March 29, 2024


News

QB Justin Fields returns to practice; Andy Dalton will play at least a quarter Saturday

Free agent OT Jason Peters arrives for first practice with Bears

LAKE FOREST – After a brief hiatus with a groin injury, Justin Fields returned to full participation in practice Thursday at Halas Hall.

The rookie quarterback sat out much of the previous day. He is expected to play in Saturday’s preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at Soldier Field. The injury was characterized as minor, and it didn’t appear to be bothering Fields at all during practice Thursday.

Meanwhile, veteran Andy Dalton is expected to play about 1 1/2 quarters of football Saturday against the Bills. Dalton and the starting offense played only two possessions last week against Miami. Coach Matt Nagy said Dalton is in store for much more action.

“It can always change,” Nagy said. “I think if you get the ball [first] or don’t get the ball, that dictates some of it, which was the same thing last week. But those two guys are going to get their fair share of reps as we go.”

Help at tackle: Reinforcements have arrived for the offensive line.

Free-agent offensive tackle Jason Peters made his first appearance at Bears practice Thursday at Halas Hall, sporting a No. 71 jersey. The 18th-year veteran saw limited action in Thursday’s practice as he got his feet wet.

News first broke Saturday that the Bears were signing Peters. Thursday was his first time on the practice field.

Rookie offensive tackle Teven Jenkins had back surgery Wednesday, likely putting him out for a significant amount of time. The Bears hope to have Jenkins back sometime during the regular season. Nagy said he heard Jenkins’ surgery went well.

Jenkins was the presumed starting left tackle after the Bears cut veteran Charles Leno days after the draft. When Jenkins arrived at training camp with a back injury, that plan was thrown into doubt.

Peters, 39, is a nine-time Pro Bowl performer, who played with Buffalo from 2004-08 and with Philadelphia from 2009-20. Peters played for current Bears offensive line coach Juan Castillo for several years in Philadelphia.

“He’s going to be a Hall of Fame tackle, going to be in the Hall of Fame someday,” Nagy said this week. “But for right now, where he’s at, he’s a guy that when you watch the tape last year, you see a guy that still has a lot of game left in him.”

Peters has not yet been made available to the media.

Additionally, rookie tackle Larry Borom returned to practice after missing time because of a concussion. Borom and Peters could be vying for the starting left tackle position. Elijah Wilkinson also has spent time at left tackle and took the majority of reps with the first-team offense Thursday.

Even with Jenkins out, the Bears are excited about Borom’s potential as a tackle. The Bears drafted him in the fifth round and think he could compete for a spot in the lineup.

“Again, we had second- and third-round grades on him,” Nagy said. “So when you think about that, truly, like that’s where we see this guy.”

Practice report: The Bears had a short, light practice Thursday and did not wear pads.

Fields was picked off twice early in the day, once by safety Tashaun Gipson and once by linebacker Joel Iyiegbuniwe. There were a handful of dropped passes from his receivers, too, and one botched snap.

Dalton had a largely uneventful day. Nagy said he felt Dalton’s practice a day earlier Wednesday was one of his best.

In other injury news, receiver Chris Lacy missed practice with a hip injury. Running back Ryan Nall (chest), offensive lineman Badara Traore (knee) and defensive tackle Eddie Goldman (back) all remain out. Guard James Daniels (quad) and tight end Cole Kmet (hamstring) remain limited.


Sean Hammond

Sean Hammond

Sean is the Chicago Bears beat reporter for the Shaw Local News Network. He has covered the Bears since 2020. Prior to writing about the Bears, he covered high school sports for the Northwest Herald and contributed to Friday Night Drive. Sean joined Shaw Media in 2016.