Bears training camp observations: New OL combo debuts originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
LAKE FOREST, Ill. – The Bears left the pads off when they returned to practice on Saturday. The team had an off day on Friday as they recovered from the Hall of Fame preseason opener, and they’ll have another off day on Monday. Head coach Matt Eberflus says that’s by design, as he wants to keep the players fresh for a big upcoming stretch. The Bears will play their three remaining preseason games over a 13-day period, with a Bengals joint practice in the middle.
Accordingly, Bears practice was a little shorter on Saturday and featured extra individual work. We still got a good look at Caleb Williams and the first team offense, albeit with some different offensive line combos.
With Nate Davis out for a week now, the Bears have largely rolled with Coleman Shelton at center and Ryan Bates a right guard. Previously the two had swapped in and out at center. On Saturday, however, the Bears tried preseason standout Bill Murray at right guard. Free agent addition Matt Pryor also played with the first team at right tackle with Darnell Wright sidelined, as well. Shelton stuck at center, but played with the second team.
“We’re just working guys to see if they can elevate,” said Eberflus. “You’re going to see some matchups this week where you’ll see some different guys matched up against different players. Have a two or a three matched up against a one just to see if they can elevate their game.”
Bates working at center again was not a surprise. Eberflus said earlier this week that he wanted to get him back in the middle to keep working the position, because he’ll be the primary backup at center in case Shelton wins the job. This was the first time we’ve seen Murray and Pryor playing with the ones in camp, however.
“He was really good,” Eberflus said about Murray in Thursday’s Hall of Fame game. “Real aggressive. I thought his zone game, jumping to the second level…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/bears-training-camp-observations-ol-201056717.html
Author : NBC Sports Chicago
Publish date : 2024-08-03 20:10:56
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
