One player is already turning heads after first day of Bears rookie minicamp — but he already had Ben Johnson’s attention
The first day of rookie minicamp is in the books for the Chicago Bears and one player that’s already turning heads at practice isn’t even a member of the rookie class or undrafted free agents in attendance.
The first day of rookie minicamp is in the books for the Chicago Bears with the entire seven player rookie class officially hitting the field for the first time along with 13 UDFA signings and the UDFA tryout players.
Also in attendance at practice on Friday was five veteran free agents in the building for a tryout in front of the coaching staff. And it turns out, it was one of those veterans that ended up turning heads during the first day of practice.
Wide receiver Scotty Miller capped off the day with a big play after reportedly catching a deep pass from UDFA tryout quarterback Maverick McIvor with a defender all over him, according to Zack Pearson. The former Barrington High product was even already impressing the staff in Chicago before he even hit the field.
Chicago Bears HC Ben Johnson already had good things to say about WR Scotty Miller before practice
“I’ve talked to him a little bit,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said about Miller. “He’s got a history with Coach Randle El – Randle El was with him when he was a young buck there in Tampa – there is some shared experiences. Looking forward to seeing him run around and compete a little bit. From afar, I’ve been able to see the speed, the quickness, and certainly very intriguing.”
Miller started his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019 and was a key part of the offense catching passes from Tom Brady on the Super Bowl LV winning roster. His speed has always been a defining trait and as Johnson mentioned, he already has experience with the staff considering Bears WRs coach Antwaan Randle El was an offensive assistant on the Buccaneers staff during Miller’s first two seasons.
After spending the last two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Miller’s aiming to land with a new squad and already building a strong reputation for himself in Chicago.
Ben Johnson addresses the current makeup of the WR room and any potential additions
Along that train of thought, Johnson was asked about the current makeup of the wide receiver room that currently is headlined by Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III, Kalif Raymond, Jahdae Walker, and rookie third-round pick Zavion Thomas.
“We’ve only been on the grass for a week now with routes on air and I’ve been really encouraged with what I’ve seen so far,” Johnson explained. “It’s a group that really complements each other. We’ve got a good mix of long speed, quickness, guys that might be better suited inside the numbers, a few guys that are going to be able to thrive outside of the numbers. I like the mix and the makeup. . .
“We’re always looking to add competition and my experience has been, you can’t have enough of those guys. Particularly over the course of training camp, you know guys are going to get dinged up. You need to have a stable of those guys to be able to ensure you get enough reps for the quarterbacks and everyone else. I think depth is going to be one of the things we’re on the lookout for here over the course of spring and training camp.”
With the Bears’ roster still under the 90-man limit, Miller is certainly a player the Bears could explore signing to a contract if he continues to impress throughout the remainder of the weekend.