Bears' Cohen says he has a lot more to do

Tarik Cohen worked amazingly well as the Chicago Bears' Swiss army knife last year.

The fourth-round draft choice caught 53 passes as a rookie, averaged 4.3 yards on 87 carries, handled all the return duties and also tossed a 21-yard touchdown pass. But he needs to do more - according to him.

"I just have this attitude like I don't really feel like I've done anything yet," he said Wednesday on the second day of the Bears' voluntary veteran minicamp at Halas Hall. "I wasn't in the Pro Bowl. (I'm) really not like a definite household name yet, so I feel like I have a lot more to prove. Didn't have a 1,000-yard season in any phase of the game, so I feel like I have a lot more to do."

All indications are that he'll have that opportunity in Matt Nagy's offense, which stresses versatility and utilizes skill-position players in a variety of ways. Nagy clearly relishes the opportunity to creatively deploy the electrifying gadget in a variety of ways.

"He's a run threat, and then he can catch the ball in space," Nagy said. "For us, that's an advantage for the play callers and the play designers to be able to do some different things and move him around and try to get an advantage against … a slower linebacker or a bigger guy. He's dynamic and really smart."

Including his return duties, Cohen got 196 touches last season, which seems like an awful lot for a 5-foot-6 player who was listed at 179 pounds. Although Cohen is always quick to poke fun at himself for his lack of height, he also emphasizes that he doesn't consider it a hardship.

So, what makes him think he can handle a bigger workload?

"Because I'm the biggest guy in the room -- whichever room I go in," said a smiling Cohen, who has bulked up since his rookie season. "I don't think anything will inhibit my style of play. The workload is never too much for me because you only get so much (action) in the game. Only one (player) can have the ball, and it's not continuous (motion) like soccer. It's always that break when I get tackled. When the whistle blows, I can always catch my breath."

And, at his new weight, Cohen says he's more ready than ever.

"Going into the off-season, I don't know how I did, but I gained some weight," he said. "So I'm even bigger than before. I know you all think that's like super big now. I feel like I'm ready."

How huge is the new Cohen?

"190," he said. "Yeah, all muscle; solid."

Going out as Bears

Two of the most productive players in franchise history will formally retire as Bears next Monday at Halas Hall.

Devin Hester and Matt Forte will sign one-day contracts to end their careers as members of the team that drafted them in the second-round - Hester in 2006 and Forte two years later. Both players spent the first eight seasons of their careers in Chicago before finishing up elsewhere.

Hester is arguably the greatest return specialist in NFL history and holds the league record for non-offensive touchdowns with 20 and punt-return touchdowns with 14. Forte set the NFL single-season record for receptions by a running back with 102 in 2014. He had five 1,000-yard rushing seasons, including 1,339 in 2013.

Hester played two seasons with the Falcons (2014-15) and one with the Ravens in 2016 before retiring. Forte played his final two seasons with the Jets (2016-17).

• Bob LeGere is a senior writer at Pro Football Weekly. Follow Bob's Bears reports on Twitter at @BobLeGere or @PFWeekly.