The Chicago Bears rookie class got its first chance to work with head coach Ben Johnson and his coaching staff during the team’s rookie minicamp this weekend at Halas Hall in Lake Forest.

Chicago’s seven draft picks, 13 undrafted free agents and dozens of rookie tryout attendees took part in the two-day minicamp. Now the Bears will continue their offseason workouts over the coming weeks before starting Organized Team Activities (OTA) at the end of the month.

Here are some of the most-interesting things we learned from Bears rookie minicamp.

On the plan for Logan Jones

Poles drafted Logan Jones in the second round this year with the expectation that he would become the team’s eventual starter at center. How soon that’ll happen remains to be seen.

The Bears traded for Garrett Bradbury this offseason after Drew Dalman suddenly retired. Bradbury has one year left on his contract and brings in seven years of experience, most recently reaching the Super Bowl with the New England Patriots last season.

Bradbury is likely to get the starting role for most of offseason workouts and training camp. But Johnson didn’t rule out how quickly Jones could steal the spot.

“Time will tell,” Johnson said. “The ball is in his court as far as I’m concerned. He understands that, just like with everyone else, we’re looking to create competition and consistency day after day and building trust, not only with [quarterback] Caleb [Williams] and the other quarterbacks but within that offensive line room and then obviously with the coaching staff. It’s just a matter of time to build trust.”

Jones looked forward to the opportunity of competing for the starting spot. His four years as a starter at center for Iowa will likely help him with his transition.

But Jones also wanted to learn from the experienced veterans in the offensive line room, most notably left guard Joe Thuney.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun and I look forward to it,” Jones said. “The opportunity for growth and learning, this is my rookie year and I don’t think you could ask for a better position to be in, just from the head coach, the guys in the offensive line room, to the o-line coaches, I’m very fortunate.”

On Dillon Thieneman’s spot

On the first night of the NFL draft, the Bears were excited when safety Dillon Thieneman dropped to them at No. 25. That excitement only grew this weekend once they got a chance to work with him in-person for the first time.

On tape at Oregon, Thieneman displayed a versatility that made him an enticing prospect in the first round for the Bears. His speed allowed him to be a playmaker wherever he was positioned on the defense and led to him always being near the ball, something the Bears believe will translate to the NFL.

“I think the thing you see is that when the ball is in the air, he’s got fantastic acceleration to get to that catch point,” Johnson said. “When he gets there, he arrives with some violent intentions. That to me is what stands out the most about him.”

Thieneman spent minicamp working at strong safety. But he also paid attention to what was happening with the free safeties and figures to get snaps there as well.

He’s likely to see time at both throughout the offseason and during the season as the Bears coaches learn what they can do in their secondary. Both Thieneman and free agent-signing Coby Bryant offer speed and versatility that Bears defensive coordaintor Dennis Allen will like mix and match.

“Both of them I’m excited about,” Allen said. “Both of them have the athletic ability to match up in coverage. And I think that’s something that I’m excited about.”

On roles for certain draft picks

Some of the Chicago’s early draft picks this season will spend the coming months figuring what they’re role will be with the Bears.

Third-round wide receiver Zavion Thomas proved that he can do it all at the college level. He caught 106 passes over four seasons for 1,213 yards and seven touchdowns, rushed for 198 yards and a touchdown and returned three kickoffs and punts for touchdowns. Thomas even completed two of three pass attempts as a senior at LSU for 33 yards.

The Bears are likely to use him mostly as a returner at the start of his career. But his roles could shift depending what he shows the coaching staff that he can do.

“He’s going to have to go earn it, and that comes on the meeting room first, of earning some trust to get your reps, of showing that you can be trusted when you get there and then being able to do something with it,” Bears offensive coordinator Press Taylor said. “So just like anybody, he’s going to put in a lot of time, put in a lot of work and we’ll see where he goes.”

Fourth-round cornerback Malik Muhammad will be interesting to watch as well. Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson are expected to be the starters on the outside while Kyler Gordon will slide in at nickel. But Muhammad could push Stevenson for a starting spot if he impressed the coaching staff.

“Time will tell. The ball is in [Logan Jones’] court as far as I’m concerned. He understands that, just like with everyone else, we’re looking to create competition and consistency day after day and building trust, not only with [quarterback] Caleb [Williams] and the other quarterbacks but within that offensive line room and then obviously with the coaching staff. It’s just a matter of time to build trust.”

Chicago is training Muhammad at both outside cornerback and nickel. Muhammad didn’t play too much nickel in college but said he can play whatever position the Bears ask him to play in the secondary.

“He is a guy that we’re excited about,” Allen said. “He’s a guy that’s got a lot of skillset that we’re looking for and now we’ll just see how quickly he progresses.”

On connections to Bears past

Rookie minicamp was the first opportunity to see what numbers the Bears’ rookie would don. A familiar number returned after more than a decade out of commission.

Jones revealed that he will wear No. 54, which Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher previously wore. Urlacher wore the number until 2012 and no Bears player has worn the number since. The Bears reached out to Urlacher before they gave out the number and received Urlacher’s blessing.

“To be able to do that, and to be able to honor his number and who he is,” Jones said. “When you think of the Chicago Bears, that’s kind of who you think of. To see that number out in practice and stuff, it just lets everybody think, ‘Oh, that’s Brian Urlacher’s number.’ So it’s kind of supporting his memory and letting everybody see the legacy he left. So to be able to wear that number is really cool, and hopefully I get the chance to meet him one day too.”

The Bears also had another blast from the past this weekend when a player with the last name Kreutz donned No. 57. Josh Kreutz, the son former center Olin Kreutz, joined the Bears this weekend as a rookie tryout after he played at Illinois.

After growing up in Chicago and playing high school football at Loyola, Josh Kreutz enjoyed the opportunity to try out for his father’s former team.

“I knew I wanted to play in the NFL and I’m happy I got a tryout, especially with the Bears being a hometown kid and being a Bears fan my whole life,” Josh Kreutz said. “Just excited to have a tryout but really want to get on the 90-man roster. That’s my goal being here.”