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http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-spt-bears-training-camp-updates-20180722-story.html#nt=oft02a-1la1
Sunday was the day Matt Nagy had longed for since the new Bears coach began working with his players April 3: the first practice in pads.
There wasn’t as much thumping as I had hoped, given Nagy’s vow to hold a physical camp, but it was only Day 1. There’s still plenty of time for an Oklahoma drill or two. Any live tackling would suffice — there was none Sunday. It’s worth noting that a third straight day of steady rain hampered everyone’s footing and grip on the football. Enough with this rain, already.
The first padded practice also means a return of practice observations. Keep in mind these are only snapshots of workouts in which players are trying new techniques, learning new concepts and generally testing themselves — all in pursuit of improvement. They deserve our analytical leeway, while we recognize that the competitiveness of these practices help form the data set by which the team will be evaluated and chosen.
That said, here are five observations from Sunday’s practice.
1. Mitch Trubisky’s performance to this point in camp could best be described as inconsistent.
This is neither surprising nor alarming. The guy has started only 12 NFL games (and only 25 total starts since high school), and now he’s learning an entirely new scheme that’s filled with flexibility to change plays and options during plays. But now that fans have been welcomed to practice, the public can see what was evident throughout spring practices — Trubisky riding the roller coaster on a play-to-play basis.
Through the first three practices, the sequence has become familiar: One throw will be late, off target or ill-advised, and the next throw will be perfectly placed and on time. This is not a function of the rain, although that hasn’t helped.
His challenge over the next seven weeks is to increase the frequency of the good balls and minimize the bad ones. Right now level of consistency is not close to where he or Nagy want it.
In six-on-eight drills between the offense and defense, Trubisky threw behind rookie Javon Wims on a short slant. The timing appeared off. Wims had to reach back for the throw, and it went through his arms, allowing cornerback Kyle Fuller to intercept it.
In full-team drills, receiver Kevin White ran a vertical route, and cornerback Prince Amukamara didn’t run with him for some reason. That left White wide open for a huge gain, but Trubisky underthrew the deep ball. It forced White to stop and completely turn his body back toward the line of scrimmage. The conditions were wet, and White dropped the off-target throw.
On the positive side, one particular throw in team drills stood out. Trubisky hit Josh Bellamy over the middle after Bellamy freed himself inside with an effective stutter step at the top of his route. As Bellamy came through the zone coverage into a wide window, Trubisky was perfectly in rhythm and anticipated the throw. The result was a completion that enabled Bellamy to gain yards after the catch.
Nagy, for one, embraces these inconsistencies from his quarterback and the entire group. Listen to Nagy and set your expectations accordingly.
“For our offense, this thing is not going to happen overnight,” he said. “They understand that. We as coaches understand that. It’s going to take time. We’re building it. You have to temper that a little bit. You can’t expect to come out and it just take off right away. That is a part of this process. But as long as you stay patient with it and don’t get frustrated, you’ll be all right.”
2. Cornerback Prince Amukamara shines in one-on-one drills because of his quick feet and patience.
Amukamara was a blanket against Kevin White and Josh Bellamy on a pair of reps Sunday.
Against White, Amukamara backpedaled quickly and kept his shoulders square as White pushed upfield. He anticipated White breaking back to the ball and undercut the route. In fact, White had to play defensive back and break up the throw from Trubisky to prevent an interception.
Against Bellamy, Amukamara again pressed at the line of scrimmage. He opened up to run with Bellamy, and when Bellamy tried to slow him with a stutter-go, Amukamara stayed patient through that movement and just kept running. That enabled him to have inside position on Bellamy’s hip when Trubisky’s throw descended. Another pass breakup.
Such good coverage is particularly impressive in one-on-ones because it’s all technique and reading keys in the receiver’s body (hips, feet, etc.) that indicate what route he’s running. There’s no game-planning or tendency studying, no safety help or offensive formation to telegraph the passing game concept. Just two guys running against each other. And Amukamara is really good at it.
“He’s strong,” defensive backs coach Ed Donatell said in May. “He’s patient. He’s patient at the line. He gets hands on people. He gets hands on good players.”
Of course, that coverage would take on an elevated level of effectiveness if he more consistently caught passes he got his hands on. That is one area of focus for Amukamara this summer.
3. Sam Acho wants to be more direct with his pass rushes this season.
He wrecked one play in team drills by timing Trubisky’s snap count and rushing inside right tackle Bobby Massie. Trubisky seemed intent on rolling right anyway, but Acho’s disruption forced him to burn the ball.
“A lot of times in the past I would stutter or I would take too long,” Acho said. “So I’m pretty much focused on just being single-minded and just running. Just staying on my track and reacting to whatever happens. As opposed to having this big ol’ plan, just go.”
Timing the snap count on team reps Sunday was an example of that, and there are more techniques he could use, specifically hand-fighting moves to try to free himself of one-on-one blocks.
