What Rookies Showed in Offseason Work
Once rookies come into an NFL offseason program with the veterans, they can become invisible.
It's easy for them to get lost in the shuffle because they haven't been through many of the same type practices or exposed to as high of a talent level as veterans display in their daily work.
They also don't know the offense or defense well.
None of this seemed to occur with most Bears rookies during offseason work as they were given every chance to work in with veterans and in many cases made statements.
Here's what happened in each draft pick's case and what the coaches saw.
T Darnell Wright
The top Bears pick in the draft, No. 10 overall, started immediately to work at right tackle. The lack of real contact by players limited what they could ascertain about his blocking but they noted how fast he picked up concepts and techniques used. Eberflus thinks Wright, as the lone rookie, is going to benefit from the experience of the linemen he's playing with as he adjusts to the NFL.
"But what I do think will help him a lot is all the veterans in the room," Eberflus said. "And I say veteran, I see Braxton (Jones) who went through that same situation playing the same position, albeit the other side. But I think that will be very helpful. "'Hey this what happened to me last year,' And he (Jones) can really help out that way.
"So those guys are in constant communication. Then having Cody (Whitehair) and Lucas (Patrick) and Nate (Davis), all those guys in there that have a lot of experience is going to help him as well.
Davis said Wright will find speed of the defensive linemen a big change when training camp starts.
"What's a little different? Speed's a little different from college to the NFL, so just letting him know there’s going to be a little bit of a curve but it’s going to all fall in place, and you're going to look back and be like, wow, I really took some good steps," Davis said.
Guard Teven Jenkins said the line has been hanging out together to bond even more and at a recent dinner out they stayed around for hours afterward talking. No word who picked up the check but it wouldn't be surprising if the rookie got stuck with it, as is NFL tradition.
DT Gervon Dexter Jr.
They played him with the second team and rotated him into the line with the first team as sets of plays were extended, usually as the first defensive tackle into the group. He played more nose tackle than previously expected but was lining up both as a three technique and nose. Like with the blockers, it's difficult to gauge success in offseason work when they don't pad up and there is no contact, but the quickness Dexter has was duly noted.
"He's good," Eberflus said. "He's doing a lot of Pilates. He does a lot of those things. He's working on his lower flexibility. We think that's important for the big guys, for all the big guys to do."
It sounds like he'll need more technique work when it comes to playing three technique and getting into the gap between tackle and guard to drive upfield.
"He's really learning how to take off," Eberflus said. "At Florida he was more of a two-gap guy, so he was more square, moving with the offensive linemen, not moving off the ball in a take-off position.
"He's working on that. We elongated his stance a little bit to help him do that and we moved him around a little bit. He's playing the nose, he's playing the three (technique)."
DT Zacch Pickens
The former South Carolina defensive tackle lined up as both a nose and three technique but more at the three and was usually on the field when Dexter was in, but not always. In some cases he was on with Andrew Billings at the nose. Left guard Teven Jenkins noticed something about both Pickens and Dexter right away when going against them.
"Very good hand usage out of both of them right now," Jenkins said. "Those two really know how to set up inside and outside moves. I'm seeing it right now.
"I've been impressed with how they've been rushing so far. We're not even doing power attacks right now. Just seeing their speed game, even with how big they are, it's surprising. When I do (face it) in training camp, when we do put the pads on, they are going to be much harder rushers when they can actually start bull rushing."
RB Roschon Johnson
They rotated all the backs in but started it with Khalil Herbert and then D'Onta Foreman, then Johnson. At this time of year the number of reps are usually pretty equal. There isn't much running since run-blocking isn't allowed.
As a receiver, Johnson got regular work out of the backfield with all of the backs.
"Ro, the tailback, has done a great job of picking things up and I'm excited for him in pads because I think he's really going to take off once we get the pads on," Eberflus said.
At Texas, Johnson displayed a hard-running style. Speed is definitely not his game.
"If he has a question, he asks," running backs coach David Walker said. "He doesn't make the same mistake, so he's doing a nice job so far of learning our system, learning our culture and he fits it already. Who he is fits what we want to be about."
