Chicago Bears training camp report: Luther Burden III to miss ‘little bit of time’ and Zavion Thomas exits early

The Chicago Bears’ receiver depth is getting tested with their preseason opener looming Saturday.

Second-year receiver Luther Burden III is set to miss “a little bit of time” with a groin injury, according to a report from the NFL Network. Then rookie third-round draft pick Zavion Thomas exited practice Sunday with an apparent injury.

Burden left practice a day earlier on Saturday after getting tangled up with cornerback Tyrique Stevenson during one-on-ones drills. Burden comes in with expectations for a bigger role after the team traded DJ Moore in March.

Coach Ben Johnson hasn’t addressed Burden’s injury and is not scheduled to speak with the media again until Tuesday.

Thomas left Sunday’s practice after getting knocked down in 7-on-7s. The rookie appeared to have a leg injury but did walk off the field under his own power. Preseason games are big for all rookies, so a potential injury to Thomas ahead of Saturday’s matchup with the Cleveland Browns at Soldier Field could be problematic.

Speaking generally about injuries and his banged-up secondary, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said injuries come with the territory.

“It’s the nature of football,” Allen said. “It really is. I’ve said this before: The game that we play is a game of attrition. The more guys that you can get ready to go out there and perform, and perform at a winning level, the better your team’s going to be.”

Here’s what else we learned Sunday at Bears training camp.

Caleb Williams watch

Sunday’s practice was delayed about an hour and 15 minutes due to an afternoon thunderstorm, and the Bears canceled fan attendance.

It was a long, physical practice that ended with a long drive period. Running back D’Andre Swift saw the ball a lot. With Burden and Thomas out, second-year receiver Jahdae Walker saw plenty of action with the starters.

At one point, safety Xavier Woods caught an easy interception from quarterback Caleb Williams on a deep ball that came out of Williams’ hand a little funny. Swift fumbled once on a first-down run, with the ball recovered by linebacker Devin Bush. That’s the first time Swift has fumbled in a team period during camp.

With Braxton Jones still sidelined by an injury, Kiran Amegadjie worked at left tackle with the starters while Jedrick Wills Jr. worked with the twos. Amegadjie had his hands full with defensive end Austin Booker, who created several pressures.

The lengthy practice may have worn the offense down a little bit. There was some presnap sloppiness toward the end. Amegadjie and right guard Jonah Jackson were called for false starts.

Earlier in practice, Williams connected with Walker for a 60-yard touchdown after the defense blitzed and left Walker unguarded deep over the middle. It was an easy catch for Walker. On the next play, third-string quarterback Case Keenum found Kaden Davis on a short pass and Davis outran everyone for another 60-yard touchdown.

Cornerback Josh Blackwell just missed intercepting a Williams pass in 7-on-7s. Tyrique Stevenson picked off a Williams pass in a team session and threw the ball high into the air, letting the offense know who caught it.

Player in the spotlight: Malik Muhammad

Allen indicated that the Bears will continue to work rookie cornerback Malik Muhammad at both outside corner and nickel. The defensive coordinator doesn’t feel a need to pick one or the other.

“I don’t think we’re at that point right now where we’re ready to say he’s this or he’s that,” Allen said of the fourth-round draft pick out of Texas. “As a young player, here’s what’s encouraging is we continue to throw a lot at him and he’s staying afloat. He’s not drowning yet, he’s staying afloat.”

Muhammad worked at both spots in the spring. He seemed to be focusing a little more at outside corner as camp began. But with injuries in the secondary, the depth at nickel is being tested. Starter Kyler Gordon remains sidelined by a calf injury. Backup Jaylon Jones has also been sidelined by an injury in recent days.

Over the weekend, Muhammad saw significant action at nickel, including with the starters. The Bears like his versatility to play both spots. Allen noted that it’s even more difficult when a rookie steps into a big role because the veterans are going to test him.

“The biggest challenge you’ve got is you’ve got a big bullseye on your back and they’re going to be challenging you,” Allen said. “They’re going to be coming after you.”

