After a physical joint practice that featured plenty of ups and downs from the Chicago Bears' first-team offense, head coach Ben Johnson elected to play Caleb Williams and the starters in Saturday's preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Left guard Joe Thuney and running backs D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai did not play, but everyone else was a full go. 

Williams and the starting offense played nine snaps against the Bengals backups. The Bears' starting quarterback finished 2 of 5 for 28 yards. He connected with wide receiver Rome Odunze on a rollout to his left for an 18-yard gain and later completed a pass to tight end Colston Loveland for 10 yards. 

The drive featured a holding penalty. There was a missed opportunity for Williams to connect with Loveland on a seam route. The Bears' quarterback also had a pass batted down at the line of scrimmage. 

The drive ended with a 45-yard field goal from Cairo Santos. Definitely far from perfect, but a majority of the starters got some valuable reps against an NFL opponent. 

Here are the five players who raised and lowered their stock in Bears' 27-9 loss to the Bengals. 

The Bears' sixth-round draft pick continues to make the most of his opportunities. It's easy to find No. 96 on the Bears' defensive line because he's usually resetting the line of scrimmage with his explosive burst off the snap. 

Van den Berg also displayed his relentlessness chasing down a Bengals ball carrier in the second quarter. He bursted through the interior of the O-line, kept his eyes on the running back and made the tackle for loss. 

Those types of plays resonate with a coaching staff and will earn the rookie sixth-round draft pick playing time with the starters throughout the regular season. 

Dayo Odeyingbo's 2025 season ended at Paycor Stadium after he tore his Achilles late in the fourth quarter in the Week 9 matchup. The Bears ended up winning the game 47-42, but Odeyingbo's first year in Chicago ended abruptly. 

He's back on the field now, and he showed some promising pass-rush moves in the preseason game against the Bengals. Of course, it was against Cincinnati's backups, but he can only play whoever is out on the field. 

On back-to-back reps late in the first quarter, Odeyingbo won convincingly against Bengals offensive lineman Jalen Rivers. The Bears' defensive end forced quarterback Josh Johnson outside the pocket on the first play, resulting in an incomplete pass. 

Then, Odeyingbo delivered a huge hit on Johnson on third-and-long. 

This is a positive sign for a player who did sign a three-year, $48 million contract last offseason. The Bears need him to produce like he did on Saturday night, and he has to replicate that production against NFL starters in the regular season. 

One of the biggest takeaways for Johnson after the Bears' dominant win over the Browns was the team's two penalties on the day. Well, the team easily exceeded that amount in preseason game No. 2 against the Bengals. 

Left tackle Braxton Jones helped commit to that total penalty count with a hold that negated a 10-yard run from running back Roshon Johnson. Jones allowed Bengals defensive lineman Isaiah Foskey to get inside and out of the reach of Jones' arms. 

Williams and the offense couldn't overcome the holding call, settling for a field goal on the first drive. 

On the Bears' second offensive series, Jones remained in at left tackle  with backups at the other spots on the O-line. The Bears' left tackle gave up some inside pressure on a second-down throw to running back Salvon Ahmed. 

Jones didn't do anything to help himself win the starting left tackle job. 

For players on the fringe of making a roster, mistakes in the preseason are almost a death sentence. 

Wide receiver J.P. Richardon started the day with a catch near the left sideline and turned up field, tight roping the sideline for a 14-yard gain. It went down hill from there. 

On fourth-and-4 from the Cincinnati 41-yard line, the Bears called a play for Richardson on an out route near the left sideline. Quarterback Case Keenum threw an accurate pass to Richardson, who was tightly covered on the play. 

Richardson couldn't catch the ball cleanly and the plays resulted in a turnover on downs. 

Towards the end of the second quarter, Richardson muffed a kick return in the end zone and instead of kneeling down, he ran the ball out and reached the 15-yard line. There was also an illegal block in the back on the Bears, which started the offense on the 6-yard line. 

After the Bears started deep in their own territory, Keenum attempted to hit Richardson on third-and-8 play. Richardson stopped his route, while Keenum threw to a spot. 

Richardson did come up with two receptions on the Bears' final drive of the first half, including a 19-yard gain that helped Santos convert on a 44-yard field. The Bears' wide receiver did a good job of getting down quickly and giving the ball to the referee to give Chicago a chance to kick the field goal. 

Playing corner in the NFL is no easy task. Dontae Manning found that out against the Bengals. 

He made some nice plays in the first half, breaking up some passes, including a pass in the end zone. He also displayed sound open-field tackling. But those highlights were overshadowed by the touchdown receptions he gave up. 

In defensive coordinator Dennis Allen's defense, man coverage is a priority. Manning was beat for two touchdowns on the day. He gave up a 17-yard touchdown at the end of the second quarter. 

Then he allowed an explosive 20-yard touchdown, putting the Bengals up 24-9 in the third quarter. Every cornerback in the league will give up plays, but allowing touchdowns is something Manning can't afford to do if he wants to stay on the team. 

Honorable Mentions

Stock Up: Jahdae Walker

The Bears' receiver made a explosive 36-yard reception down the left sideline on Chicago's third offensive drive of the game. He made a quick move to create separation off the line of scrimmage and high-pointed the football to make the reception. 

Stock Up: Skyler Thomas

The rookie defensive back made an interception that would make assistant head coach/wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle El proud. He undercut the Bengals' receiver, high pointed the football and came down with the reception.