WR Tyler Scott
Unlike many of the rookies, Scott got a regular chance to display is talents without actually being tackles of course. From one-handed catches in the red zone to hauling in deep throws along the sidelines, to cross routes, the fourth-rounder from Cincinnati put on an impressive display throughout offseason work starting with rookie camp and running right through Thursday's final red zone drills. Because Chase Claypool was injured and Darnell Mooney still was rehabbing after ankle surgery, Claypool was bumped up the line and had more reps with Justin Fields than normally he could have expected. They used DJ Moore, Equanimeous St. Brown and Dante Pettis as the top three receivers and then either Scott or Velus Jones Jr. depending on the personnel grouping or plays. His real connection seemed to be with backup PJ Walker, and it's a combination to expect will flourish in training camp and in preseason games.
Scott's speed impressed coaches but even moreso the speed at picking up concepts they taught with the offense proved surprising.
"That's always a good sign for any player, much less receiver," receivers coach Tyke Tolbert said. "You have to worry about breaking the huddle, there's motions, there's shift. Where's my split? What's the depth of my route? Certain defenses make a route convert into another route.
"It's a lot of things going on at wide receiver. It's not just lining up on the right side, going 10 yards, going right and catch the ball. There's a lot of things that go on that people don't realize. But he doesn't make the same mistake twice. He does a really good job."
LB Noah Sewell
Of all the draft picks heading into offseason work, Sewell's inclusion with the first team was probably the biggest surprise. First, he's a fifth-rounder and the farther down they drop on Day 3, the less likely they'll normally impress or even get the chance to impress. However, Jack Sanborn's absence from the entire offseason program on the field wasn't necessarily expected and it made it so either Sewell or Dylan Cole would line up at strongside linebacker. Eventually, Sewell was taking most of the first-team reps when they had the base defensive package on the field. He kept making plays, at least three interceptions and one pick-6 he dropped during a full-squad, non-contact scrimmage.
"With rookies, it's always know what to do first, so he knows his assignment so he can do it fast," Eberflus said. "He's getting better at it. We love his instincts. He's a very instinctual player."
Eberflus isn't just giving up on Sanborn, though. He'll give their second-year linebacker a shot at camp. Sanborn will arrive having played last year as a middle linebacker, not the strongside position. And Sewell will have more reps at the position within this scheme than Sanborn.
"Jack is a very instinctual player, plays multiple positions for us, but Jack will be the starter there going into it and then we'll see what Noah can do to press him," Eberflus said.
CB Terell Smith
After the start of OTAs, Smith spent much of the time in with the rehabbing players working on stationary bikes or watching practices due to an injury the Bears wouln't disclose. Eberflus did make sure the fifth-rounder's initial impressions left from rookie camp and the start of OTAs didn't get forgotten.
"I wish I would have saw Smitty, the corner, more," Eberflus said. "I was really excited about where he is. He’s going to get back to where he needs to be."
DT Travis Bell
He didn't make much impact during practices as his reps with first-team were very limited. The seventh-rounder from Kennesaw State had some remarkable advance billing from both GM Ryan Poles and Eberflus prior to the start of OTAs as both called him "their guy." Mostly, Bell worked in with the third-team players who fight for roster spots.
Line coach Travis Smith offered some encouragement for Bell, when discussing how it will depend on what they show once pads go on, hitting takes place, but more than anything how quickly they adapt the techniques they learned in the offseason to training camp work.
"Don't matter. Don't matter where you are drafted, only matters if you play the right way," Smith said.
S Kendall Williamson
Early in OTAs he was more visible working with first or second team against the offense, but that was before the arrival of Eddie Jackson.
Williamson seems like more of a complement to last year's seventh-round pick, Elijah Wilkson. He's a bigger, more physical type of player but showed very good long-range speed during passing or full-squad work. He and Hicks working together on the field with the backups were communicating well to keep the deep areas clear.
Hitting is supposed to be a strength, which no one saw.
"Kendall Williamson's done a nice job," defensive backs coach Jon Hoke said. "He's another guy who's smart, knows the defense, was a communicator."
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