announced that running back Roschon Johnson and center Doug Kramer are nursing foot injuries. Also sidelined, per Dan Wiederer: Offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie, cornerback Zah Frazier, defensive tackle Shemar Turner, offensive lineman Bill Murray and wide receiver Miles Boykin.
Highlights
Press conferences
What's next
The Bears will host the Miami Dolphins for a joint training camp practice on Friday morning at 10:30 a.m. CT. It will be open to fans.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Chicago Bears training camp: Recapping Day 13
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