The Bears conducted a practice in shells that was open to the public Tuesday at Halas Hall. Here's what transpired:
Quarterback Caleb Williams provided the offensive highlights with impressive touchdown passes to receivers DJ Moore and Rome Odunze.
In a red-zone drill, Williams side-armed a throw to Moore in the back of the end zone. Later, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft hit Odunze streaking down the left sideline with a 30-yard TD pass to cap a two-minute drive.
Back to work
The Bears practiced Tuesday for the first time since Saturday's 33-6 preseason win over the Bills. The No. 1 offense looked sharp in Buffalo, driving 58 and 84 yards to set up Cairo Santos field goals of 30 and 31 yards on its only two possessions.
"I thought we did a great job operating and having clean looks, getting to the line, getting plays off," said left tackle Braxton Jones. "Just a really good job. Felt really confident with everybody. Think for myself, [I] need to finish better down there in the low area, low gold zone, trying to get touchdowns and not field goals. But other than that, I think everything looked really good."
Jones was particularly proud of how the offense executed on its first drive, including on a third-and-12 play that resulted in a first down thanks to a 12-yard pass from Williams to Moore.
"Just starting with the O-line, we had really good protection, and that's what we are trying to do: block as long as possible," Jones said. "Caleb is just doing what he's been doing. He's looked incredibly confident and that's what we have been seeing at practice. So, he just stepped up, made the throw and we converted it and continued to go down and score a field goal."
One play after the completion to Moore, Williams avoided pressure and flipped a screen pass to running back D'Andre Swift, who raced 42 yards, producing the game's longest play from scrimmage.
"We've been executing those screen passes in practice," Jones said. "That's kind of what we've been doing, so I expected for us to have a big gain on that play. For myself, just finish a little deeper in the pocket just for Caleb to get that ball out. He made a great play. Swift made a great play. And I think our O-line did a great job getting out in space and getting the right assignments and getting everything blocked up, and it ended up an explosive play."
Defense delivers
Defensive coordinator Eric Washington was impressed with how the defense performed in Buffalo. The unit did not allow a touchdown, registered eight sacks and scored a TD on linebacker Micah Baskerville's 53-yard interception return.
"Lot of production. Ball production. Production on the quarterback," Washington said. "Really pleased with how the starters played against their starters. They held down the run. They controlled the line of scrimmage. And then a heck of a play by Micah Baskerville to get the pick. It's something I see our linebackers do every single day; our plant-and-drive drills and to take the ball away and score, so lot of positives. What I told the defense was it was a good step. [But] we've got a long way to go, and we're not going to bask in that."
Rookie fifth-round pick Austin Booker, a defensive end from Kansas, drew rave reviews after registering 2.5 sacks and five tackles.
"He's getting better, and he's doing some good things," Washington said. "He had some production on the quarterback. He was physical with his rushes. He never gave up on his rushes. He kept himself in contention."
Another young defensive end who stood out in Buffalo was second-year pro Daniel Hardy, who tied Booker for the team lead with 2.5 sacks.
"His production has been really good in practice," Washington said. "I've seen glimpses of that before as we've moved through the offseason and throughout training camp. And he's finding a way to factor in during the preseason games. He's finding a way to win, to do it with the level of urgency that we need when we're rushing four guys. And he's in tremendous condition. His conditioning is outstanding."
Bulking up
Third-year defensive end Dominique Robinson told reporters that he arrived at training camp weighing 273 pounds with 8% body fat after adding 15 pounds of muscle, saying: "It just helped me become a better football player overall."
Robinson's increased strength and power was evident on the Bills' first possession when he teamed up with defensive end DeMarcus Walker to drop running back James Cook for a two-yard loss on third-and-2, forcing a Buffalo punt.
"I know I'm able to do things on this football field with the body that I have to make plays," Robinson said. "And to do that early in the game like that, it felt amazing. Coach made a call, we ran it and it worked to perfection."
Welcome back
Veteran right guard Nate Davis, defensive end Montez Sweat and nickel back Kyler Gordon returned to practice Tuesday from undisclosed injuries.
Adapt and adjust
The Bears will hold a joint practice with the Bengals Thursday at Halas Hall before the two teams meet in a preseason game Saturday afternoon at Soldier Field.
"It's just an opportunity for us to work against a different unit and to have to adjust on the fly," Washington said, "without the benefit of going and game-planning and doing those sorts of things, just to really see our players respond and react with the things that are going to be presented to us."
It's unclear whether Bears starters will play in Saturday's game. Last summer the No. 1 units did not suit up for a preseason contest in Indianapolis following two joint practices with the Colts.
Coach Matt Eberflus likely will discuss his plans during his next scheduled meeting session Thursday after the joint practice.
No pancakes
Defensive tackle Andrew Billings was selected by the Bengals in the fourth round of the 2016 draft out of Baylor. After missing his rookie year with a knee injury, he played the next three seasons in Cincinnati.
Asked if he felt any extra motivation practicing against his former team, Billings said: "Motivation? I just don't want to get pancaked. That's every practice. It doesn't matter who we are going against; I just want it to be a dominant one."
