The Chicago Bears were back at Halas Hall Tuesday to resume practice ahead of Saturday’s preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans.
The offense had an up-and-down day, although there were some standout players among the bunch. While right guard Nate Davis and linebacker Jack Sanborn were back at practice, the team was still without its top defenders in linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, cornerback Kyler Gordon and safeties Eddie Jackson and Jaquan Brisker sitting out. But other players further down the depth chart were able to flash their skill.
Let’s examine the Bears players who impressed during Tuesday’s training camp practice:
1
QB Justin Fields
Justin Fields had an up-and-down day on Tuesday, but it was his connection with receiver DJ Moore that thrived. Fields displayed excellent touch on multiple throws to Moore in tight coverage.
7 on 7s beautiful ball from Justin Fields to DJ Moore deep down the left sidelines just past the CBs fingertips.@AdamHoge just called that an EXPLOSIVE play. 👀
— Greg Braggs Jr. (@GBraggsJr23) August 8, 2023
It has become evident that Moore has supplanted fellow receiver Darnell Mooney as Fields’ favorite target. Through two weeks of camp, the duo’s chemistry is simply off the charts. Their next challenge is to demonstrate their connection in the Bears’ first preseason game in a few days.
2
WR DJ Moore
Let’s talk about the guy that is catching a lot of Fields’ passes. I think what makes Moore such a crowd pleaser isn’t just his size, route running, hands, etc.; it’s the fact that Chicago hasn’t had a number one receiver in years, not since Brandon Marshall was bringing in lasers from his best friend, Jay Cutler.
Moore particularly impressed in the 7-on-7 period, hauling two passes on the sideline and over the middle that Bears Wire’s own Brendan Surgrue called “a great catch by #2.”
2nd time through for Fields:
Easy pitch and catch to Moore down the sideline over a DB
Hits Moore on a high pass down the middle. Great catch by #2.
Curl to ESB
Strike to Velus for a first down.
4-4. Fields looked sharp.
— Brendan Sugrue (@BrendanSugrue) August 8, 2023
General manager Ryan Poles hoped that Moore would be a game-changer for the offense when he executed a blockbuster trade for the former Panthers receiver, and Moore is proving him right to this point in camp.
3
CB Tyrique Stevenson
It’s possible that Tyrique Stevenson’s high position in the Bears’ first unofficial depth chart gave him a new air of confidence, because the rookie defender stepped out of the locker room as a man on a mission today.
Stevenson had one of the big highlight plays of the day, running step for step with Mooney down the sideline and picking off the pass from Fields.
#Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson with a terrific pick of Justin Fields on a deep side line attempt to Mooney.
— Mark Grote (@markgrotesports) August 8, 2023
Stevenson is locked in a competition with fellow rookie Terell Smith for who will get more playing time when the regular season kicks off, and Stevenson’s continued growth will only help him solidify his role.
4
DE Terrell Lewis
Training camp is the best and one of the only opportunities for young or unproven players to make an impression on coaches and potentially secure a role on the 53-man roster. Terrell Lewis understands the circumstance and has had a surprisingly solid camp up to this point.
The defensive line got the best of its offensive counterpart in today’s practice, with Lewis standing out the most among the group.
2nd team reps have been filled with DLine beating OLine before a pass got off.
The 2 that really stood out:
Travis Bell with a really nice rep on a swim move completely blowing the play up for a sack.
Terrell Lewis beating Larry Borom on a couple plays. Lewis is making this…
— Greg Braggs Jr. (@GBraggsJr23) August 8, 2023
Even with the addition of superb pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue, Chicago still has a major deficiency on the front four. Lewis turning out to be a diamond-in-the-rough for the Bears could certainly help them in that department.
5
K Cairo Santos
Though the team hasn’t even played their first preseason game, an important position battle has likely already been decided. Was it the competition for one of the corner spots? The running backs, perhaps? No. The Bears have decided on their designated kicker, and it will be Cairo Santos.
The team’s decision to waive undrafted rookie kicker Andre Szmyt has effectively answered any questions as to who will be kicking footballs through uprights for Chicago.
I know, the kicking battle wasn’t exactly front-page news, but it still was an important issue that needed to be settled. Santos showed off his big leg in today’s practice, knocking in a 50-yard field goal during a drill.
Bears kicker Cairo Santos just made a pair of 50-yard field goals to wrap the first-team offense’s 55-second drill.
An offensive PI call on Kmet backed them up. Completions to Tyler Scott and DJ Moore got them back in range. Fields clocked it with 0.6 seconds left.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) August 8, 2023
