The Sunday Chicago Bears practice at Soldier Field was a mess, and coach Ben Johnson didn’t bother sugarcoating it. Following error-filled offensive performance, the first-year coach and new play-caller publicly expressed his frustration with a unit that looked disorganized and sluggish in front of a large home crowd. Most of the issues centered around quarterback Caleb Williams and offense, which struggled to get plays off on time and appeared out of sync throughout the two-hour session.
“We got some good work in, but it was sloppy — sloppier than we were hoping we would be at this point,” Johnson said. “We had a couple really good practices over the last two, and it took us a little while today to get going and hear the pads clicking.”
Officials flagged the offense for multiple delay-of-game penalties. The Bears burned a timeout when Williams broke the huddle with just seven seconds left on the play clock during a red zone series, according to a practice report from the Chicago Sun-Times. In another sequence, a botched run call from the 1-yard line resulted in a safety, prompting an animated conversation between Johnson and Williams on the sideline.
“It’s something we’re going to have to address, for sure,” Johnson said. “It showed up more today than it has in practice. This was more like a real game. And if it continues like that, we’re not going to win many games.”
The outing marked a step back for an offense that had shown signs of progress in recent practices. Johnson, the former Lions offensive coordinator brought in to reshape Chicago’s attack, has emphasized tempo and precision since the start of organized team activities in May. But on Sunday, those priorities didn’t translate.
“It comes down to — I’ve think I’ve mentioned it a couple times — whether we’re making the same mistake twice or not and I felt like I saw that a couple times today. I know the saturation level has gotten there with these guys. They’re pretty filled up to the brim with information. but at the same time, the installs are slowing down, so we do expect the execution to be a little bit cleaner as we go from here on out.”
Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has had a mixed camp to this point. He’s flashed moments of promise but remains inconsistent, a reality Johnson has acknowledged by essentially treating him like a rookie given the overhaul from the previous regime.
The Bears open the preseason next Sunday against the Miami Dolphins.
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