Is there a position harder to look at with the standard NFL camera angle than right guard?
— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) August 19, 2022
As is the want of DBB, we’ll approach this practice game quarter-by-quarter. And hopefully I will be able to stay awake for all four. (That is highly doubtful. With both teams sitting 20+ players, this is a more useless preseason game than most.)
Quarter One.
- Velus Jones looks like he’s going to be the return man. Showed a remarkable burst on the opening kickoff (before fumbling) and had a long punt return later. When you have that kind of speed on your roster, you have to use it, and the return game is a good way to start.
- First offensive drive, the Bears surrendered a lot of pressure. But Fields was genuinely quick to recognize it and get the football out of his hands. Remember, this is all vanilla game planning. Nothing the Bears ran against Seattle had anything to do with Seattle.
- Never overreact to the preseason. But Cole Kmet looks like he’s going to be a central part of this passing game.
- Just an eye test thing, but I think the Bears need to move Trestan Ebner ahead of Khalil Herbert on their depth chart. He’s got a better burst and he’s tougher to bring down. Herbert is useful but Ebner looks better as a runner.
- Ebner didn’t make it through the first half healthy. Something to monitor.
- This game kicked off at 8:13 or so ET. By 8:43 all of the relevant Bears were out of the game. These games in August should all be early afternoon kickoffs.
- No idea how well Teven Jenkins played inside against the better Seahawks, but he didn’t seem to make any visible errors. (When Seattle moved to the backups late in the quarter, Jenkins leveled a few guys.)
Quarter Two.
- Trevor Siemian is having a nice summer for this team. You want a backup quarterback that can execute the offense and not be an automatic loss. Siemian is that.
- Do the Bears intend to use Trenton Gill on kickoffs?
- Big time whiff by Kyle Gordon on the long Homer run at the start of the second quarter. Happens. But needs to get corrected.
- Good reason to be concerned about Trevis Gipson. For a guy expected to start on the edge, he’s had a relatively unimpressive summer and was kept in this game far too long. Bears need pass rush production aside from Robert Quinn. Gipson need to provide a significant amount of it.
- Dante Pettis relieved Dazz on punt returns last week and relieved Velus this week. Seems like he’ll have a spot on this roster.
- A guy slid to end the half for Seattle. And then he looked shocked by the moment. That seems about right for these awful games.
Quarter Three.
- Good point made by Lou Riddick coming out of the half. Fans are going to like the “character” of this team under Eberflus.
- Dazz Newsome with a nice catch in traffic and taking a hit. Continue to believe he’s a professional receiver. But he needs to find consistency.
- The Roquan conversation throughout the third quarter was not particularly enlightening. It’s been hashed out by Bears media for a month.
- Jacob Eason threw darts in the third quarter. No idea why the Seahawks wouldn’t just play him over Geno and Lock – two guys that have years of stink on their resume. Play Eason and maybe you get lucky.
- Nsimba Webster was probably the best Bears player in this game. Dynamic on both offense and in specials.
Quarter Four.
- Amazing to think about how automatic Cairo Santos feels now. Even from 47 yards.
- Sam Kamara is 24. He’s from NJ. And the Bears should start thinking about his as a player. He is one. He should be someone that is worked into the defensive line rotation.
General Thought.
An identity is forming, especially when it comes to defense. They run to the football. They gang tackle. They play with a ton of energy. This is going to be a team fans enjoy watching. They may not win a ton of games, but they will fight.
What is the offense? We shall see.
