After a day off Wednesday, the Bears returned to Halas Hall for a non-contact practice Thursday that was closed to the public. Here's what transpired:

In a 7-on-7 red-zone drill, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams showed touch and accuracy in throwing touchdown passes to running back D'Andre Swift and receiver Velus Jones Jr.

Later in 11-on-11 work, Williams demonstrated his escapability and athleticism in scrambling to his left and rifling a pass to receiver Keenan Allen, who kept both feet inbounds as he fell forward out of bounds while making the catch.

"His accuracy is really good, not only in the pocket but on the move," coach Matt Eberflus said of Williams. "When you get the off-scheduled throws like you do a lot of times like we see in the red zone across the league, that's really important that those are accurate, and he's able to do that, for sure."

Veteran tight end Gerald Everett first recognized Williams' ability to extend plays with his feet last year when both played in Los Angeles – Everett with the Chargers and Williams at USC.

"I learned that from him last year just catching a few of his games at 'SC, just keeping the play alive and keeping his eyes downfield," Everett said. "He's got great poise, and his pocket presence is phenomenal. I don't see why it wouldn't translate to this level."

Since he began working with Williams in OTA practices in May, Everett has been impressed with the No. 1 overall pick in this year's NFL Draft.

"He definitely has that 'it' factor," Everett said. "As a dual-threat quarterback, he's not afraid to run and he's definitely got the arm strength. He's shown that from OTAs until now, even while he was trying to grasp the playbook. To see his confidence build day in and day out is a sight to see … Can't say enough about him. He's a great guy and an even better football player."

Cornering the market

Confidence has never been an issue for cornerback Tyrique Stevenson. But the 2023 second-round pick acknowledged that tying for the Bears lead with four interceptions last year as a rookie gave him a major boost. The breakout performance came after Stevenson had just three picks in four college seasons at Georgia and Miami.

"It just made me feel like I belonged here," he said. "I didn't have that many in college. So the fact that I came out and got four in one year just let me know I can be one of the elite DBs in this league, and that's what I'm aiming for."

Stevenson made huge strides over the second half of the season. All four of his interceptions came in the final seven games, including two picks in a Week 16 win over the Falcons that helped him earn NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Asked what accounted for his improvement, Stevenson said: "I would say this team. The guys on defense believing in me and pushing me and the coaching staff believing in me and pushing me and giving me the keys to really go out there and drive my car pretty much how I wanted to."

Determined to perform at an even higher level this season, Stevenson has been working to increase his knowledge of the game, specifically where receivers line up and what routes they're most likely to run.

"I just worked my whole offseason on calling (cornerbacks) coach [Jon] Hoke and asking him certain questions about this receiver or this receiver or 'coach, if they motion here, how many possibilities could I get,' and just going back and forth with him about it," Stevenson said.

Evaluation time

While players were off Wednesday, Eberflus was busy assessing the first four training camp practices that were held Saturday through Tuesday.

"We had a personnel meeting and actually talked about each guy: what he can improve on, what he did well and a couple things he can work on," Eberflus said. "That's always what we're going to do."

The Bears coach was pleased with what he witnessed in the first four workouts.

"In terms of the overall evaluation of that, I thought we were good," Eberflus said. "Operation on offense was better, the pre-snap penalties were better, in-and-out of the huddle was better. You could definitely see the guys studied the offense on that side because it's new. It's a new offense for those guys. But the defense was really good because they've been together."

Announcement expected soon

Eberflus is close to deciding whether Williams will play next Thursday when the Bears open their preseason slate against the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio.

"We've talked about it, had lengthy conversations about it during [Wednesday's] personnel meeting," Eberflus said. "Had it with the coordinators before that. Been talking to [general manager] Ryan [Poles]. We'll make a decision here soon."

Up next

The Bears will conduct their first padded practice and their first workout open to the public Friday. They'll follow with another padded practice Saturday before a day off Sunday.