The Bears opened the preseason Saturday afternoon with a 34-10 victory of the Browns at Soldier Field. Here are six players that stood out:
WR Kaden Davis
Davis took full advantage of his opportunity to start in his Bears debut, finishing the game as the team's leading receiver. In the first half alone, the 27-year-old caught four passes for 88 yards, including a 41-yard deep ball from quarterback Tyson Bagent, which marked his longest completion of the game.
"Any time you go out there and make plays in the NFL on the field — it's a very humbling league — it feels good," Davis said of his performance.
Davis has shown his playmaking ability throughout training camp, specifically with Bagent under center. The pair have connected on several touchdowns in practices, including on Thursday when Davis hauled in a 70-plus-yard bomb from Bagent. Both D-II products who went undrafted, Bagent and Davis have developed a strong rapport based on their work ethic and eagerness to succeed,
"It's been quick," Davis said of forming a connection with Bagent. "I mean, it's still just football at the end of the day. Timing does play a factor, but Tyson's got a great arm, and a great head on his shoulders, and has made it easy for me. I just do my best to get open, and he does his part to get me the ball."
Along with the 41-yard reception — his first of the game — Davis caught a pair of 21-yard passes on the same drive just before halftime, which led to kicker Cairo Santos hitting a 51-yard field goal to tie the game at 10.
Davis was also contributing without the ball in his hands. During the opening drive of the third quarter, Davis was seen downfield on Salvon Ahmed's 49-yard touchdown reception.
Having entered the NFL in 2022, Davis has spent time with the Broncos (2022-24), Cardinals (2023-24), Lions (2024) and Browns (2025-26), and most recently played in the 2026 UFL season with the Houston Gamblers.
With hopes of earning a spot on the 53-man roster this year, Davis has been focused on showing his coaches and teammates they can trust him and that his speed and consistency are valuable traits.
"Throughout my whole career, I feel like I've just been delayed; I haven't been denied," Davis said. "But it takes some time and [I] just keep working and persevering."
DE Jamree Kromah
After spending his first two NFL seasons on the Bears practice squad, Kromah made a major change this offseason in preparation for the 2026 season.
"One thing I did for sure was I changed my body, changed my nutrition, because I was much heavier last year," Kromah said. "So I wanted to make some changes by losing weight. I lost over 20 pounds, but got stronger and then put more lean mass off. So this is the best I have felt … I had to look at the man in the mirror and be true to myself, and come up with a real plan."
Kromah experienced the benefits of his offseason work. He led the defense with two sacks, including a strip-sack and recovery in the second quarter that led to the Bears' first score of the day — a 25-yard touchdown pass from Bagent to receiver Maurice Alexander.
The Rutgers product attributed the takeaway to his ability in the moment to "just trust what I do and let it flow."
Kromah tallied six total tackles, just behind linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II's team-best seven, and added an additional tackle-for-loss on fourth-and-1 to force a turnover on downs in the third quarter.
Coach Ben Johnson told reporters in his postgame press conference that Kromah flashed in the spring while the defensive staff was implementing new techniques. While Johnson wasn't sure if Kromah would "turn it on" come training camp, he saw the defensive end come to life Saturday.
"You come into a game like this, and you see the get-off, you see the relentlessness," Johnson said. "You could feel his presence every single snap. I'm standing close to the D-line and they're hootin' and hollerin' and cheering for him because they're as excited as he is. They're seeing him go out there and making plays and making an impact. And he's such a hard worker."
As Kromah continues to work toward a roster spot, he is trying not to put additional pressure on himself and is instead focusing on being as impactful as possible for both the defense and special teams.
"Special teams is everything and that's how you build value," Kromah added. "So the way I look at it is take advantage of every single opportunity, put myself in the best position possible, control what I can control and then let everything fall in place."
DB Beanie Bishop Jr.
Six days after signing with the Bears, Bishop made an impressive debut in the navy and orange, recording two interceptions in the fourth quarter.
The first pick came on third-and-8 when Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders overthrew receiver Malachi Corley on a deep ball down the middle of the field, allowing Bishop to snag the pass at Chicago's 30-yard line and return it 34 yards into Cleveland territory.
That moment came as no surprise to Bishop, who visualized the takeaway that morning.
"I do some meditations in the morning and then at nighttime, just visualizing things," Bishop said. "I was watching film earlier, and I told Terrell Smith it was gonna be a different concept, but I was like, 'man, I'm gonna get one and I'm gonna run it in.'
"When the first one came, he's like, 'you called it,' and then the guys were like, 'why not get another one?'"
Bishop did just that. On the Browns' next possession, the West Virginia product jumped a route at midfield and intercepted a pass thrown by reserve QB Dillon Gabriel. Bishop returned the ball 21 yards to the Cleveland 31-yard line, leading to a 49-yard field goal by Santos.
