Here’s what Ben Johnson, Chicago Bears said Tuesday at OTAs

LAKE FOREST – Bears head coach Ben Johnson and some players met with reporters Tuesday after an organized team activities practice at Halas Hall.

The Bears are in the final days of their first offseason program with their new coaching staff. Tuesday was the last practice reporters were allowed to watch. The team will have one more practice Wednesday before leaving for summer break.

After Wednesday, the Bears will have about six weeks before they reconvene at Halas Hall for training camp. Here are four of the most interesting things the Bears said Tuesday.

On Caleb Williams’ presence, development

Tuesday’s practice was mostly attended by players who were rookies or had a couple years of experience. Quarterback Caleb Williams was in attendance along with other second-year players like Rome Odunze.

“He’s committed to learning the offense,” Johnson said of Williams. “We’re not where we need to be yet as a team, and he understands that. Any chance he gets to get a few more full-speed reps, it sounds like he wants them.”

Williams showed that there’s still work to be done during 7-on-7 red-zone drills Tuesday. Cornerback Josh Blackwell intercepted a pass in the end zone, while safety Major Burns picked off another one there that bounced off a receiver. Williams also completed three touchdown passes to Odunze, undrafted free agent wide receiver JP Richardson and tight end Joel Wilson.

Johnson said he and his staff have thrown a lot at Williams during the offseason program, including long play calls, multiple plays at the line and tempo. Some things have come more naturally to him than others.

But Johnson remained confident in his quarterback’s ability to learn and what they can do once training camp starts.

“I do think we’ve seen him get better in really all facets,” Johnson said. “We’ll have to sit down as a staff before we leave and when we come back just to make sure we’re honed in on what direction we want to go all together, but I feel pretty confident the things he’s put on tape that we can go ahead and get after it a little bit.”

On Ozzy Trapilo’s growth

Second-round pick offensive lineman Ozzy Trapilo played plenty of snaps at left tackle as a rookie during the Bears’ offseason program. He and second-year lineman Kiran Amegadjie split the snaps with the first team at left tackle while starter Braxton Jones recovers from a late-season ankle surgery.

Trapilo told reporters that he learned a lot during the offseason program, especially the speed at the professional level.

“The pads aren’t on yet, so there’s still a lot to be found out,” Trapilo said. “But I’d say the speed of the game. You kind of understand that coming in. It’s faster, just overall, everything about it. So, yeah, getting to experience that throughout these last few weeks have been really beneficial.”

He’ll get a chance to compete for the starting left tackle spot once training camp starts next month. With four of the other spots on the offensive line likely set, Johnson previously has said that he’d like to figure out who the starters on the offensive line will be early in training camp in order to build a rhythm with each other and Williams.

Although the NFL game will reach another level once the pads come on in camp, Trapilo was confident that he got the basics down, including understanding the offense.

“I think the coaches have done a really good job in terms of the installation,” Trapilo said. “It’s been split up, a lot of it’s similar to college. Football is football, at the end of the day. Different words, different lingo, slightly different technique, but it’s all the same in essence. They’ve done a great job installing it, again, so I think it hasn’t been bad with all that.”

On key rookie injuries

The Bears’ top-two selections from this April’s draft continued to miss practice time Tuesday. First-round pick tight end Colston Loveland remains out after having right shoulder surgery, while second-round pick wide receiver Luther Burden III missed all of the practices after rookie minicamp with what Johnson called a soft-tissue issue.

Loveland told reporters Tuesday that he expects to be ready to go for the first day of training camp.

“That’s the plan,” Loveland said. “Just working every day to get there.”

Loveland said he still needs to get strength and mobility back into his shoulder. But he’s run routes, caught balls and lifted weights in the meantime, working with the team’s physical therapist.

Johnson said Burden should be ready to go for training camp. But Johnson said it’s tough when any player, let alone a rookie, misses a significant amount of time because of an injury at this time of year.

“It’s not just the coaching staff having trust in you doing the right thing over and over, but also your teammates,” Johnson said. “They’ve got to be see you do it. They’ve got to know the guy right, left of them, that they’re gonna do the right things and they’re gonna make the plays when called upon. So yeah, I think it’s for everybody, and it’s a shame that he got dinged up and missed all that time because for a young player it’s really where you get the most reps and you can get better in a hurry that way.”

On the spring and looking forward

As Johnson’s first offseason program was coming to a close, Johnson was confident that he and his coaching staff accomplished their objectives for the spring.

“There were a lot of objectives we had for the offseason program and specifically Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3,” Johnson said. “We met that criteria. I think when these guys walk away they understand what the expectation level is. I hope they also understand our coaching staff a little bit better as well.”

Johnson said there still were things he wanted to do, including finalizing the team’s training camp schedule. He also was excited for his family to join him this weekend after being without them for the past four months.

“He’s committed to learning the offense. We’re not where we need to be yet as a team and he understands that. Any chance he gets to get a few more full-speed reps, it sounds like he wants them.”

—  Ben Johnson, Chicago Bears head coach

Despite having time off over the next month, Johnson planned on sticking to the routine he’s had during this month at each position he’s held in the NFL. That includes studying to try to get ahead a little but by watching some tape to get the creative juices going.

But once camp starts, Johnson will enter a critical part as a first-year head coach.

“Really, training camp is going to be a lot about building trust,” Johnson said. “I think we got a head start there. When we come back, it’ll be the fundamentals, the techniques. They’ll know what that’s about. How we want to practice. What’s allowed. What’s not allowed. I think really, they’re going to take that and run with it, our vets will. We’ll just be able to focus on getting good at football plays from then on out – and situations. I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made over the last few weeks. Alluded to it last week – we’ve got a lot of work still to come, but we’re right on track.”