The Chicago Bears wrapped up their third training camp practice of the summer on Friday at Halas Hall. Here is everything you need to know, including an impressive day from Caleb Williams and Colston Loveland.
The Chicago Bears practiced for the first time in front of fans at Halas Hall on Friday morning.
Before the Bears' third training camp practice, head coach Ben Johnson shared that a huge emphasis going into this season is improving the offense's play in the final two minutes of the half.
According to The Athletic's Kevin Fishbain, the Bears finished 26th in the league in second-quarter scoring last season. During Friday's practice, the Bears worked on that exact situation and plenty more.
Plenty of Loveland
Throughout the two hour practice, Caleb Williams looked sharp, playing on time and delivering some strikes all over the field. His favorite target on the day was second-year tight end Colston Loveland. The two connected for two touchdowns during the 11-on-11 portions of practice.
For the final two-minute period of the day for the first-team offense, Williams connected with Loveland four times. The 6-foot-6, 241-pound tight end caught three of the final four passes.
- The first was a short gain on the right side of the field.
- Loveland caught another pass for a minimal gain in the middle of the field.
- Williams then faked the handoff to his running back and found Loveland wide open for a catch-and-run opportunity down the left sideline.
- Williams finished the drive with a 14-yard touchdown throw to Loveland. The Bears' tight end lined up out wide to Williams' left and ran a seam route between cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and safety Coby Bryant.
Left Tackle Battle
Kiran Amegadjie played a majority of the first-team snaps in Friday's practice. The former third-round draft pick from Yale in 2024 held up long enough for Williams to find his targets downfield on a majority of his reps. Williams did connect on some deeper developing routes while Amegadjie protected his blind side.
In one of the previous team period sessions, Austin Booker dented the pocket against Amegadjie and nearly sacked the Bears' quarterback.
Braxton Jones and Jedrick Wills rotated primarily throughout the practice with the second-team offense. Wills did see a few snaps with the starting offense during the practice.
Jones talked about the left tackle competition after Friday's practice and if he believes he is the favorite.
"I mean, I think like I said, it's a competition," Jones said. "Whoever, I mean, Ben [Johnson] said it the other day, you know, jobs are going to come down to the most consistent players. So whoever is most consistent, that's what I'm working on is being the most consistent and doing my job all the time, knowing when and where to be, and, you know, but like I said too, we're all a brotherhood. You know, we're all trying to go after one thing. So whoever's the best to go take us to a Super Bowl, is going to be the left tackle, you know what I'm saying? So, and then we just got to protect 18."
Additional Notes
- Luther Burden III continues to become a consistent target for the Bears' offense. Williams connected with Burden on several crossing routes throughout the practice. The Bears' quarterback did throw an accurate pass to Burden off play action, but the the second-year receiver couldn't make the catch. Two plays later, Williams hit Burden in stride on crossing route that created a catch-and-run opportunity for the offense.
- During 7-on-7s, Jaylon Johnson intercepted Williams in the right flat. Johnson jumped the route. This was the best defensive play of the day.
- One of Williams' better passes on the day went to Rome Odunze during 11-on-11s. Williams faked the handoff and rifled to Odunze, who fully extended for the grab while there were three defenders in the are. Later in team drills, Odunze made another play along the right sideline against Jaylon Johnson. Johnson attempted a "Peanut Punch," popping the ball into the air, but the receiver tracked the tip and secured the catch.
- Williams looked visibly frustrated when rookie receiver Zavion Thomas didn't go in motion during the team period.
- Bears second-round draft pick Logan Jones had some low snaps to Tyson Bagent during the team drills. This is something to monitor throughout the summer.
- Second-year running back Kyle Monangai was not spotted during Friday's practice.