His importance to the defense increases when considering that Aaron Lynch (hamstring) is out for the third time with an injury since mid-April. The Bears need Acho to balance the defensive front opposite Leonard Floyd. And if Lynch can’t be counted on as a pass-rusher, then Acho would have to do that much more in the passing game. He had three sacks last season.
4. It felt like Kevin White was targeted more Sunday than he was in all of last year’s camp.
Maybe that’s because of the different quarterback or because he’s a year and a half removed from his broken left fibula and torn up ankle. Regardless, it seemed the ball was thrown his way more frequently than we saw last summer.
That said, some results were good, and others were not. Kyle Fuller stripped him of the ball after a catch. He failed to maintain possession on a diving catch attempt over the middle. He didn’t catch the aforementioned underthrown long ball from Trubisky in team drills.
He did delight the crowd by catching a deep ball down the left sideline after running past undrafted rookie John Franklin, the quarterback-turned-receiver-turned-cornerback. If White did that against Fuller or Amukamara, it would carry a lot more weight. But, hey, anything that helps White gain confidence is a good thing. Let’s see how fast White can play, especially once the soggy fields firm up.
5. Linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski’s interception of Trubisky showed how his two years of experience could help the defense.
Kwiatkoski has a great opportunity because starters Roquan Smith (contract impasse) and Danny Trevathan (hamstring) are not participating. He flashed during team drills by sliding into a passing lane, tipping up a pass and catching the deflection.
In 2016, Kwiatkoski sometimes struggled in pass defense because his eyes weren’t in the right place or he wasn’t identifying keys — a challenge that applies to all rookies. That improved last season, as he played 36 percent of the Bears’ defensive snaps.
On the interception, Kwiatkoski’s coverage responsibility was eliminated based on something the offense did, so he became “a free guy,” as he put it.
“I’m just trying to occupy, trying to get in the window and help someone in need,” he said. “On that play I was looking at the quarterback’s eyes, trying to get in the window.”
He did, and then he executed physically by completing the catch.
“It’s always good to make plays in training camp,” he said. “For yourself it’s good, and you get that energy going on the defensive side of the ball. When your defensive as a whole is making plays, it’s fun to practice.”
Participation report: Linebackers Danny Trevathan (hamstring), Aaron Lynch and Joel Iyiegbuniwe (shoulder); cornerback Sherrick McManis (hamstring), tight end Daniel Brown (ankle) did not participate. Linebacker Roquan Smith (contract impasse) remains absent. Right guard Kyle Long (ankle) practiced.
rcampbell@chicagotribune.com
Sunday was the day Matt Nagy had longed for since the new Bears coach began working with his players April 3: the first practice in pads.
There wasn’t as much thumping as I had hoped, given Nagy’s vow to hold a physical camp, but it was only Day 1. There’s still plenty of time for an Oklahoma drill or two. Any live tackling would suffice — there was none Sunday. It’s worth noting that a third straight day of steady rain hampered everyone’s footing and grip on the football. Enough with this rain, already.
The first padded practice also means a return of practice observations. Keep in mind these are only snapshots of workouts in which players are trying new techniques, learning new concepts and generally testing themselves — all in pursuit of improvement. They deserve our analytical leeway, while we recognize that the competitiveness of these practices help form the data set by which the team will be evaluated and chosen.
That said, here are five observations from Sunday’s practice.
1. Mitch Trubisky’s performance to this point in camp could best be described as inconsistent.
This is neither surprising nor alarming. The guy has started only 12 NFL games (and only 25 total starts since high school), and now he’s learning an entirely new scheme that’s filled with flexibility to change plays and options during plays. But now that fans have been welcomed to practice, the public can see what was evident throughout spring practices — Trubisky riding the roller coaster on a play-to-play basis.
Through the first three practices, the sequence has become familiar: One throw will be late, off target or ill-advised, and the next throw will be perfectly placed and on time. This is not a function of the rain, although that hasn’t helped.
His challenge over the next seven weeks is to increase the frequency of the good balls and minimize the bad ones. Right now level of consistency is not close to where he or Nagy want it.
In six-on-eight drills between the offense and defense, Trubisky threw behind rookie Javon Wims on a short slant. The timing appeared off. Wims had to reach back for the throw, and it went through his arms, allowing cornerback Kyle Fuller to intercept it.
In full-team drills, receiver Kevin White ran a vertical route, and cornerback Prince Amukamara didn’t run with him for some reason. That left White wide open for a huge gain, but Trubisky underthrew the deep ball. It forced White to stop and completely turn his body back toward the line of scrimmage. The conditions were wet, and White dropped the off-target throw.
On the positive side, one particular throw in team drills stood out. Trubisky hit Josh Bellamy over the middle after Bellamy freed himself inside with an effective stutter step at the top of his route. As Bellamy came through the zone coverage into a wide window, Trubisky was perfectly in rhythm and anticipated the throw. The result was a completion that enabled Bellamy to gain yards after the catch.
