Bears seemingly have something planned to get one of their most exciting playmakers more involved against the Vikings
Chicago Bears rookie speedster Zavion Thomas had a quiet regular season debut in Week 1 after an electric preseason finale, and there’s reason to believe things could change to get him more involved, at least on special teams.
The Chicago Bears had an offensive explosion in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers and it was scary enough seeing how dominant Ben Johnson’s offense was after scoring 59 points and how comfortable Caleb Williams looked at quarterback.
The scariest part is that the damage could have been even worse. Beyond the plays left out there on Sunday, the Bears hardly featured multiple dangerous playmakers in that game such as tight end Colston Loveland and rookie speedster in Zavion Thomas.
I already broke down Loveland’s quiet day from Week 1 and how it should improve going forward. With Thomas, his quiet showing was expected given how Johnson utilized his rookies on offense last year. But, that doesn’t explain his quiet day on special teams, and that’s where the Bears could look to get him more involved in Week 2.
Chicago Bears looking to find ways to get Zavion Thomas more involved as a returner
During last week’s season opener, Zavion Thomas was on the field for all six kickoff returns but never got the opportunity to get the ball in his hands. The Panthers feared what he could do with the ball, so they refused to kick it to him.
Of the six returns, four were fielded by Josh Blackwell, one was fielded by Kalif Raymond (who also handled the punt return duties) and one was fielded by Rome Odunze. Something’s got to change to get Thomas more opportunities to get the ball in his hands in Week 2.
“They definitely were kicking the ball away from him,” Bears special teams coordinator Richard Hightower said. “We want the ball in his hands. We’re going to do everything we can to get the ball in his hands and he’s got to go get some of those, which we’re going to make sure that he is working to do that. But, they definitely tried to pin it in the corner to keep it away from him. I haven’t seen that this early on, but it is what it is.”
One way the Bears can make sure teams aren’t deliberately kicking away from Thomas is putting another dangerous returner back there. Blackwell, to his credit, has been a solid returner for the Bears over the last few years. But, Raymond is an All-Pro returner. Put him back there with Thomas and force the Vikings to pick their poison on kickoffs. Or rotate between Raymond and Thomas on punt returns.
The other thing the Bears could do is get creative with kickoff returns. If they kick away from Thomas, maybe scheme up some kind of exchange to where the other returner passes the ball to Thomas like a baton in a track race, although that’s risking a bad exchange leading to a turnover.
Either way, this guy is simply too dangerous with his speed to go a full game without him seeing the ball in his hands. If he can’t earn Ben Johnson’s trust on offense yet, he has to make his impact felt on special teams in some capacity.