Seen and heard

Xavier Woods didn’t get any action on Saturday during his first practice since signing with the team, but the 10-year veteran was thrown right in on Sunday. Woods ran with the starting unit for most of the time. During a pressure period, Williams connected with tight end Colston Loveland on fourth-and-10 using a small window with Woods in close coverage. The completion was just past the line to gain and Woods immediately put a good hit — by training camp standards — on Loveland, knocking him to the turf.

“He’s played a lot of football,” Allen said of Woods. “He’s been in a few different schemes. He’s been a productive player. (Defensive backs coach Al Harris) had him in Dallas, so there’s some familiarity there with him. I just think right now we needed another veteran piece back there in the back end, specifically at the safety position.

“I’m anxious to watch him come out here and compete and see where he falls in the line.”

As long as Coby Bryant and Elijah Hicks are sidelined, there’s a path to playing time for Woods.

The Bears are down to one long snapper, Beau Gardner, but competition for the job is far from over. Reality is a long snapper competes daily to keep his job because a full-fledged tryout and audition for the gig can always be just a day away.

The Bears waived Luke Elkin to create room for cornerback Beanie Bishop, leaving only Gardner, an undrafted rookie from Georgia.

The Bears like his size at 6-foot-5, 249 pounds, but they will want to see how he holds up blocking in preseason action. Gardner has been ahead of Elkin, but is probably a ways off from securing a roster spot.

Backup quarterback Tyson Bagent was hot at the end of practice in an unscripted period. He made two big throws to Cole Kmet, one on an out route, and the other deep over the middle with Kmet running away from second-year linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II both times. Bagent ended the practice by dropping a dime to Kaden Davis, signed in June out of the UFL, for a 34-yard touchdown.

Kmet had a catch from Williams to move the chains on fourth-and-5 during the pressure period and in a four-minute offense period, Kmet sealed the edge to open a huge backside hole for Swift. So, the veteran tight end was noticed throughout practice.

Austin Booker got the better of left tackles Kiran Amegadjie and Jedrick Wills Jr. in one-on-one pass rushing drills. Undrafted rookie guard Caden Barnett had an impressive rep versus Dayo Odeyingbo when the defensive lineman was moved inside.

Kicker Cairo Santos was 7-for-8 on field goals. He missed wide right from 48 yards when the operation looked to be just off. Santos responded by converting his next try — a 54-yarder.

Quote of note

Allen had an excused absence Saturday to go to Canton, Ohio, for Drew Brees’ Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Allen overlapped with Brees in New Orleans for 11 seasons.

After Brees retired, Allen succeeded Sean Payton as Saints head coach from 2022-24. Asked about his time with Payton, who now coaches the Denver Broncos, Allen said he sees some similarities with Bears coach Ben Johnson.

“I see a lot of the same qualities in terms of how the attacking mindset and, not just how we practiced offensively, but how we practiced in general — the physicality and the effort level that’s required is very similar,” Allen said.

Payton was also in attendance for Brees’ Hall of Fame ceremony. Allen said the success that Payton and Brees shared came from their mentalities more than anything.

“Competitiveness is the asset that you see in Hall of Famers more so than anything else,” Allen said. “They want to win at everything they do. And so that drives everything that they do.”

Injuries and participation

The Bears signed Beanie Bishop to help out their depleted secondary. Bishop was on the New Orleans Saints’ practice squad for part of last season. In March, the NFL suspended Bishop for the first three games of the 2026 season. The Saints waived him on July 28.

Burden wasn’t the only player absent Sunday. Receiver Kyron Hudson, defensive backs Cam Lewis, Terell Smith and Jaylon Jones, linebacker D’Marco Jackson, left tackle Braxton Jones and defensive end Montez Sweat were not present.

Six players remain on the non-football injury or physically unable to perform lists: Gordon (calf), Hicks (shin), linebackers Keyshaun Elliott (back) and Noah Sewell (Achilles tendon), defensive end Shemar Turner (knee) and offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo (knee).