Colston Loveland continues to earn trust and impress in multiple facets of the game for the Bears with a perfect opportunity ahead
The Chicago Bears rookie first-round pick is starting to turn more heads on the field.
Six games into the regular season, a lot of people on the outside are frustrated with the lack of involvement from the Chicago Bears’ rookie class and rightfully so when looking at the usage and impact from the majority of the class.
But, trust is starting to build with the rookies and we’re starting to see more impact as a result. Just look at Kyle Monangai’s boost in usage and production during the team’s Week 7 win over the New Orleans Saints.
And another rookie stood out in a big way in that game on offense and he’s starting to make more of an impact at the right time in multiple facets of the game.
Colston Loveland is turning the corner as a complete TE at the right time
It’s been a slow start for Bears’ first-round pick Colston Loveland. Some of that was caused by the matchup-specific game planning and not to mention a hip injury that forced Loveland to miss essentially two games before the bye week.
But, Loveland is getting integrated more into the offense and following a back injury to veteran tight end Cole Kmet, Loveland could be turning the corner at the right time going into Week 8.
Head coach Ben Johnson noted Kmet’s injury will be considered day-to-day or week-to-week, so his status will be one to watch ahead of Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens. And if Kmet is forced to miss the game, Loveland’s shown he’s ready to step up as a complete tight end.
Coming into the league, Loveland’s best trait was his skills as a receiver and working down the field. Not many talked about Loveland’s skillset as a blocker, something he’s continued to improve on. Week 7 was Loveland’s best outing in that department.
Loveland’s run blocking grade of 76.1 was the second-highest on the entire team and ranked seventh among all tight ends in the league that week. He was making some key lead blocks, taking out multiple players on a single play, and even had a pancake block against defensive end Carl Granderson.
“It felt good for sure,” Loveland said of the block. “That’s something I’m continuing to try and get better at – in all phases of the game, but the run game especially – finishing and not falling off blocks at the end. It felt good to finally get one on the ground.”
In the receiving game, Loveland ran the third-most routes on the team in Week 7, trailing DJ Moore and Rome Odunze and saw fair share of first-read targets, despite only have three receptions for 24 yards. His targets are coming in critical situations as well, such as his fourth-down conversion on the final drive of the game to seal the win.
“As a tight end, or really a pass catcher, you just want to always want to have their trust and let them know, whatever you need me to do, I’m going to go out there and make a play,” Loveland said. “It means a lot to run that play right there. Caleb (Williams) just said ‘run a good route’ and it was there. Easy pitch and catch.”
Becoming a consistent factor in both areas of the game bodes well for Loveland to see some more opportunities in this offense because the trust factor is starting to grow with his quarterback and the rest of the offense. And with Kmet’s status still in question, Week 8 could be the perfect opportunity.
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