Bears' official 2024 training camp dates announced: 3 quick questions before players return
While the Chicago Bears are on their summer break, fans are eagerly waiting on the team's return to Halas Hall for training camp and now they have the date worth putting down on the calendar.On Tuesday, the NFL released the official training camp start dates for all 32 teams. The rookies for the Bears will […]
While the Chicago Bears are on their summer break, fans are eagerly waiting on the team's return to Halas Hall for training camp and now they have the date worth putting down on the calendar.
On Tuesday, the NFL released the official training camp start dates for all 32 teams. The rookies for the Bears will arrive for training camp on July 16th and the veterans will arrive on July 19th.
The Bears will have nine open practices during training camp, with required for entry for fans to attend. The free tickets to attend practice will go on sale Thursday, July 9th. For those looking to attend, or looking for key things to follow during practice, here are three top storylines to follow.
3 quick questions leading up to Bears training camp:
1. How will the initial starting five look on offense?
The Bears offensive line has been heavily overhauled this offseason, especially in the interior of the unit, for those who haven't been following along. This offseason, the Bears have brought in Coleman Shelton, Ryan Bates, Jake Curhan, Matt Pryor, and drafted Kiran Amegadjie.
So far, the Bears have had two positions still up for grabs on the offensive line, center and right guard. At center, a back and forth battle has been taking place between Shelton and Bates. At right guard, the usual starter in Nate Davis missed time during OTAs and minicamp and was replaced by Bates or Pryor during team drills. We'll see if Davis can get back on the field or not to reclaim his starting role.
As for Amegadjie, the Bears third-round selection in April's draft hasn't practiced in a full workload while rehabbing from a quad injury suffered during the 2023 season. Head coach Matt Eberflus believes the rookie will be able to ramp up during training camp and it'll be interesting to see what position the coaches put him at in practice.
2. Which WR connection will Caleb Williams favor more?
With three dominant wide receivers on the roster in DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and Rome Odunze, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams has plenty of weapons to target in the passing game.
During minicamp, Moore seemed to be the one making the most headline-worthy plays against the team's defense. At minicamp, it'll be nice to see Allen and Odunze get more involved in making some of the big plays in practice.
With Moore's big-play ability and run after the catch, he's an easy target to go after to attack the defense. Allen's elite route running and sure hands makes for an easy target for a rookie quarterback. As for Odunze, fans will be eager to see what the rookie play-maker can truly do for the team's offense this season.
3. Who will emerge as the starting punt returner?
From what we've seen during minicamp, Odunze has been the player handling the majority of the starting reps returning punts from fellow rookie Tory Taylor. However, given his role on offense, that might not be the best course of action no matter how electric he can be with the ball in his hands.
After today's signing, the Bears will have a new member in the wide receiver room with punt returning experience in DeAndre Carter. The team also has veteran Dante Pettis back at Halas Hall who could handle those duties.
Will one of those two handle the role and use it to force their way onto the 53-man roster, or will the role just go to Odunze while the team keeps just five wide receivers? It's up to them to turn some heads next month.
Three players who hurt their stock the most during the Chicago Bears’ mandatory minicamp
They’ll need to step it up.
