Bears Who Will Be Tested By Miami Dolphins

The most valuable and entertaining film of Bears practices is about to be produced over the next three days.

It will all end when everyone gets to see something even more important.

The Miami Dolphins come to Halas Hall on Wednesday and Thursday for practice and cornerback Jaylon Johnson expressed a thought the entire team has, even if there have been fewer team members on the practice field due to numerous soft tissue injuries.

"I'm ready to go against anybody and they better be ready to go against me," Johnson said. "That's my mindset, just coming in and competing."

He'll go against DeVante Parker some, but the Bears know what to expect from Johnson.

The unexpected will cause coaches to pour over practice film closely, not to get a read on the other team but to see how their players react to what they see scheme-wise and also personnel-wise from the Dolphins.

One player in particular will be the focus of attention and the reason the film will be so valuable to the Bears.

The highlights from practice will be even more difficult to come by on the web, since the practices are closed to the public and media is restricted to filming only warm-up periods at beginning of practice. So, if things become heated like they did in 2016 when the Bears went to New England for practice, there will be no film beyond what the Bears make.

1. QB Justin Fields

Everyone with the team is talking about how interested they will be to see how Fields does against live fire in the game. Even defensive players expressed curiosity.

First will come the three practices and Fields won't be as likely to take off with the ball or even leave the pocket then.

"So when we get to the preseason and we watch, that's where I think we're all going to be able to see truly where he's at," Bears coach Matt Nagy said.

Fields will be throwing against a strong group of defensive backs. If he gets in against the first team, Miami right cornerback Xavien Howard made a team-high 10 interceptions and the Dolphins were second in the league with 18 picks last year during Josh Boyer's first year as defensive coordinator. Boyer had 13 years as a Bill Belichick understudy and should know how to fool the most experienced quarterbacks.

How Fields reacts to the different coverage schemes he sees daily will be more important than the defensive backs themselves. He'll likely be practicing against second-team Miami players. His only pro exposure so far is facing the Bears scheme and defense each day in practice. This will broaden his horizons. The Dolphins do use a 3-4 but a 4-3 in pass rush situations, much like the Bears. Their use of disguises and zones are different, as man-to-man has always been the tendency for the Patriots.

The game film will likely look much different with Fields getting a chance to run for what really will be the first time. They're not chasing him in practices.

2. QB Andy Dalton

Dalton is new to the Bears offense, as well. What will be more interesting for Dalton than facing a different coverage scheme will be the individual matchups.

As an 11-year veteran, Dalton has seen all manner of coverages and in practice quickly makes an adjustment with no pass rush pressure. However, he can't adjust for the personnel. Matt Nagy calls his strength the anticipatory throw, but how well does this work going against Howard, Byron Jones or nickel Justin Coleman in tight man-to-man coverage?

3. RT Alex Bars or insert a name

The Bears tackle positions are in shambles. Their top five tackles were still out on Sunday. It's unknown how many of them will be available to start practices against the Dolphins. Bars moved over to right tackle from right guard, where he had been as a replacement for injured James Daniels (quad). Starter Germain Ifedi has a hip-flexor injury and hasn't practiced since camp started. Swing tackle Elijah Wilkinson is on the reserve/COVID-19 list and when he's cleared he'll more likely be shifting to left tackle because starter Teven Jenkins (back) remains sidelined.

Bars or whoever lines up in practice here with the first team could be facing the new Nigerian Nightmare, Emmanuel Ogbah. The 6-foot-4, 275-pounder lines up at left defensive end in Miami's four-man pass rush. Last year he had nine sacks, same number as Khalil Mack, 3 1/2 more than he had in any of his previous seasons in Cleveland and Kansas City.

4. CBs Desmond Trufant or Kindle Vildor

Locked in a starting battle, both are getting first-team snaps but the lean still seems to be toward the veteran Trufant as it was Vildor who shifted to the right side when Jaylon Johnson missed a tackle on the right side. Either way, both could get first-team chances at left cornerback against Will Fuller. The Bears like to think their cornerbacks are getting tested well tested on a daily basis against speed receivers in Marquise Goodwin, Damiere Byrd and Darnell Mooney. They will see a real speed receiver if they face Fuller. Coming off his career-bests of eight TD catches and 16.6 yards per catch last year in Houston, Fuller has missed Dolphins practices and his health is a day-to-day thing.

5. WR Allen Robinson

Robinson operates at camp at his own pace and works on his technique daily. He doesn't catch an extraordinary amount of passes, but the Bears would rather have it this way as it's the other receivers who need to build better connections with the quarterbacks. This week, Robinson will have a real challenge in facing right cornerback Xavien Howard, who made 10 interceptions last year. Howard just signed a big contract extension. It might not be a daily down-by-down matchup like it would have been in the past. The Bears are moving Robinson around more in practices.

6. CB Duke Shelley

This will be a real test for Shelley, the inexperienced third-year cornerback. He could get to test his skills against Alabama rookie Jaylen Waddle. There have been injury concerns about Waddle so far with a leg, according to All Dolphins' Alain Poupart. One Miami receiver who has been impressive in camp to date so far is Lynn Bowden. The Dolphins could line Bowden up just about anywhere, but if it's in a slot position he'll get Shelley in coverage.

So far, Shelley seems to have the slot to himself. Thomas Graham Jr. has had some trouble getting burned for bigger gains and they've taken a look at both DeAndre Houston-Carson and Marqui Christian in the slot at times behind him.

Defensive backs coach Deshea Townsend expects more from Shelley, even if he only had extensive playing time last year at the end of the season.

"He's not a rookie," Townsend said. "This is his third year. Just continue to be the vocal guy that he is and I think he's embraced that—the communication part of the defense, the understanding that he is basically the quarterback of the defense as the nickel and I think he's done a good job of that so far."

7. LB Alec Ogletree

The Bears brought in Ogletree after losing four inside linebackers to injury, or in Christian Jones' case, the reserve COVID-19 list. All Ogletree has done is make six interceptions in four practices. He hasn't had a practice when he failed to make a pick. They may find out if he's just gaming the system, so to speak. Is he merely reading the eyes of the quarterback when he knows he doesn't have to worry about the run or tackling receivers in drills, or is he simply picking up the system faster than they thought? They should know when he is going against a different offense and a different group of tight ends.

The matchup looks like it might be Ogletree on former Bears tight end Adam Shaheen, who has returned to practice after a stay on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Starting tight end Mike Gesicki remained on the COVID-19 list through Sunday after Shaheen came off of it.

Starting inside linebacker Roquan Smith has a groin injury and backup Josh Woods a quad injury. Backup Joel Iyiegbuniwe is now back at practice after an injury. It could be Ogletree getting second-team or even first-team snaps.

Nagy tried not to get too excited about Olgetree and the Bears have even failed to provide the former Giants, Rams and Jets linebacker for interviews with the media to date.

"He's providing great depth and competition and that's all we can ask for," Nagy said.

He's also provided nothing but interceptions. Is this for real?

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven