Bears training camp observations: Offense draws Ben Johnson’s ire, defense pays toll

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet wasn’t taken aback when head coach Ben Johnson pulled the starting offense off the field during a drill in the first practice of training camp.

“I think that’s on par for how Ben is,” Kmet said.

After a completion to Kmet in 11-on-11 work, Johnson had to yell at the offense to re-huddle up when things weren’t right. Quarterback Caleb Williams connected with Kmet on the next play, but then twice he had to gather the offense in the huddle.

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Johnson had seen enough. The first-team offense went to the side, and in came the backups.

“If you’re not doing it right, he’s gonna get you out and he’s not going to (let) that stuff continue,” Kmet said. “It’s just a lesson to us that you got to be on the details. We got to be on the details going into practice and we’re going to get our reps in.”

It’s going to be a theme of the start of the Johnson era — the attention to detail and accountability. We all have to be a little careful. Matt Eberflus wasn’t some soft coach who cut corners when he arrived, but Johnson’s intensity is apparent when things aren’t going right.

“No detail goes unnoticed,” Kmet said. “You may catch a ball, and it might be a big play in practice, but he’s harping on the detail of your alignment is off or your steps are off here, and even though we got the result right, we didn’t do it the right way at times.

“Those are the details you need to hear, and you can’t be result-driven all the time, especially this time of the year in training camp. You’ve really got to be detail-driven, and Ben is all about the details, and you feel that in every meeting.”

What a way to start camp … for the defense

This was the moment, the first snap of team drills all summer. It had been six weeks. Williams took the snap, dropped back to pass … and got picked off.

Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds read the route and jumped it, intercepting the pass and running the other way.

“I’m anticipating him being an exceptional playmaker for us,” defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. “He’s got size. He’s got range. He’s got speed, a lot of the things we’re going to look for in terms of — look, it’s hard to throw over him. He’s got length in the middle of the field. I’m excited to see what he can do. That was a good start, but you know, we have a long way to go.”

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The first play that seemed to ignite the offensive sideline came a few plays later, when quarterback Case Keenum hit receiver Devin Duvernay over the middle for a long gain.

Williams got in a groove later in practice with completions to Kmet and running back D’Andre Swift.

Newcomer Nahshon Wright (25) started at cornerback for the injured Jaylon Johnson on Day 1 of camp. (Kamil Krzaczynski / Imagn Images)

Life without CB1

When the defense opened practice, Nahshon Wright was tabbed with the outside cornerback duties opposite Tyrique Stevenson.

Signed on April 8 — one day after the Minnesota Vikings cut him — Wright is hard to miss with his 6-foot-4 frame. He has played in 33 games since 2021 with three starts and has one career interception.

Wright had experience in that spot during OTAs and minicamp, Allen said, giving him the Day 1 nod, but the coordinator emphasized that players will move around. Terell Smith should also get some reps there in Jaylon Johnson’s absence.

“We didn’t see a lot of him in the spring. He was coming off the injury. He’s worked extremely hard to get himself back,” Allen said. “I’m excited about seeing what he can do and … he’s got some of the characteristics we’re looking for in our corners. He’s got size. He’s got speed. He’s got length and those are the things I think are important to play that position for us in our style of defense.”

As for Johnson, who is on the non-football injury list with a leg injury, Allen called the Pro Bowler a “consummate professional.”

“I feel good about him being ready when his body’s ready to go,” he said. “So from that standpoint, not a ton of concern there. And I think really our focus has to be on the guys that we have out here right now. We’re going to work on coaching the hell out of them and getting those guys better. Sometimes you have to face some adversity and how you overcome that, we’ll get a good opportunity to see who wants to step up in his absence.”

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‘You have to pay the toll’

Defensive players got a throwback at the start of practice: up-downs. Players hit the deck before jumping back up in the grueling conditioning drill.

“It took me back to like seventh, eighth grade a little bit,” linebacker T.J. Edwards said. “It’s funny because I was talking to Kevin Byard, I was just checking my tempo a little bit and your head is kind of straight down the whole time, but he was wearing green cleats today (and) out of the corner of my eye (were) his cleats, and I was making sure I was going the same as he was. But it was cool.

“Obviously, when you’re in it, it’s not that cool, but when you get done and you all are kind of a little tired and then you go out to practice, it’s kind of what you want. It’s that grimy camp start, but it was a good time for sure.”

It’s something Allen has always incorporated in his defense. He explained his philosophy.

“It’s all part of building the culture of what type of defense we’re going to be,” he said. “You have to pay the toll. You have to pay the price. It’s a privilege to be on this defense. We’ve been doing that on every defense that I’ve been associated with since 2009. And it’s a way to mentally train players to be tough and push through adversity.

“Training camp is going to be difficult, and we have to be able to overcome when we’re tired. How do we focus? How do we concentrate? How do we dig down deep inside, rise up and make plays in critical situations of the game? A lot of times, that comes with being tired. So, it’s all part of — as much as it’s about training them physically, it’s about training them mentally.”

How linebackers can succeed in Allen’s ‘D’

From 2022 to 2023, linebacker DeMario Davis was a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro for the New Orleans Saints in Allen’s scheme. That should be a good blueprint for Edmunds and Edwards to see the potential from their position.

“It’s aggressive and there’s a good amount of thinking, too,” Edwards said. “A lot of processing, being able to have vision at times and also winning your one-on-ones and attacking downhill, getting doubles off of the big guys up front so they can go do what they need to do.”

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In Eberflus’ defense, Edmunds played the middle and Edwards was on the weak side. Allen will have the two play both of those positions during camp.

“I think, in particular, during the early portions of camp, you cross-train guys,” he said. “You only have 53 guys on game day, and you’re only going to have about 22 defensive players to carry into a game. Injuries happen and you have to make adjustments during the course of a game. The more guys we have who can play multiple spots and do multiple things, the better we’re going to be. Ultimately, we want to be able to put our best 11 on the field. To do that, you have to be able to cross-train guys and put them in different positions.

Quick hits

• Rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III, who missed OTAs and minicamp, was not present for the first day of camp. Same goes for rookie corner Zah Frazier. Updates could come Thursday morning when Johnson addresses the media next.

• Rookie tight end Colston Loveland was out there, but in a limited fashion. Left tackle Braxton Jones also had his first practice of the year. He did not participate in team drills as rookie Ozzy Trapilo ran with the starters.

• Quarterback Tyson Bagent and rookie receiver JP Richardson combined for the highlight of the day. Bagent escaped the pocket to his right and motioned for Richardson to turn up the sideline. Bagent lofted the pass, and Richardson hauled it in with one arm with a defender draped all over him.

(Top photo of Caleb Williams: Kamil Krzaczynski / Imagn Images)

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