The Bears conducted their sixth training camp practice and their second straight in pads Tuesday at Halas Hall. Here's what transpired:
The Bears opened practice with their first 11-on-11 live tackling period of training camp and closed it with a spirited late-game situation.
The offense took over at its own 47 trailing 28-23 with :54 to play. After back-to-back five-yard pre-snap penalties, Caleb Williams completed passes of 11 yards to Luther Burden III and six yards to Cole Kmet, setting up fourth-and-3 at the defense's 46.
Williams then connected with Kalif Raymond for 15 yards to sustain the drive and hit Rome Odunze for 10 yards to the 21 with :3.2 remaining. On the final play, Williams threw into the end zone over the middle to Burden, but linebacker Devin Bush delivered a jarring hit from behind that resulted in an incompletion.
"It was a last-minute play," Bush said. "Take a shot at the end zone. Our responsibility is to not let them in the end zone. Offense's responsibility is get the ball in the end zone. So, just a competitive play and finished our practice in the two-minute drill."
Though the hit was harder than most that normally occur in practice, Bush said: "I was going for the ball, so it was nothing malicious … … Try to replicate football as much as you can. Obviously, this is not the game, so things are going to be a little bit different, a little bit controlled. But as much as we can simulate that, it helps us out a lot."
Burden, who remained on the ground for a few minutes, did not take exception to the hit, saying: "Not typical, I mean, it's football, man."
The Bears signed Bush, an eighth-year pro, as part of their plan to get faster on defense.
"His play speed at the linebacker position is something definitely you notice when you are out there," said running back D'Andre Swift. "Being able to recover and things like that, and then he's great sideline-to-sideline. He's been that way since he's been in the league."
Burden, meanwhile, brings intensity and grit every time he steps on the field.
"Luther is a dawg," Swift said. "It shows in his play, his attitude. He's somebody you want to play next to. His play style is contagious, one that can spark the offense. He always knows where the camera is, too, when he gets a first down or something like that. But that's the energy that we need."
On the run
Swift enjoyed the live tackling drill at the outset of practice.
"It was good," he said. "I was looking forward to it, especially as backs. We need that [to] get on track with the O-line. It's good to get out there and go live every once in a while, so it was good."
Last year in his sixth NFL season and second with the Bears, Swift established career rushing highs with 1,087 yards and nine touchdowns. But it was also his first year as a pro in which he did not have a run of more than 25 yards.
"The only thing I was missing last year that I need to do a better job of is I need more explosive runs, longer runs," Swift said. "I need to showcase that. I didn't have a lot of those last year. I think we can go out there and improve that."
Swift believes that the key to accomplishing that objective is "creating more space for myself" and "making the most out of when I do get space."
Night and day
Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen lauded the strides the offense has made entering its second season with coach Ben Johnson and Williams.
"It's night and day from where we were at this point a year ago," Allen said. "That's the thing that is challenging for us and at times it can be frustrating for us. And yet we also know this is a team game. If our offense is operating at a very high level, then that's going to allow us to be a little bit more successful on defense. It's a huge challenge for us every single day; the things we see, the speed we're seeing at the skill positions, the challenging things schematically that we're seeing. I think all of this helps us get ready for the regular season."
Allen humbled and honored
Allen will be absent from Saturday's practice so that he can attend former quarterback Drew Brees' Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Canton, Ohio. Allen spent 11 seasons as a Saints defensive assistant during Brees' tenure in New Orleans.
"I'm humbled that he thought enough of me to invite me to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony," Allen said. "It's not often you get a chance to be around Hall of Fame players, offensively, defensively, whatever the case may be. It's a real honor and a real privilege that he asked me to be a part of it."
Special guests
Among those in attendance at Tuesday's practice were former Bears players Patrick Mannelly, Tom Waddle and Bobby Douglass, and former coach Dave Wannstedt.
