Chicago Bears notes: Offense still looking for another receiver to step up

LAKE FOREST – Bears wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown has not caught a single pass in either of the team’s first two preseason games, but that does not reflect the amount of usage he has seen with the first-team offense in practice this month.

St. Brown has been with the starters pretty much since camp opened. He and Darnell Mooney have benefitted from the fact that several of the Bears’ top receivers have dealt with injuries at some point during camp.

While Mooney is the clear No. 1 receiver in this offense heading into the season, St. Brown has shown he can be a dependable outlet for quarterback Justin Fields over the middle of the field. At 6-foot-5, 214 pounds, he has tremendous length for the receiver position.

At this point, everybody on the offense is eager for Saturday’s preseason game in Cleveland, when the starters are expected to play the entire first half.

“There will be some two-minute at the end of the half against another team, not just against us,” St. Brown said. “Fatigue will maybe kick in a little bit at the end of the half, so we’ll see how people work when they’re tired. It will be good.”

The Bears are relying on a group of unproven receivers to help Fields this season. St. Brown hasn’t had double-digit receptions in a season since 2018. Byron Pringle and Velus Jones Jr. have been in and out of practice with injuries. Guys like Tajae Sharpe and Dante Pettis have stepped up, but can they do enough for the offense?

Pringle was the fourth option in the Kansas City passing game last season. The Bears signed him to a one-year contract in March. He has not practiced in several weeks due to a quad injury, but he will certainly continue to be a part of the Bears’ plans moving forward.

“He can’t help that he was hurt,” receivers coach Tyke Tolbert said. “The fact that he’s in the front row in our meeting room and on the practice field he’s in my hip pocket, talking about the plays. He’s telling me what he would have done. He’s telling me about the concept.”

All of these receivers, outside of maybe Mooney, need more reps with Fields. Mooney has clearly had the best connection with Fields throughout camp. But the Bears are going to need someone outside of Mooney and tight end Cole Kmet to step up in the passing game.

“You’ve got to get more reps in with a quarterback to build chemistry, build trust within that quarterback,” St. Brown said. “You can’t just come in new quarterback, new receiver and just have chemistry. That takes time, effort, and you can put in the work.”

Time is running out for the Bears as the season opener approaches on Sept. 11.

Big return: Bears special teams coordinator Richard Hightower was highly impressed with rookie receiver Velus Jones Jr., who returned a punt 48 yards in last week’s preseason win over the Seattle Seahawks.

Hightower also pointed out the efforts of cornerbacks Kyler Gordon and Duke Shelley, who teamed up to block the Seahawks’ gunner on the play.

“Anytime you can create separation and space for a guy like Velus that has 4.3 speed, it can be a mismatch,” Hightower said. “He definitely did what we expected him to do that in that situation and that was exciting to see.”

Special teams played a huge part in that preseason win. The Bears also scored a touchdown on a muffed punt. Defensive back Elijah Hicks jumped on a loose ball in the end zone.

Hightower believed it to be a perfect example of head coach Matt Eberflus’ H.I.T.S. principle. Eberflus wants his players to focus on hustle, intensity, taking the ball away and smarts.

“It’s everything, because what we preach with the HITS principle with the hustle, and it’s guys playing snap to whistle, you see it show up in all areas,” Hightower said. “And that was a really, really good example.”

Practice attendance: Running back Khalil Herbert and linebacker Caleb Johnson returned to practice Wednesday after sitting out Tuesday.

Several players sat out Wednesday, including receiver N’Keal Harry, safety Jaquan Brisker, receiver Velus Jones Jr., receiver Byron Pringle, cornerback Tavon Young, cornerback Thomas Graham Jr., running back Trestan Ebner, cornerback Jaylon Jones, center Lucas Patrick, receiver Tajae Sharpe, defensive tackle Angelo Blackson and defensive end Mario Edwards Jr.