‘We gotta be on the details’: Bears coaches carry over intensity to training camp

During the spring one of the most noticeable shifts new Bears coach Ben Johnson and his staff brought was a higher level of accountability.

Coaches stopped plays during practices, yelled at players when they didn’t run a drill or play correctly and brought more intensity to everything they did.

That intensity transitioned over to the first practice of training camp Wednesday.

The Bears coaching staff opened camp by emphasizing details and not letting mistakes go unaddressed. Wednesday was the start of what Johnson called a “race” and he made sure to set the tone for Day 1.

“We gotta bring that every single day,” tight end Cole Kmet told reporters after practice at Halas Hall in Lake Forest. “Not only the coaches are going to be holding us accountable, but we gotta hold each other accountable as well. So we can do a better job of that and we gotta do a good job of that throughout this training camp in order to get to where we want to go.”

Johnson showed just how strict he’ll be with his accountability during a 7-on-7 drive run by the first-team offense. The offense had already been flagged on a few instances earlier in practice. Johnson also stopped a play earlier on the drive after he didn’t like the way the offensive came out.

So when he didn’t like what he saw from the group again on the drive, he stopped the play, told the unit to go off and had the second-team offense come in.

Kmet couldn’t repeat what Johnson said when he sent them off. But Kmet told reporters that the reason was stuff the players should know. The move also didn’t surprise Kmet.

“That’s on par for Ben,” Kmet said. “If you’re not doing it right, he’s gonna get you out and he’s not going to just see that stuff continue. It’s just a lesson to us that you gotta be on the details. We gotta be on the details going into practice and we’re going to get our reps in.”

Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen also set the tone for his group at the start of practice. While the offense started going through drills at the start of the day, Allen had the defense perform “up-downs.”

Allen said it’s something that he’s always done since 2009 with every defense that he’s been associated with. He called it part of the process of building the defense’s culture, and players have bought into the idea.

“There’s no treatment; it doesn’t matter what year you are out there doing it, defensive linemen and things like that, you’re going to be doing up-downs,” linebacker TJ Edwards said. “I think that’s cool.”

While doing up-downs did remind players of their younger days of playing football, the Bears understood the bigger picture behind it and the higher level of accountability from the coaching staff. The message of what they should be focusing on over the next six weeks is loud and clear.

“No detail goes unnoticed,” Kmet said. “Despite the result that might happen, you may catch a ball and it might be a big play in practice, but he’s harping on the detail of your alignment is off or your steps are off here and even though we got the result right, we didn’t do it the right way at times.

“Those are the details you need to hear and you can’t be result driven all the time, especially this time of the year in training camp. You’ve really got to be detail driven and Ben is all about the details and you feel that in every meeting.”

Practice notes

The up-downs might’ve given the Bears defense an edge Wednesday as it started training camp on the right note. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds opened the first 11-on-11 play of camp by intercepting a pass from quarterback Caleb Williams that went right into his hands.

Edmunds has two years left on his contract and will try to prove that he can be a difference-maker in Allen’s defense. Allen’s hoping the play was the first of many for Edmunds this year.

“I’m anticipating him being an exceptional playmaker for us,” Allen said. “He’s got size, he’s got range, he’s got speed, a lot of the things that we’re going to look for in terms of, look, it’s hard to throw over him. He’s got a lot of length there in the middle of the field. So I’m excited to see what he can do. Obviously that was a good start, but we’ve got a long way to go.”

Left tackle Braxton Jones returned to the field Wednesday after he spent the offseason recovering from ankle surgery toward the end of last season. He took part in a walk-through with the first team, but he didn’t partake in team drills as he ramps back up into football shape.

Second-round pick Ozzy Trapilo worked with the first-team offense at left tackle Wednesday as he’s expected to shuffle at the spot during camp with Jones and Kiran Amegadjie.

Undrafted free agent JP Richardson had the play of the day Wednesday when he made a one-handed diving catch down the sidelines on a pass from Tyson Bagent during 7-on-7.

Taking attendance

The Bears nearly had a full house for their first practice.

Rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III and rookie cornerback Zah Frazier were the only unexpected absences from practice. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson also missed practice after the team placed him on the active/non-football injury list before the start of camp.

Burden, one of the Bears’ second-round selections from this year’s draft, has not practiced since he suffered a soft-tissue injury during rookie minicamp at the start of May. Ben Johnson didn’t seem concerned about Burden’s absence during the spring and told reporters then that Burden would be ready for the start of training camp.

Ben Johnson didn’t meet with reporters Wednesday but likely will be asked about both injuries before Thursday’s practice.