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The Bears signed Peters on August 16. He made his preseason debut in last Saturday’s final in Tennessee and will continue to work on his conditioning ahead of the regular season opener a week from Sunday night against the Rams in Los Angeles.
“He’s working in football form again,” Pace said. “He knows that, so we’re smart about it. But if you just look at the speed of his foot and how he moves, his technique, his experience, he’s just a savvy vet who always moves really well. I think it is. it is a merit for the athlete that he is and just to keep in shape. “
Peters was voted nine Pro Bowls in 17 NFL seasons with the Bills (2004-08) and Eagles (2009-20). In 2017, he helped Philadelphia win their first Super Bowl in franchise history. Joining the Bears, Peters reunites with offensive line coach Juan Castillo, who held the same position for Peters’ first two seasons with the Eagles.
(2) Pace provided clarification on the back injury and subsequent surgery second-round pick Teven Jenkins underwent last month.
Pace said the Bears were well aware of the back problems the left tackle was having at Oklahoma State, but pointed out that “when he showed up to training camp he started to experience different symptoms than he did. ‘he had never had in college “. Pace later revealed that the new symptom he was referring to was pain in Jenkins’ leg, possibly caused by a nerve.
“When you have the surgery, it can alleviate this symptom and, in fact, it already does,” Pace said. “He’s in a very good position right now. Now these are just positive steps to move forward.”
The Bears waited until Wednesday to put Jenkins on the injured reserve as it gives them the option to activate it after the first three games. All players placed on IR before the final cups on Tuesday are banned from returning to action this season.
“The good thing is that just because he had back surgery doesn’t mean he won’t have a good NFL career,” Pace said. “We’re excited about the player, excited about the direction he’s taking. Now we feel like we’ve solved the problem.”
(3) The Bears have the luxury of preparing for rookie quarterback Justin Fields in large part because of their high level of trust in starting veteran Andy Dalton.
“I just feel like we’re just in a good position with Andy,” Pace said. “It starts with how we feel about Andy, and we’re very confident in him and where he’s at. So we don’t need to rush Justin.”
A three-time Pro Bowler in 10 NFL seasons with the Bengals (2011-19) and Cowboys (2020), Dalton signed with the Bears in March after playing 144 games and adding 33,764 yards and 218 touchdowns. He also ran for 1,335 yards and 22 touchdowns on 422 attempts.
“We have confidence in Andy,” Pace said. “There are a lot of things with Andy: his experience – he’s won a lot of games in this league – his decision making, his intangibles, his leadership. There are so many veteran players who have come to me and made it. comments on Andy Dalton and what he does in practices, in the locker room, in the huddle; all those little things that I think we’re going to see pay off at the start of the season. “
(4) Pace was impressed with Fields and believes the first-round pick will benefit from learning behind Dalton.
“Playing as a quarterback in the NFL, there is so much that goes into that and so different from what you would see even in preseason – weekly prep, seeing NFL defenses in regular season and all of those things, ”Pace said. “I just think the more time he has to learn this and observe this, the better for him.”
Pace said Fields’ performance during the preseason was exactly what the Bears envisioned when they traded in the first round to pick him at No.11. He showed his double-threat ability, completing 30 of 49. passes for 276 yards with two touchdowns. and a 90.2 passer rating while leading the Bears on the ground with 92 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries.
“We obviously knew the talent of the arms, the athleticism, the work ethic, all of those things,” Pace said. “But when you take him out in an NFL environment, he stays calm for the moment. His heart rate stays low, he processes quickly. He goes through progressions.
“I think you feel like you see a lot of young quarterbacks who are sort of looking at an on target. [But] you see him working on his progressions, which I think is really good to see from a young quarterback. “
(5) The pace is extremely high on sophomore cornerbacks (and 2020 draft picks) Jaylon Johnson and Kindle Vildor.
Johnson has had a promising rookie season, starting on day one and leading the Bears with 15 assists despite missing the last three games with a shoulder injury. The 6-foot, 196-pound player has taken his game to another level this summer and looks set for a breakout season.
“He had a great camp,” Pace said. “He probably had one of the best camps of all of our players. He took on a leadership role. I can say he feels a lot more confident speaking here, and he’s a complete player.
“His ball skills, every practice, jump. The number of interceptions he has, the number of SEBs he has, he just has a really good feel for the game. He prepares extremely hard in the movie theater. and also physically just taking care of his body. I think he’s ready to have a great year. “
Vildor has also shown more confidence this summer. Georgia Southern’s 2020 fifth-round pick appeared in all 16 games with a start as a rookie, recording 17 tackles and a broken pass. All but one of the 135 snaps Vildor played in defense in 2020 were in the last four games after Johnson was sidelined.
“He’s playing with so much confidence,” Pace said. “He’s just well balanced. He’s got ball skills, he’s got speed, he’s got man covering ability, he’s got area awareness. When I think about it. [about] a lot of those midterm picks from Bilal [Nichols] To [Darnell] Mooney at Kindle, that’s all credit to our scouts, and he’s one of those guys. Eddie Jackson. He’s one of those guys that I think the Boy Scouts did a really good job with and he’s improving. He works his buttocks. This game means a lot to him and I think we will continue to see a rising player. “
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