The Chicago Bears and their fans should want to see one thing when they face the Cleveland Browns for their first preseason game this Saturday.
One thing, and one thing only.
I mean, sure, some clean offensive operation and maybe a touchdown pass from Caleb Williams in his lone drive (assuming he plays) would be welcome.
And it wouldn’t hurt to see some of these interesting defensive rookies, like Dillon Thieneman, Malik Muhammad, and Jordan van den Berg make some splash plays that give us a glimpse
of what they’ll contribute to the Bears.
But to be honest, I don’t care if we see anything of note on the football field on Saturday. In fact, I don’t care if we see a single starter take a snap. (We will, most likely.)
Because the most important thing the Bears have to accomplish between now and the end of Saturday’s tilt with Cleveland has nothing to do with schemes, points scored, or what undrafted rookie boosted their stock.
In fact, it shouldn’t worry anyone if the Bears’ starters (at least the ones that play) look rusty and crusty as all hell.
Because the most important thing is that they get through this game as healthy as possible.
So far, the Bears have had a really hard time keeping key players on the field in training camp, which is far more alarming than any bad play we’ll see in preseason.
Newly signed safety Coby Bryant, who was projected to start next to Thieneman, will now reportedly be out for 4-6 months after undergoing knee surgery, with a return for the playoffs likely the only chance we have of seeing him on the field.
Luther Burden, arguably the biggest offensive star of camp in the early going, has a groin injury that could hamper him all the way up until Week 1—hopefully not beyond that.
Oft-injured cornerback Kyler Gordon still hasn’t suited up after suffering a calf injury in the offseason.
Rookie receiver Zavion Thomas, who’s made a few splashes with his speed thus far, is dealing with a day-to-day knee injury.
Projected starting left tackle Braxton Jones, who lost his 2025 season due to injury, and starting defensive end Montez Sweat have been nursing ailments since last Thursday, though head coach Ben Johnson listed them as being day-to-day or week-to-week.
Injuries are part of football, of course. But that’s… a lot for not even getting to the first preseason game yet. Perhaps that’s something the Bears coaching staff should be monitoring when it comes to their practices.
Seeing all those names piling up on the injury report reminds you just how much good luck plays into a successful season like the one Chicago enjoyed in 2025. All things considered, the Bears survived their rash of key players like Gordon, Jones, Jaylon Johnson, Rome Odunze, and Dayo Odeyinbo being out remarkably well. (A few of the worst injuries—the ones to T.J. Edwards and Ozzy Trapilo—happened in the playoffs.)
It’s too early to say the Bears are in major trouble after a few injury-plagued weeks of training camp. It’s likely that many of the major players they need, aside from Bryant and maybe Gordon, will be back relatively soon.
But it would certainly help a lot if the Bears didn’t add any more big names to the injury report on Saturday, at least not for a long period of time. Because then it might really be time to freak out.