" I think it was a similar play call and got another one," Bishop said. "So it just feels good. You've got to catch the ones that come to you. Even though they look easy, it's still having to catch it. But it's just not even a thought because of how much work I put in, and we put in to catch the ball and emphasize getting the ball back to the offense."
While Bishop has spent less than a week at Halas Hall, he has already felt the impact of defensive backs coach Al Harris. Bishop said that Harris has already instilled confidence in him, which allowed him "to go out there and play free."
With two more preseason contests remaining, Bishop is eager to continue making plays and being a ballhawk for the Bears. Johnson is just as excited to see Bishop continue to grow in coordinator Dennis Allen's defense.
"I think it's a credit to him," Johnson said. "He doesn't say a whole lot. He's just learning and trying to absorb the system right now. I think DA has been pretty clear with how our pass defense works together. It's the rush upfront, combined with the coverage in the back end.
"And when you feel that front coming off the ball and affecting the quarterback to the degree that they did, move him off his spot, that's where you get some overthrows and things of that nature. And Beanie's in great position and he took advantage of it twice. Thought he had a great return afterwards as well. It was awesome to see."
WR Maurice Alexander
Just as they did last year, Bagent and Alexander teamed up for the Bears' first touchdown of the preseason, connecting on a 25-yard score in the second quarter.
"It feels pretty good," Alexander said. "Just kind of setting the tone for the season, getting a touchdown. [I'm] just looking to take advantage of my opportunities and let it carry over to the regular season."
The fifth-year pro finished the contest with three catches for 42 yards and served as the main return specialist, fielding two kickoffs and two punts. His 30-yard kickoff return in the first quarter marked the Bears' longest return of the day.
Alexander spent the 2025 season on the Bears practice squad after playing his first three NFL seasons in Detroit, where he built a connection with Johnson and receivers coach Antwaan Randle-El.
While Alexander has had the opportunity to learn Johnson's offense "front to back," he's hoping to apply that knowledge further as a depth piece. Before the preseason and training camp conclude, Alexander aims to be known as a player who will make plays when they comes his way and lay it all out on the line each time he's on the field.
"It means a lot," Alexander said of his preseason opportunities. "For me, it's like a Super Bowl, because I've been on the other end of the stick where I've gotten released and had to fight on the practice squad. So these games mean a lot to me, because you never know in the NFL when your opportunity is gonna come again."
QB Case Keenum
The 14-year veteran put together a stellar third quarter at Soldier Field, completing nine of 10 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns to record a perfect 158.3 rating.
"I enjoyed it," Keenum said of Saturday's win. "I had a lot of fun. I don't care where you are, throwing touchdowns and moving the ball down the field is fun."
Having joined the Bears last spring, Keenum has been a valuable part of Williams' and Bagent's development, yet has continuously proved that he's more than an impactful veteran presence.
Keenum opened the third quarter by commanding a four-play, 78-yard scoring drive that included three pass plays and ended with a screen pass to running back Salvon Ahmed, which turned into a 49-yard TD.
"I told the QB room, those all count as passing yards," Keenum joked. "He did all the work, I just managed to get it up and over and guys did a great job of blocking downfield.
"Those cutbacks crosscourt, when you have a guy like that with speed and the vision for that, we work screens all the time, and it showed on that play and a couple other ones too."
On the ensuing drive, Keenum delivered completions of 18 yards, 16 yards and four yards before leading another touchdown drive to cap off his performance. The 38-year-old QB threw four passes on a 7-play drive, including 13- and 28-yard completions to receiver Ray-Ray McCloud and two six-yard passes to running back Brittain Brown, who reached the end zone on the second throw.
Keenum credited Randle-El for putting together a strong third quarter – the receivers coach took over playcalling duties in the second half.
"It was really nice; El got to call the second half for me and my couple of drives, and I loved it," Keenum said. "I got into an immediate rhythm with him. I thought the guys up front, especially some of the newer guys, the younger guys who were getting their first taste of action, played really well. Communication was good in the huddle. Couple of the tight ends and receivers, too, it was their first time."
RB Salvon Ahmed
One of the Bears new running back additions, Ahmed showcased his versatility in his Bears debut, totaling 72 yards of offense, highlighted by his 49-yard touchdown.
On second-and-4 from the 49-yard line, Ahmed fielded a screen pass from Keenum seven yards behind the line of scrimmage, ran down the left sideline and cut back inside before outrunning a group of Browns defenders on his way to the end zone.
Ahmed totaled three receptions for 55 yards and carried the ball twice for 17 yards, an outing that impressed Johnson.
"He's got that slashing mentality where he's hard to bring down in space, and that showed up again today," Johnson said. "Showed up in practice really throughout camp so far. We'll continue to challenge him to find a defined role there on special teams where he can help us out the most there. And then pass protection, how do we continue to improve? When you're a little bit smaller as a running back… that's always what I'm looking for is, how well, how stout are we holding up to a blitzing linebacker as well."
