Graham bursts into secondary spotlight

BOURBONNAIS - Second-year cornerback Corey Graham, a fifth-round pick out of New Hampshire last year, has been getting a crash course with the first-team defense while starter Charles Tillman has been excused for personal reasons. And Graham has made the most of his time in the spotlight.

"Corey's done an excellent job," said defensive coordinator Bob Babich.

"His progress from last year to this year has been excellent. We've noticed that he's playing with an awful lot of confidence, and when you're out there as a corner, that's an important part of playing that position."

Like Tillman, Graham has good size (6 feet, 193 pounds), and he's a physical player. It's not just his confidence that has impressed his coaches.

"His movement is a lot better," Babich said. "Last year when he first came (to camp), he had the (leg) injury and he kind of hobbled through it, even throughout the season. He had it in the spring, and he hobbled throughout the season. Now he's completely healthy, and he's a tough guy too. He's a big corner that plays physical."

Graham was second on the Bears with 20 special-teams tackles last season, but he didn't see much time on defense, although that should change this year.

Someone else's concern: Coach Lovie Smith was perfectly willing to talk about the Brett Favre situation, but as it pertains to the future Hall of Famer as a Packer, not as a potential Bear, as a Thursday story in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel suggested as a possibility.

"As a fan, whenever Brett Favre is involved with something, you take notice," Smith said after Thursday afternoon's practice. "As a quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, you just think about the two times that you play him. That's about my involvement with it."

What about the rumors of a trade within the NFC North? "No reaction," Smith said. "It doesn't affect us. We have our quarterbacks. I'm not going to talk about somebody else's players."

Camp tidbits: Running back Garrett Wolfe, cornerback Zackary Bowman, fullback Jason McKie, safety Kevin Payne, linebacker Michael Okwo, offensive tackle Chris Williams, wide receiver Brandon Lloyd and defensive end Mark Anderson all sat out Thursday's practice with minor injuries... Defensive linemen Tommie Harris and Dan Bazuin and wide receiver Mark Bradley returned to practice. ... Cornerback Charles Tillman remained out with an excused absence for personal reasons. ... After practice, several of wide receiver Marty Booker's fans sang "Happy Birthday" to him and gave him several gift-wrapped presents. ... Today's practice is at Soldier Field at 7 p.m. The Bears are off Saturday before returning to Olivet Nazarene for a noon practice on Sunday.