Chicago Bears receiver Gabriel continues to improve
BOURBONNAIS — Wide receiver Taylor “Turbo” Gabriel flashed his ability to take the top off a defense at Monday's Chicago Bears practice, which was the first of camp conducted under ideal conditions with sunny skies and moderate temperatures.
“He's becoming a better wide receiver,” coach Matt Nagy said. “There's still some things that we're all working through, the same thing with Taylor. He's working through some adjustments within the play on what he does versus a certain coverage.
“But the biggest thing for him is, he's a speedy guy, and he knows how we're going to use him and some of the things we want to do. So far, he's done a great job, everything that we've asked for.”
The 5-foot-8, 165-pound flash was enthusiastic in describing his catch of a deep ball down the middle from Mitch Trubisky.
“Building that trust with my quarterback,” Gabriel said. “That's a ball that's kind of scary to throw because it was (against) Cover-2. But for him to trust me on that deep ball and trust my speed, that's what I like to see.”
Picking up the pace:
Cornerback Prince Amukamara's interception Monday is something coach Matt Nagy hopes to see more of in the regular season.
The Bears had just 8 interceptions in each of the previous three seasons, establishing and then equaling the single-season franchise low for picks.
Amukamara, despite his otherwise solid play, has just 1 interception over the past three seasons and 7 career picks in seven seasons.
“One of the things that we stress as a team is takeaways,” Nagy said. “We want to be able to be aggressive. That's the mentality of our team. Let's be jumpy, (but) let's be smart, so you don't get double-moved.
“In that case right there, he was almost playing the (first-down) stick and the (time remaining on the) clock, and knew what was going on. (He) knew that another five yards would really help the kicker get closer, and he made a good play.”
Drop and give me 10:
On the final rep of a 1-on-1, pass-rush drill that featured running backs blocking linebackers, running back Jordan Howard stopped inside linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski in his tracks, and the punishment was 10 pushups for all the linebackers.
“(Running backs) coach (Charles) London got a little competition going on there,” head coach Matt Nagy said. “I think that's good for the guys, and I'm just a little upset that I didn't see (defensive coordinator) Vic (Fangio) doing his 10 pushups.”
Coming and going:
Tight end Ben Braunecker (hamstring), linebacker Kasim Edebali (oblique) and cornerback Kevin Toliver (quad) were added to the injury report. Linebackers Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Aaron Lynch (hamstring) and Danny Trevathan (hamstring) remained out, as did cornerback Sherrick McManis (hamstring). Offensive guard Kyle Long (neck, shoulder, elbow) and wide receiver Allen Robinson (knee) had scheduled off-days as part of their rehab plan.
Tight end Daniel Brown (ankle) returned to practice. Undrafted rookie offensive lineman Jeremi Hall was waived, and, in a corresponding move, the Bears signed rookie linebacker Ro'Derrick Hoskins, who started 28 combined games during his four-year career at Florida State.
• Bob LeGere is a senior writer at Pro Football Weekly. Follow Bob's Bears reports on Twitter @BobLeGere or @PFWeekly.