Key takeaways from Bears rookie minicamp
The Bears’ rookie class got its first chance to work with head coach Ben Johnson and his coaching staff during the team’s rookie minicamp last weekend at Halas Hall.
Chicago’s seven draft picks, 13 undrafted free agents and dozens of rookie tryout attendees took part in the two-day minicamp. Now the Bears will continue their offseason workouts over the coming weeks before starting Organized Team Activities (OTA) at the end of the month.
Here are the most interesting things we learned from Bears rookie minicamp.
The plan for Logan Jones
Poles drafted Jones in the second round this year with the expectation he would become the team’s eventual starter at center. How soon that’ll happen remains to be seen.
The Bears traded for Garrett Bradbury this offseason after Drew Dalman suddenly retired. Bradbury has one year left on his contract and brings seven years of experience, most recently reaching the Super Bowl with the New England Patriots last season.
Bradbury is likely to get the starting role for most of offseason workouts and training camp. But Johnson didn’t rule out how quickly Jones could steal the spot.
“Time will tell,” Johnson said. “The ball is in his court as far as I’m concerned.”
Jones looked forward to the opportunity of competing for the starting spot. His four years starting at center for Iowa will likely help him with his transition.
But Jones also wanted to learn from the experienced veterans in the offensive line room, most notably left guard Joe Thuney.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun, and I look forward to it,” Jones said. “The opportunity for growth and learning, this is my rookie year, and I don’t think you could ask for a better position to be in, just from the head coach, the guys in the offensive line room, to the O-line coaches, I’m very fortunate.”
Dillon Thieneman’s spot
The Bears were excited when safety Thieneman dropped to them at No. 25 in the first round of the draft. That excitement only grew this weekend once they got a chance to work with him in person.
At Oregon, Thieneman displayed a versatility that made him an enticing prospect for the Bears. His speed allowed him to be a playmaker wherever he was positioned, something the Bears believe will translate to the NFL.
“I think the thing you see is that when the ball is in the air, he’s got fantastic acceleration to get to that catch point,” Johnson said. “When he gets there, he arrives with some violent intentions.”
Thieneman spent minicamp working at strong safety. But he also paid attention to what was happening with the free safeties and figures to get snaps there as well.
He’s likely to see time at both throughout the offseason and during the season. Thieneman and free-agent signee Coby Bryant offer speed and versatility that Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen would like to mix and match.
“Both of them I’m excited about,” Allen said. “Both of them have the athletic ability to match up in coverage.”
Roles for certain draft picks
Some of Bears’ early draft picks will spend the coming months figuring out their role.
Third-round wide receiver Zavion Thomas proved he can do it all at the college level. He caught 106 passes over four seasons for 1,213 yards and seven touchdowns, rushed for 198 yards and a touchdown, and returned three kickoffs and punts for touchdowns.
The Bears are likely to use him mostly as a returner at the start of his career. But his roles could shift.
“He’s going to have to go earn it, and that comes on the meeting room first, of earning some trust to get your reps, of showing that you can be trusted when you get there and then being able to do something with it,” Bears offensive coordinator Press Taylor said.
Fourth-round cornerback Malik Muhammad will be interesting to watch as well. Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson are expected to be the starters on the outside, while Kyler Gordon will slide in at nickel. But Muhammad could push Stevenson for a starting spot.
Chicago is training Muhammad at both outside cornerback and nickel. Muhammad didn’t play much nickel in college, but said he can play whatever position the Bears ask him to play in the secondary.
Connections to Bears past
Rookie minicamp was the first opportunity to see what numbers the Bears’ rookies would don.
Jones revealed he will wear No. 54, which Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher previously wore. Urlacher wore the number until 2012, and no Bears player has worn the number since. The Bears reached out to Urlacher before they gave out the number and received Urlacher’s blessing.
“To be able to do that, and to be able to honor his number and who he is,” Jones said. “When you think of the Chicago Bears, that’s kind of who you think of.”
The Bears had another blast from the past last weekend when a player with the last name Kreutz wore No. 57. Josh Kreutz, the son of former Bears center Olin Kreutz, joined the team this weekend for a rookie tryout after he played at Illinois.
“I knew I wanted to play in the NFL, and I’m happy I got a tryout, especially with the Bears being a hometown kid and being a Bears fan my whole life,” Josh Kreutz said.