The Chicago Bears were back at Halas Hall for the fifth practice of training camp on Monday, which featured some intriguing developments from their first padded practice.
The Bears were in pads for the first time during training camp, which is when the real evaluation begins. According to Brad Biggs, practice lasted roughly two hours in “sweltering humidity” where there was a “major emphasis on run game” with “some of the pass stuff was 1/2 speed or 2/3 speed, so not a lot to go off of.”
Here’s what we learned from the fifth practice of training camp, from standouts on offense to the offensive line besting the defensive line during one-on-one to rookie wideout Luther Burden III hitting the practice field for the first time.
Luther Burden III practices for first time this summer
Rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III practiced for the first time during training camp on Monday. Burden missed the previous four non-padded practices with a lingering hamstring injury. But on the first day of pads, Burden was back and ready to go with his teammates. Burden was spotted participating during individual drills, but he wasn’t on the field for team drills. That’s not unexpected as he’s ramping up (as expected) and should be full-go by the end of the week. Still, it was nice to see Burden back on the field after missing OTAs and veteran minicamp with that hamstring injury.
Colston Loveland impresses again
Bears rookie tight end Colston Loveland has only practiced in full for two days, but he’s made headlines after both outings. Loveland was the standout of Monday’s practice, where he shined during 7-on-7 with some nice catches. According to Patrick Finley, that included “leaping to catch a Caleb Williams pass over the middle.” Loveland returned to full speed on Saturday after missing the entire offseason program recovering from shoulder surgery. But after just two days, he already looks like he hasn’t missed a beat.
DJ Moore had the catch of the day
Second-year pro Rome Odunze has been the standout wide receiver in training camp so far, but DJ Moore reminded everyone why he’s still WR1 during Monday’s practice. According to Zack Pearson, Moore won a rep against cornerback Tyrique Stevenson on a deep ball where he made a sliding catch from quarterback Caleb Williams during 1-on-1 drills. Moore’s helmet even popped off during the reception. Alex Shapiro revealed that Moore got a look at running back during this padded practice, which “could be fun” in this Ben Johnson offense.
The left tackle battle is far from over
With the Bears in pads for the first time this summer — and Braxton Jones a full-go in practice — the left tackle competition has officially kicked into high gear. Chicago rotated all three contenders — rookie Ozzy Trapilo, Jones and Kiran Amegadjie — with the starting offensive line during team drills on Monday morning. But according to Mark Carman, the left tackle battle is “going to last awhile” as there’s “no clear standout” at this point.
Offensive line dominated defensive line during 1-on-1
The Bears dedicated a lot of resources to overhaul the offensive line this offseason, and it’s already paying dividends…at least in practice. The offensive line “dominated the”looked pretty stout” against the defensive line during one-on-one drills, per Alex Shapiro. According to Clay Harbor, here’s how it went down: “Darnell Wright won vs. Montez Sweat; Jonah Jackson won vs. Gervon Dexter Sr.; Drew Dalman won vs. (Andrew Billings); Joe Thuney won vs. Grady Jarrett and Kiran Amegadjie won vs. Dayo Odeyingbo.”
JP Richardson continues to shine
Another day, another JP Richardson mention during training camp practice. The undrafted rookie wide receiver has been one of the biggest standouts through the first five days of camp, and he continued his impressive showcase into padded practice. According to Zack Pearson, won two reps during 1-on-1 drills — which was notable as defensive backs had the edge on the day. But he did drop one pass and another was overthrown to him deep. Per Alex Shapiro, Richardson has excelled “creating space,” which was evident on Monday.
Injury updates
While Luther Burden III made his return to practice, the Bears are still without rookie defensive tackle Shemar Turner (ankle), rookie cornerback Zah Frazier (personal) and offensive lineman Doug Kramer. But there was some reassuring news with Kramer, who suffered a leg injury near the end of Saturday’s practice. While he didn’t participate on Monday, he was dubbed “day-to-day.” In Kramer’s absence, rookie Luke Newman got the work with the backup offensive line at center. Meanwhile, newly-signed defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon was carted off with apparent hand/wrist injury. Also, offensive lineman Bill Murray came off the field limping with an apparent left knee injury, which is something to monitor.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Chicago Bears training camp: Takeaways from Day 5
Reporting by Alyssa Barbieri, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
