The Good, Bad & Most Interesting From Chicago Bears' First Practice of Training Camp

Some of the most interesting nuggets included updates on the Chicago Bears' competitions at center, left tackle and slot cornerback.

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Chicago Bears returned to the practice field for the first time since mandatory minicamp in June when the team took part in its first training camp practice of the year on Wednesday.

Based on what beat writers on the ground said, it was a fairly light session for the Bears, so there wasn't a ton to glean from it, especially with no pads on until Monday.

But we've sorted through all of the nuggets shared by beat writers who were in attendance to bring you all of the good, bad and most interesting things to come out of the very first practice of training camp.

The good

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

No reported injuries

The Bears appear to have gotten out of their first training camp practice without any new injuries after none were reported.

On the flip side, the team did not activate anyone off the NFI or PUP lists, so there's nothing new on that front.

Strong showing for Bears QBs

Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum all got some love from Clay Harbor, who noted that "the QBs got the ball out on time."

"Solid day for QBs," Harbor added. "Bagent and Keenum made some nice throws."

One clip of Williams from practice showed him throw with some anticipation to Rome Odunze and that's definitely something we want to see more out of with Williams in 2026.

Williams noted after practice that he's had better eating habits this offseason and that has led to him dropping 10 to 15 pounds. He believes that will lead to smoother and faster movement.

Luther Burden continues to shine

Head coach Ben Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles have been effusive in their praise for Burden this offseason and he is chugging right along toward a breakout season at practice.

He's also lining up in multiple spots.

"Burden flashed route running. Looks even quicker this year," Harbor said.

"Luther Burden got a ton of balls. Inside, outside," CHGO Bears' Mark Carman said.

“If there’s a guy I’m really excited about, it’s Luther Burden. You can feel the fire inside him. He just loves football," Poles said on Tuesday.

Coby Bryant becoming a leader

The Bears lost a great leader in Kevin Byard, but one of their new safeties, Coby Bryant, appears ready to step into that role.

"Coby Bryant looks like he is taking on a leadership role," Carmen said of Bryant, who noted after practice that his goal is to bring energy to the defense.

Rome Odunze's "new normal" looks good

After dealing with a foot injury last season, Odunze had some people worried after he talked about his "new normal" earlier this offseason when it comes to managing "callouses in there that like creates a different type of foot structure with those bones — different types of things that kind of shift things around."

"It's never really back to normal," Odunze added.

Well, we got a look at Odunze's "new normal" at practice on Wednesday and he looks just fine.

Romes “new normal” was looking solid today.

Got in and out of breaks caught the ball well in individual. I think he will be just fine. #DaBears #Bears #ChicagoBears pic.twitter.com/OrbbkFsy5R

— Clay Harbor (@clayharbs82) July 29, 2026

Bears offense looks more "organized"

Chris Kwiecinski of FOX 32 News noted the Bears' offense looked to be further along than it was at this time last year, at least when it comes to organization.

"The offense isn’t re-writing records but looked organized, much better than the first few weeks of camp last year," he said.

We would expect that to be the case with the team being in its second year in Johnson's offense, but it's good to hear anyway.

The bad

Detailed view of a yellow penalty flag. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Pre-snap penalties

While both sides of the ball were guilty of pre-snap penalties, the Bears' defense appeared to commit more than the offense.

"The defense had more pre-snap flags than the offense from what I saw," Kwiecinski said.

This is definitely an issue the Bears need to fix in 2026. Chicago was tied for the most pre-snap penalties in the NFL last season with 54.

The most interesting

Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Jones. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kyler Gordon contingency plan

With Kyler Gordon still sidelined with a calf injury, the Bears have to figure out who will step in if he misses time during the regular season.

CHGO Sports' Adam Jahns reports that Cam Lewis, Jaylon Jones, Josh Blackwell and Malik Muhammad all saw time in the slot with Gordon out.

"As promised by Bears DC Dennis Allen, there were different players at nickel back with Kyler Gordon sidelined. Jaylon Jones played with the starters in team periods, while Cam Lewis took over in 7-on-7," Jahns wrote. "Josh Blackwell and rookie Malik Muhammad also got reps at nickel back."

Jones was working with the first-team defense in the slot during the spring, and Lewis has extensive experience playing there during his career. We would consider them the favorites over Muhammad and Blackwell for now.

Clarity at center and left tackle

The Bears opened training camp with Garrett Bradbury at center and Braxton Jones at left tackle with the ones, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune wrote.

While it's great to get a little clarity early on, this is not surprising at all. Jones has been the clear front-runner since the spring after he received all the first-team reps at left tackle, and comments from Poles and Johnson have been strong indicators that Bradbury is running ahead of Jones.

Caleb Williams said after practice that his communication with Bradbury has been great, minus one hiccup at practice on Wednesday.

The running back rotation

Kwiecinski notes that the Bears rotated D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.

"The Bears were rotating D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai at running back with the first-team offense," Kwiecinski said. "It’s worth noting to see if that remains the case as the offseason continues."

We would expect it to, as Swift and Monangai are going to be splitting work in 2026. What remains to be seen is if Monangai can clearly jump Swift on the depth chart and stake claim as the RB1.

This early rotation suggests there's at least a chance that happens.