Schrock's Bears camp observations: Justin Fields, offense overcome adversity in win-the-game drill

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Getting behind the sticks was almost always a death sentence for the Bears' offense in 2022. With a better supporting cast and improved protection, quarterback Justin Fields should have a better chance to overcome those obstacles in 2023.

While Tuesday's unpadded training camp practice at Halas Hall yielded little excitement, Fields and the offense showed noteworthy fight and grit during a "win-the-game" drill at the end of practice.

Starting at the 50-yard line with 55 seconds left, one timeout, and the game tied, Fields and the offense put themselves immediately behind the sticks.

Tight end Cole Kmet ran a deep post route and came open when safety Adrian Colbert fell down. Fields threw a strike to Kmet for a big gain, but the tight end was flagged for offensive pass interference, setting up a first-and-20 at their own 40.

Fields immediately got a chunk back when he hit DJ Moore on a deep curl for 12 yards against rookie Tyrique Stevenson. But on second-and-8, defensive tackle Justin Jones blew past left guard Teven Jenkins to "sack" Fields, putting the offense in a third-and-17 hole and forcing them to use their timeout.

Last season, third-and-17 would have required Fields to put on his cape and dazzle with an improbable escape act. But things seem, at least in August, to be different this year.

Fields dropped back on third-and-17, got good protection, and threw a rope to rookie Tyler Scott on a deep in for 18 yards. Scott ran a precise route, using his speed and wiggle to get a step on Stevenson. He caught the ball a few yards short of the sticks but quickly turned it upfield to secure the first down.

After a first down spiked to stop the clock at 13.7, Fields hit Moore for 8 yards on a curl in the middle of the field against Stevenson. Fields rushed everyone to the line and spiked the ball with 0.6 seconds remaining. Cairo Santos trotted out and drilled a 50-yard field goal to give the offense a win.

The offense showing an ability to overcome a penalty and a sack is a positive, but tight end Cole Kmet isn't putting too much stock in the unpadded drill.

"That was good," Kmet said Tuesday after practice. "They ripped me on an OPI to start it off so that wasn't great. I went through that film, and eh, but whatever. They called that, and we kind of had to fight back through that, and we were able to get into field goal range there and get the field goal there to win it. All of these situations that we are working on are awesome. We got a lot of them and a lot more to go before the end of camp. These are all things that need to be repped so when the moment comes up, and these end-of-game situations happen like we've had this past year, we can go out and execute and win the game.

"I don’t want to say signs of growth," Kmet later said. "We’ve got to go do it in games. This is practice still and we’re doing these things in practice and it’s awesome to see. I feel like we’re executing really well, but what matters is the games. We can talk about growth when we see it in games and it’s for real. But all these practice situations are preparing us for that, so it’s good that we’re executing now and doing these things now, but we’ve gotta carry these things over when it’s for real."

Here are more notes from Tuesday's practice:

-- The Bears' first team offense failed to get a first down in their first 11-on-11 situational drill. Backed up in their own territory, the Bears' offense needed to get at least a first down to give Trenton Gill room to flip the field.

Fields completed a first-down pass to fullback Khari Blasingame for a gain of 2, but the offense went no further. A second-down run by D'Onta Foreman went nowhere, and Chase Claypool was flagged for offensive pass interference on third down, ending the drive.

The Bears' offense didn't do much better on their second attempt. Fields felt pressure up the middle on first down and had to throw the ball away. Equanimeous St. Brown had a step down the right sideline, but Fields couldn't step up due to the interior pressure.

On second down, Fields threw wide of Darnell Mooney on a quick out to the left. Facing a third-and-10, Fields swiftly evaded pressure by moving to his left before hitting Khalil Hebert out of the backfield for 9, giving Gill a little room to try to flip the field.

-- Justin Jones and Andrew Billings applied consistent pressure on Fields on Tuesday. The defensive line is expected to have the edge when the pads are off.

-- Stevenson picked off Fields on a deep pass intended for Claypool during the first team period. The rookie corner had tight coverage on the play and made a leaping interception.

-- Tyler Scott shook Jaylon Johnson in individual drills with a crafty double move but dropped a pass that hit him in the hands.

-- Yannick Ngakoue practiced for the first time as a Bear on Tuesday. The veteran is on a ramp-up schedule, so he did not participate in team drills. Ngakoue was on the sidelines coaching up Jones, Rasheem Green, and Terrell Lewis.

-- Right guard Nate Davis and linebacker Jack Sanborn "returned to practice" Tuesday but did not participate in team drills. Ja'Tyre Carter took first-team reps at right guard with Patrick out and Davis limited.

-- Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, safety Jaquan Brisker, safety Eddie Jackson, cornerback Kyler Gordon, offensive lineman Lucas Patrick, running back Roschon Johnson, cornerback Terell Smith, defensive end DeMarcus Walker, linebacker Dylan Cole, wide receiver Dante Pettis, and wide receiver Joe Reed did not participate in practice.

-- Gervon Dexter continues to pop in practice. The rookie defensive tackle blew up several run plays Tuesday.

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