Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams and other healthy starters will play in Saturday’s game against the Buffalo Bills in New York.
Coach Matt Eberflus made the announcement Thursday after practice at Halas Hall, but he did not give the number of snaps they would play. He said they would participate in “a range of plays.” Bills coach Sean McDermott told reporters that his starters, including quarterback Josh Allen, would play about a quarter.
Last week, Eberflus kept Williams and other Bears starters out of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, which was held a week earlier than the rest of the league’s preseason openers. So this will be the first NFL preseason game for Williams, the No. 1 pick in the draft this spring.
“He’s been getting a lot of good reps with our (No.) 1 defense, so I think it will feel similar to him,” Eberflus said. “But I really feel that when it’s live there in the pocket, (we want to see him) be able to maneuver in the pocket, ride the pocket, escape on the outside, B-gaps, be able to deliver the ball and keep your eyes downfield. And really just the operation of it, getting in and out of the huddle, no presnap penalties, just clean operation.”
Williams’ participation in the Bills game was mainly in question because the Bears have been banged up on the offensive line, and they want to be sure they can protect the rookie properly.
Right guard Nate Davis has been in and out of practices as he recovers from a groin injury. Eberflus said Thursday that Davis suffered a setback and is considered “week to week.” Right tackle Darnell Wright has missed recent time but participated in some team periods Wednesday and Thursday.
But the Bears feel good enough about their operation for the quarterback to go.
Here’s the rest of our camp rundown for the day.
Caleb Williams watch
Williams threw a pair of interceptions in full-team periods during a shorter practice Thursday.
Safety Elijah Hicks jumped up to make a pick against wide receiver Keenan Allen and then made a leaping pass breakup against Gerald Everett on back-to-back plays against Williams. Hicks has been splitting reps with Jonathan Owens with the first-team defense while Jaquan Brisker is out.
Photos: Inside Chicago Bears training camp at Halas Hall
In a two-minute drill at the end of practice, veteran safety Kevin Byard picked off a pass to Everett.
The rough ending to practice came on the heels of a Wednesday session that didn’t have a lot of offensive highlights. Eberflus said he is encouraging Williams to embrace the challenging moments as points that will help him get better.
“He’s having some good days and some good periods and then some other ones that he’s learning from adversity and a setback,” Eberflus said. “I told him to just lean into that. When you have a setback or have adversity, don’t shy away from it. Lean into it and then learn from it and then get better from it because a lot of people want to hide, shrink away from adversity. That’s not what we do. We lean into it and get better from it, invest our time, grow and improve.”
Player in the spotlight
Tight end Marcedes Lewis, 40, is entering his 19th season, so he has a deep perspective on some of the early struggles of the Bears passing game in camp. And he said it’s part of having a young quarterback at the helm.
“In the passing game, it’s about being cohesive and the timing of it all,” Lewis said. “We’re still working out those kinks. But as far as what we will be able to do, we’re not even really worried about it. We’ve got the guys in the position to do the work, and we’re just going to lean on the work. Not every day is going to be beautiful out there, but if you keep working through it, come September we will be just fine. We’ve got plenty of time.”
Lewis called Williams “a special cat,” touting his attitude, drive to be great and willingness to ask questions when he gets it wrong. Lewis sees Williams often approach players on the sideline to check in about plays.
“He’s a guy that can kind of navigate through the tight spots to have real conversations with the older guys and then really float in that space with the younger guys that are around him,” Lewis said. “He’s a special kid, and I feel like as long as he keeps that about him, he’s not going to have any issues. It’s his mindset that will get him through these things that we are going through in camp and being able to just roll with the punches. He has shown that. He doesn’t lack confidence, so it has been really impressive.”
And Lewis has seen the flashes within plays too — of Williams’ mechanics, fundamentals and ability to make certain throws look easy.
“He has it,” Lewis said. “And again it’s just going to be up to us to make sure that we’re doing everything in our power to make sure it’s easy for him so he can go out there and create and do his thing.”
Quote of note
Eberflus on the first episode of “Hard Knocks,” which featured his relationship with Williams, his meeting with Nick Saban and his offseason makeover: “I thought it came out nicely. Of course, I was in on some of the editing of it. I want to give a shoutout to (chief administrative officer) Ted Crews. He did a wonderful job. He was here late into the evening doing that for the show and working with ‘Hard Knocks.’ …
“It’s always weird when you see yourself on camera, you hear yourself talk. Even when you watch a presser, it sounds funny. … But it’s whatever.”
A return
Bears linebacker Tremaine Edmunds will return to Buffalo for the first time since he joined the Bears on a four-year, $72 million contract last spring.
He said there should be some emotions and excitement as he plays the Bills, with whom he spent his first five seasons. But Edmunds now is in the thick of building on a 2023 season with the Bears in which he had a career-high four interceptions, including a pick-six, along with 113 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Edmunds and fellow linebacker T.J. Edwards, who had 155 tackles, three picks, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries last year, have logged a bunch of practices together while injuries have popped up in other areas of the defense. And Edmunds thinks that work has been “very important” as they try to elevate their games together.
“Seeing what he sees, seeing what I see and being able to come look at it after practice and just talking about it is very essential,” Edmunds said. “Leading out front, and pretty much just putting our brains together. Two heads is obviously bigger than one. Being able to take what he sees, take what I see, and being able to take our game to the next level.”
Injury report
The Bears had a long list of defensive players sit out: Brisker, nickel Kyler Gordon, cornerbacks Tyrique Stevenson and Terell Smith, and defensive linemen Montez Sweat, Byron Cowart and Keith Randolph Jr.
Eberflus said Gordon, who has been out the longest, is a “work in progress.”
“There’s a delicate balance here because we have to make sure it’s right, but also he’s working hard, diligently to get back,” Eberflus said. “Because we know we have to have that conditioning level … (and) the continuity for that unit to be able to thrive the way we want it to. So we have to get him back as soon as possible. He understands that. He’s working to get there.”
Safety Adrian Colbert left practice early, but defensive tackle Andrew Billings returned to the mix after missing practice earlier in the week.
Along with Davis, running back Roschon Johnson, offensive lineman Theo Benedet and wide receiver Collin Johnson also were out.
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