The Chicago Bears are gearing up for their preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals, where one of the biggest questions is whether or not Chicago’s starters will make their preseason debuts after a bulk of them sat for the preseason opener last week.
The Bears and Bengals participated in a joint practice on Thursday, which simulated a live game and provided valuable evaluation for Ben Johnson and his staff. With Cincinnati not playing their starters, the expectation is that Chicago will rest theirs, as well. But there’s been no official word just yet. Earlier this week, before the team’s joint practice with Cincinnati, Johnson explained why he values joint practices.
“They’re controlled reps here,” Johnson said. “The emphasis is going to be put on our starters. And, talking with Zac (Taylor), he feels the same way. They’ll get the bulk of the workload here. And we’ll assess where we’re at after the practice just in terms of that workload. But, it’s exciting because what we know – there’s ground rules. Stay away from the quarterback. We’re thudding up and things of that nature. And so, there’s – we can just make sure it’s safe, it’s controlled, and the competition goes up. The intensity goes up.”
Bears starting offense stalls on opening series
The Bears first-team offense started the game against the Bengals, where everyone but running back D’Andre Swift and left guard Joe Thuney were on the field. After a solid start to the drive, Chicago’s offense stalled after a holding call on Braxton Jones negated a first-down run by running back Roschon Johnson. Caleb Williams completed 2-of-5 passes for 28 yards, including a miss to tight end Colston Loveland that was a tad too high. Cairo Santos connected on the 45-yard field goal.
Caleb Williams spotted in full gear, expected to play vs. Bengals
Caleb Williams, other starters going through warmups before Saturday night’s game
Caleb Williams and several offensive starters were spotted on the field going through pregame warmups. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be starting tonight, as the starting offense was seen running through drills before last Saturday’s game against the Browns before sitting.
Are Bears starters playing vs. Bengals?
Bears head coach Ben Johnson did not officially announce whether his starters would play in Saturday night’s game, including quarterback Caleb Williams. But it’s expected that Chicago will rest their starters after Bengals head coach Zac Taylor announced that Cincinnati won’t be playing starters after Thursday’s joint practice. Earlier in the week, Johnson said the joint practice would determine whether starters played and/or for how long. “I think I said last time it depends on what the joint practice looks like for the team. There’s a certain number of reps we’re trying to hit and we’ll see where we’re at after the joint practice.” With kickoff fast approaching, it shouldn’t be long before we know.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Are Bears starters playing in preseason game vs. Bengals?
Reporting by Alyssa Barbieri, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Alyssa Barbieri, Bears Wire | USA TODAY Network