Nagy, for one, embraces these inconsistencies from his quarterback and the entire group. Listen to Nagy and set your expectations accordingly.
“For our offense, this thing is not going to happen overnight,” he said. “They understand that. We as coaches understand that. It’s going to take time. We’re building it. You have to temper that a little bit. You can’t expect to come out and it just take off right away. That is a part of this process. But as long as you stay patient with it and don’t get frustrated, you’ll be all right.”
2. Cornerback Prince Amukamara shines in one-on-one drills because of his quick feet and patience.
Amukamara was a blanket against Kevin White and Josh Bellamy on a pair of reps Sunday.
Against White, Amukamara backpedaled quickly and kept his shoulders square as White pushed upfield. He anticipated White breaking back to the ball and undercut the route. In fact, White had to play defensive back and break up the throw from Trubisky to prevent an interception.
Against Bellamy, Amukamara again pressed at the line of scrimmage. He opened up to run with Bellamy, and when Bellamy tried to slow him with a stutter-go, Amukamara stayed patient through that movement and just kept running. That enabled him to have inside position on Bellamy’s hip when Trubisky’s throw descended. Another pass breakup.
Such good coverage is particularly impressive in one-on-ones because it’s all technique and reading keys in the receiver’s body (hips, feet, etc.) that indicate what route he’s running. There’s no game-planning or tendency studying, no safety help or offensive formation to telegraph the passing game concept. Just two guys running against each other. And Amukamara is really good at it.
“He’s strong,” defensive backs coach Ed Donatell said in May. “He’s patient. He’s patient at the line. He gets hands on people. He gets hands on good players.”
Of course, that coverage would take on an elevated level of effectiveness if he more consistently caught passes he got his hands on. That is one area of focus for Amukamara this summer.
3. Sam Acho wants to be more direct with his pass rushes this season.
He wrecked one play in team drills by timing Trubisky’s snap count and rushing inside right tackle Bobby Massie. Trubisky seemed intent on rolling right anyway, but Acho’s disruption forced him to burn the ball.
“A lot of times in the past I would stutter or I would take too long,” Acho said. “So I’m pretty much focused on just being single-minded and just running. Just staying on my track and reacting to whatever happens. As opposed to having this big ol’ plan, just go.”
Timing the snap count on team reps Sunday was an example of that, and there are more techniques he could use, specifically hand-fighting moves to try to free himself of one-on-one blocks.
His importance to the defense increases when considering that Aaron Lynch (hamstring) is out for the third time with an injury since mid-April. The Bears need Acho to balance the defensive front opposite Leonard Floyd. And if Lynch can’t be counted on as a pass-rusher, then Acho would have to do that much more in the passing game. He had three sacks last season.
4. It felt like Kevin White was targeted more Sunday than he was in all of last year’s camp.
Maybe that’s because of the different quarterback or because he’s a year and a half removed from his broken left fibula and torn up ankle. Regardless, it seemed the ball was thrown his way more frequently than we saw last summer.
That said, some results were good, and others were not. Kyle Fuller stripped him of the ball after a catch. He failed to maintain possession on a diving catch attempt over the middle. He didn’t catch the aforementioned underthrown long ball from Trubisky in team drills.
He did delight the crowd by catching a deep ball down the left sideline after running past undrafted rookie John Franklin, the quarterback-turned-receiver-turned-cornerback. If White did that against Fuller or Amukamara, it would carry a lot more weight. But, hey, anything that helps White gain confidence is a good thing. Let’s see how fast White can play, especially once the soggy fields firm up.
5. Linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski’s interception of Trubisky showed how his two years of experience could help the defense.
Kwiatkoski has a great opportunity because starters Roquan Smith (contract impasse) and Danny Trevathan (hamstring) are not participating. He flashed during team drills by sliding into a passing lane, tipping up a pass and catching the deflection.
In 2016, Kwiatkoski sometimes struggled in pass defense because his eyes weren’t in the right place or he wasn’t identifying keys — a challenge that applies to all rookies. That improved last season, as he played 36 percent of the Bears’ defensive snaps.
On the interception, Kwiatkoski’s coverage responsibility was eliminated based on something the offense did, so he became “a free guy,” as he put it.
“I’m just trying to occupy, trying to get in the window and help someone in need,” he said. “On that play I was looking at the quarterback’s eyes, trying to get in the window.”
He did, and then he executed physically by completing the catch.
“It’s always good to make plays in training camp,” he said. “For yourself it’s good, and you get that energy going on the defensive side of the ball. When your defensive as a whole is making plays, it’s fun to practice.”
Participation report: Linebackers Danny Trevathan (hamstring), Aaron Lynch and Joel Iyiegbuniwe (shoulder); cornerback Sherrick McManis (hamstring), tight end Daniel Brown (ankle) did not participate. Linebacker Roquan Smith (contract impasse) remains absent. Right guard Kyle Long (ankle) practiced.
rcampbell@chicagotribune.com
