After starting off slow, the Chicago Bears got rolling and put up 24 second half points with their backups. While the starters struggled on both sides of the ball, there were some positives.
There were also some concerns. Check out some quick things I noted during tonight’s game:
Will Sutton
Sutton hasn’t had a good training camp thus far but he performed very well in the preseason opener. The defensive tackle certainly improved his stock playing with the Bears second team and made numerous plays. Playing as the five-technique, Sutton didn’t make the flashy plays but he did cause a disturbance in the backfield.
It’s encouraging to see Sutton perform like this in the preseason especially after a lot of people have written him off.
Jimmy Clausen
Other than Sutton, no one saw their stock rise more than Clausen on Thursday night.
The quarterback went 17-27 with 151 yards after taking over for Jay Cutler on the offenses third series. Clausen hadn’t had a strong camp with the Bears backup quarterback situation looking bleak. Now it’s a lot clearer as Clausen played a mistake-free game and took what the defense gave him.
Sherrick McManis
McManis is a guy you should really keep an eye on this preseason. The cornerback/special teams ace put together a nice performance tonight. Going into training, McManis was looking to expand his role on the Bears defense and he’s off to a good start.
The cornerback forced a fumble tonight as he striped the ball from a Dolphins receiver which lead to points for the Bears offense. McManis didn’t have the best coverage when lining up opposite of receivers but he was really one of the bigger bright spots on Thursday.
Offensive line
The starting unit, minus Kyle Long, had a rough go in the few series they were featured in. Jordan Mills was abused by Cameron Wake and Jermon Bushrod committed a few early penalties. One thing to watch is Michael Ola and if the Bears give him more reps with the starting unit.
Brock Vereen
The second-year safety is in the running for a starting spot, but he’s not off to a good start this preseason. All throughout camp coaches have stressed that Vereen needs to be more of a physical safety. That didn’t show as Vereen struggled out of the gate tonight. He could see his starting spot gone in the second preseason game.
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