BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – Challenged by coordinator Bob Babich to generate six turnovers in Friday night’s practice, an inspired Bears defense responded by intercepting five passes and recovering a fumble.

The sixth and final takeaway came on the very last play of practice when linebacker Rod Wilson picked off an ill-advised Brian Griese pass over the middle and took it the distance.

A Bears defense known for generating takeaways like this Mike Brown TD last season produced six turnovers Friday night.

“We came out with a lot of enthusiasm,” said safety Mike Brown. “We were challenged in the meetings. Our goal was to get six turnovers and things worked out for us.

“It shows that when we play with enthusiasm and energy we play a lot better. I think that’s all the challenge was. It took us until the last play of practice to get it, but we got it done.”

In 7-on-7 drills, cornerback Charles Tillman made a nice over-the-shoulder interception on a deep Rex Grossman pass intended for receiver Devin Hester.

When rookie safety Kevin Payne followed by picking off Kyle Orton and racing down the left sideline, Babich held up two fingers as the defense celebrated.

Brown then intercepted Grossman’s overthrown pass intended for receiver Bernard Berrian deep down the middle of the field.

“We talk a lot about takeaways and they were in tune to that,” said coach Lovie Smith. “They talked a lot before practice of how we haven’t had a lot of takeaways. Beyond that, they were just doing their techniques. Each day you should get a little bit better in practice and I think they’re doing that.”

In 11-on-11 drills, middle linebacker Brian Urlacher intercepted an errant Grossman pass, running back Cedric Benson coughed up a fumble and Wilson finished with his interception.

The performance was a satisfying one for the defense, which has been outplayed by the offense in the majority of training camp practices.

“This is probably one of the first practices that we came out on top, and that’s the honest truth,” Brown said. “They’re playing awesome. They are a really good offense. There’s no doubt about it. You can totally tell just watching them play. They’re a very potent offense. They cause a lot of match-up problems.

“They still had some good plays today also. It just shows you how good this team can really be. If we come out in all phases playing well, we’re going to be tough to beat.”

The offense produced some big plays of its own as Grossman hit Berrian for a touchdown on a slant and reserve tight end John Gilmore caught scoring passes from Griese and Orton.

Welcome back: Hester returned to practice Friday night after missing two days with what Smith described as “general soreness” in his leg.

“It’s good to get him back,” Smith said. “He’s been a little sore. When guys are dealing with those lower leg injuries, from time to time you need to take a little bit of time off. He did that.

“It was good to get him back into the flow. I thought he did some good things tonight. He’s going to be a big part of what we’re going to do, so it was good to get him back out on the field.”

Show time: Berrian put on a clinic in Friday’s morning practice, displaying an array of different skills while making catches on three consecutive plays.

Berrian muscled his way in front of rookie cornerback Trumaine McBride, deftly wedging his body in front of the seventh-round draft pick to catch a pass that should have been intercepted.

The fourth-year pro followed by leaping high to haul in a ball that was thrown slightly behind him and then beat nickel back Ricky Manning Jr. deep down the middle of the field.

“He’s developed into an every-down receiver,” said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. “He’s a very talented, very good receiver who is a lot tougher than people think. They look at his body type and he’s kind of slender, but he’s a very tough player and competes extremely hard.”

In Turner’s eyes, Berrian deserves to share top billing among Bears receivers with fellow starter Muhsin Muhammad.

“Bernard is a No. 1 receiver, there’s no question about it,” Turner said. “That’s not a knock on Moose. He’s a No. 1 too. Moose’s history in this league speaks for itself and he’s still a great player. In my mind, they’re both No. 1s.”