5 big takeaways from the Chicago Bears’ preseason opening tie against the Miami Dolphins

Bears football returned to the field Sunday afternoon.

The Bears opened their preseason schedule at Soldier Field in Chicago with a 24-24 tie against the Miami Dolphins.

[ https://www.shawlocal.com/gallery/2025/08/10/photos-bears-open-preseason-with-tie-against-dolphins/ ]

Quarterback Caleb Williams and many of the team’s starters didn’t play Sunday after taking part in Friday’s joint practice against the Dolphins. But Sunday was a good opportunity for those in position battles to make an impression.

Here are the five biggest takeaways from Sunday’s preseason opener.

Austin Booker has a day

Bears cornerbacks Tyrique Stevenson and Nahshon Wright were the only projected defensive starters who started Sunday’s game. That gave plenty of opportunities for defensive players like second-year defensive end Austin Booker who are fighting for snaps to make an impression.

Booker did just that Sunday. Last year’s fifth-round pick was constantly around the ball and became a true pass-rushing threat whom the Dolphins couldn’t stop.

“I think he was a factor the entire game,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said. “I think he ended up with three sacks. He’s just a menace.”

Booker started the game strong and broke through in the second quarter when he sacked backup Dolphins quarterback Zach Wilson. A couple plays later, Booker almost had another sack as he continued to create issues for the Dolphins offensive line.

Booker caused a strip sack in the third quarter deep in Miami territory to set up the offense for a touchdown. He finished the day with three sacks, four quarterback hits and six tackles, three of which were for a loss.

It was a big day for Booker. Montez Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo are the likely starters at the defensive end spot. But Booker wants to prove he can make an impact with more snaps this season.

“I’m just going to take what’s given to me and just keep going out there whenever I can and do as much as I can and play as much as I can,” Booker said.

Eye on the left tackle competition

The Bears’ top position battle of training camp, the competition for the starting left tackle spot, continued during Sunday’s game. Returning starter Braxton Jones, rookie Ozzy Trapilo and Theo Benedet all took snaps at the position.

Jones started the game and took part in three offensive drives. He played well for the most part, but gave up a few rushes on his final snaps of the day. Dolphins linebacker Grayson Murphy got past Jones and almost hit quarterback Tyson Bagent in the second quarter before he got the ball off for a touchdown pass to Maurice Alexander.

Trapilo came in toward the end of the second quarter and played a series in the third before Benedet replaced him later in the quarter. Trapilo did come back into the game in the fourth for the final two series with Austin Reed in at quarterback.

Trapilo didn’t seem to have any rookie nerves in his NFL action. He held his own for much of his snaps and didn’t let the Dolphins get past him on rushes.

That play has been consistent for much of training camp for Trapilo, as he has gotten used to the pace of the NFL. It’s part of the reason why backup quarterback Case Keenum was happy to see Trapilo late in the game with him.

“Having Ozzy, I literally looked at him and was like left side, it gave me a good sense,” Keenum said. “That’s a good feeling as a quarterback, when you have your left tackle that you feel really good about.”

Ben Johnson’s first game

Johnson had a message for this team before Sunday’s game: The game doesn’t count, but the game matters.

Sunday mattered to Johnson as he coached his first game as an NFL coach. Johnson got his first taste of balancing the duties of being a head coach and a playcaller simultaneously and felt it went well.

“I thought we had great communication from both offensive and defensive playcallers onto the field with the units,” Johnson said. “It was fun to hear the whole coaching staff communicate in between series and of course when plays are going.”

Johnson and the Bears had some good situational tests Sunday that could give Bears fans a glimpse into his coaching style.

The Bears faced a fourth and 4 from the Dolphins 4 yard line in the second quarter and Johnson decided to go for it. Bagent converted on the play with his touchdown pass to Alexander and the team went for it four times on fourth down and converted one attempt.

The Bears also snuck in points before the end of the first half. Bagent and the offense took over at the Bears 48 with six seconds left in the second quarter. He completed a quick pass to rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III, who ran it 13 yards before going out of bounds with one second left.

Kicker Cairo Santos made a 57-yard field goal as time expired.

Offensive production

The new-look offense looked a lot like the old when it started the game with two straight three-and-outs. But the Bears regrouped as the game went on and put together some strong drives.

Bagent started the game and showed maturity to calm things down after a bad start. He played the entire first half and completed 13 of his 19 pass attempts for 103 yards with a touchdown. Bagent also threw an interception on a pass that was deflected.

Keenum came into the game and proved that he can be a valuable backup with some impressive throws. He first found undrafted free agent running back Deion Hankins as he was running toward the goal line for a touchdown late in the third quarter. Keenum then fit a ball perfectly into the corner of the end zone for a touchdown pass to undrafted free agent wide receiver Jahdae Walker.

Keenum finished the game 8-for-10 for 80 yards.

“I thought both of those guys operated at a high level,” Johnson said of his backup quarterbacks. “We’ve been having some ups and downs over the course of camp, just operation, pre-snap penalties and all that. I felt like we weren’t 100% but we were pretty smooth.”

Walker led the team with 41 receiving yards off three catches while Burden had 29 yards off two catches. Rookie tight end Colston Loveland played in the opening series and caught a pass for 8 yards. Rookie running back Kyle Monangai showed how tough he can be with some strong runs, rushing for 30 yards on six carries.

Noah Sewell makes an impact

Linebacker Noah Sewell has served as the Bears’ third linebacker behind Tremaine Edmunds and TJ Edwards from the beginning of training camp as the coaching staff tries to fill the strongside spot. On Sunday, Sewell showed why it shouldn’t be a competition.

Sewell made an impact on the Dolphins’ opening drive and helped keep points off the board with a critical stop. He swarmed toward the ball and seemed to become more comfortable as the Dolphins’ moved down the field. Sewell forced a fumble on a run attempt but Miami kept possession because the ball went out of bounds.

His impact was most felt in the red zone. When the Dolphins decided to go for it on fourth and 1 from the Bears 1 yard line, Sewell broke through the line of scrimmage and swallowed up Dolphins running back Jaylen Wright for a tackle for a loss.

Sewell had four tackles on the drive and finished the game with six.