Other than Darnell Mooney being locked into the No. 1 spot, the Bears wide receiver room is full of opportunity, with many guys competing for a job. Among those players is Equanimeous St. Brown, who followed offensive coordinator Luke Getsy from Green Bay to Chicago. It’s no mistake that St. Brown ended up a Bear this year either, as he made quite the impression on Getsy last season.
“The way that his training camp went last year, where he didn’t make the team right away and a couple of games into the season he did, I just saw a transformation of a guy just turn into a pro,” Getsy said. “His mentality, the toughness and the way he attacked every day, I was just super impressed with how he handled that adversity. That’s what made me really— I mean, I always liked EQ and thought he was a good player, and then I saw him go through that adversity and the way he handled all that stuff, that’s what these guys are all leaning on. That leadership and that experience that he went through, that’s super for us. We’re gonna lean on that.”
Getsy admitted St. Brown has a bit of a head start in the wide receiver room, given his familiarity with the offense. But St. Brown isn’t keeping that information to himself. He’s been a help in the wide receiver room, not only as Getsy installs the offense, but as Matt Eberflus installs his HITS program.
“He’s always telling guys to finish on any type of thing: individuals, routes on the air, and just the value of finishing,” Darnell Mooney said. “There’s a lot of things into that, that can come at random times where you have to finish. You never know, at any point in the play, that you have to finish. So he definitely brings that increase of confidence into the huddle and into our receiver room.”
St. Brown will have arguably the best opportunity of his career to make an impact on the field. He’s taken advantage at times to make plays at practice.
On Thursday, St. Brown was one of the very few players who managed to catch a ball against Jaylon Johnson, by using his big frame and beating Johnson on a slant route. At 6’5”, St. Brown is the tallest Bears wideout. N’Keal Harry is the only guy who comes close to his size at 6’4”.
If St. Brown can put together a solid summer, he could carve out a role for himself as a big target for Justin Fields. Even if he doesn’t make a huge impact in the offense, it seems he’s already making an impact in the locker room.
