Chicago Bears Training Camp Observations: Justin Fields and offense trending in the right direction for second-straight practice

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The Bears went without pads for Thursday’s practice at Halas Hall. The offense continued where it left off on Wednesday, stacking back-to-back positive days for the overall unit.

But more on that in a bit …

Quote of the Day

Today’s quote goes to … Dominique Robinson.

Question: What does Saturday signify to you with the game against the Chiefs being the first chance to wear an NFL uniform?

Honestly it’s crazy. For me I still haven’t had that moment of “I’m in the NFL.” You know and I was thinking to myself that maybe its because everything that I’ve done in the back, in the background, that nobody sees, has prepared me for this moment. Because I’m still trying to figure out why haven’t I felt this moment? You know, that, man I’m in the NFL. Every once in a while I get that feeling like, ‘dang this is crazy.’ But it’s just like it’s football, just go play football and try to do it to the best of your ability. So I think Saturday might be that first moment where it’s like, ‘oh, this is real.’

Bears DE Dominique Robinson

Here are some observations from the Chicago Bears’ 13th practice of 2022 training camp on Thursday, August 11.

Offense

• The Bears’ offense started off the practice hot, with the first unit scoring several touchdowns in different situational periods. Justin Fields played a huge part of this. He threw accurate passes to his pass catchers. Fields also showcased his arm talent, throwing a sidearm pass to Darnell Mooney over the middle of the field. He also rifled a pass to Tajae Sharpe on a slant and floated a ball to Sharpe in the back left corner of the end zone for a touchdown. During the early portion of practice, Fields had three touchdown passes.

• The first-team unit also overcame some self-inflicted penalties on a drive that started on the opponent’s 35-yard line. Fields completed a pass to Khari Blasingame in the flat. But then there was a false start on the next play. Fields then connected with Mooney in the middle of the field. Two plays later there was a delay of game. Still, this drive ended with the Sharpe touchdown. 

• Speaking of Sharpe, he stood out in Thursday’s practice. On the touchdown reception, Sharpe did a great job of keeping his feet in bounds and coming down witj the catch. He also turned a simple screen pass into a positive gain by following his blockers. Khari Blasingame was out wide on the play and delivered a nice block on the cornerback. 

• Chase Allen scored the first touchdown of the day. He found some open grass in the end zone and Fields delivered an accurate pass in team drills. Allen did have a false start on one of the drives later in practice. 

• The right tackle position in Thursday’s practice resembled a revolving door with constantly having guys rotate in and out. Riley Reiff started the practice at right tackle, but he had a shorter day. Larry Borom filled in at times with the first unit, but also played right tackle with the second and third team. When Borom was with the third stringers, Teven Jenkins played some reps with the second team at right tackle. But Jenkins finished the day with the third team.

Defense

• Jaylon Johnson stood out in Thursday’s practice. He had multiple pass breakups throughout the afternoon. In the red zone, Johnson broke up a pass intended for Darnell Mooney. During a different team period, he had perfect coverage on Sharpe on a slant route, leading to an incomplete pass. 

• During one of the situational team periods, the first-team offense lined up on the 50-yard line and barely moved the ball against the starting defense. It started with Johnson’s PBU against Sharpe. Then Fields had an incomplete pass on the opposite side of the field. On third-and-10, Justin Jones’ pressure up the middle forced Fields to run for roughly three yards. 

• On a third down play, Khyiris Tonga got through the interior of the Bears’ offensive line and sacked Fields. Tonga has been quietly having a good training camp. 

• DeAndre Houston-Carson had an interception against Nathan Peterman in the red zone. It appeared that Peterman was trying to hit Dante Pettis, but the ball was short and Houston-Carson was there to make the play. 

• Trevis Gipson had a nice rush against Reiff during team drills. Gipson was in the backfield and most likely would’ve stopped the running back for no gain.

On The Sidelines

With the Bears two days away from their first preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs, there are still a large number of players not practicing. 

Here are some of the guys who missed Thursday’s practice.

Add Byron Pringle, Kindle Vildor and Greg Stroman to the list of #Bears not practicing today. All the guys are off to the side doing some exercises. https://t.co/GlcKSVscFM

— Nicholas Moreano (@NicholasMoreano) August 11, 2022

David Montgomery also didn’t practice, but he was on the sidelines doing various exercises.

Quick Training Camp Takeaways

TOP 3 TAKEAWAYS FROM THURSDAY'S PRACTICE@NicholasMoreano gets you up to speed on #BearsCamp today.

Catch our full show here at 2 PM: https://t.co/KacsfukdRG pic.twitter.com/ht1Zt3XggT

— CHGO Bears (@CHGO_Bears) August 11, 2022