LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Ben Johnson has 23 days to clean up his offense.
On Friday at Halas Hall outside Chicago, the Bears welcomed the Bills for a joint practice in the sweltering Midwestern heat. Other than the patrons watching, the thing melting quickest was the belief Chicago had suddenly found a bona fide attack behind quarterback Caleb Williams and its rookie head coach, Johnson.
In team drills, the Bears couldn’t get much going against the Bills’ first-team defense, mainly because they literally couldn’t get going. By this reporter’s count, Chicago had six false start penalties, four on the first team, despite the noise coming only from bees buzzing in a garden a few fields over.
When the Bears snapped the ball without an infraction, they were continuously harassed by Buffalo’s revamped defensive line, including rookies Landon Jackson, DeWayne Carter and TJ Sanders. If the Bills were allowed to hit Williams, he would have been sacked or forced to throw the ball away on at least a half-dozen occasions, if not more.
Presnap issues and the inability to unload the ball have been problems since Williams came to the Bears as the No. 1 pick in 2024. Last year, the cadence issues were so pronounced that it became a talking point, something which contributed to 28 false-start penalties, a number only eclipsed by the Cowboys and Titans. This spring and summer, those problems have persisted despite the addition of a new staff. Earlier this week, the Bears also committed six false starts in a practice.
While the offensive line’s interior is significantly improved—and looked as such—with the additions of guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson, and center Drew Dalman, the tackles are still a work in progress. Bills edge rushers Gregory Rousseau and Joey Bosa were living in the backfield using a variety of rushes, consistently causing problems for Braxton Jones and Theo Benedet on the left, and Darnell Wright on the right.
The offensive line is another priority for Johnson to fix, as Chicago starts the season facing Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel of the Vikings. Last year, the duo totaled 23.5 sacks, while Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave were brought in to push the pocket inside.
Williams and the offense also have other issues.
On one play about 90 minutes into practice, Bosa pushed Williams in the upper chest as he finished his pass rush. In most sessions, forcible contact with a starting quarterback would have resulted in either a loud shoving match or a full-scale brawl. In Lake Forest, it resulted in a collective shrug from teammates as the Bears moved to their next play in the two-minute drill.
Finally, there was Williams, who was constantly holding onto the ball too long. While Buffalo’s defense deserves some credit for holding up well at times in coverage, Williams also had a plethora of snaps where he had open receivers and didn’t fire.
Quick decision-making was another problem Johnson was brought in to help quell, as Williams was sacked a league-worst 68 times last year. While many of those sacks were on a porous line, Williams was also at fault for failing to unload the ball promptly. As a rookie, Williams ranked tied for eighth with 2.4 seconds in the pocket per dropback. Yet despite taking his time, his bad throw percentage was 21.1%, third-worst behind only Anthony Richardson and Bryce Young.
At some point, Johnson has to get Williams playing better, and right now, the only thing consistent about the Bears’ first-team offense is that it wasn’t operating like a quality unit.
While much of the offense was a challenge for the Bears, they did have a couple of standout performers, including running back D’Andre Swift and second-year wideout Rome Odunze.
Odunze had a strong showing throughout the afternoon, starting with a terrific catch in a 7-on-7 period. The former Washington standout was running a deep cross and was able to leap to snare a high throw from Williams, bringing it down to his body before going to the ground in front of Bills safety Jordan Hancock.
Later, Odunze was the target of a redzone drill toss from Williams. Lining up to the right, the 6′ 3″, 214-pounder raced across the face of veteran corner Tre’Davious White and left him with ease on another crossing pattern, catching the ball along the back of the end zone.
As a rookie, Odunze caught 54 passes for 734 yards and three touchdowns. With Keenan Allen in Los Angeles, he should have an even larger role as a clear second option to DJ Moore II.
It’s not often you hear a pad-popping thump in training camp, but Bills linebacker Terrel Bernard provided one in a red-zone drill.
With Buffalo’s back against its goal line, Williams tried to thread a pass into rookie tight end Colston Loveland inside the 1-yard line. Loveland initially caught the ball before being hammered in the back by Bernard, who jarred the ball loose.
Bernard is an unsung national name, but he’s one of the Bills’ defensive lynchpins. A terrific all-around linebacker who totaled 7.5 sacks, eight passes defensed, and five interceptions over the past two seasons, Bernard has formed an excellent tandem on the second level with veteran Matt Milano.
Speaking of Milano, the 31-year-old looks fully healed from a torn biceps and a fractured leg, two injuries that cost him 25 games over the past two campaigns.
While primarily playing with the second team, Luther Burden III showed why the Bears made him the No. 39 pick in April.
Burden, who stands 6′ 0″ and 210 pounds, was able to shake free on a few in-breaking routes at intermediate depth in team periods, while also making contested catches when he failed to gain separation. On one of the final plays of practice in a team drill, Burden snagged the ball between two Buffalo defensive backs to a roar of the crowd before getting up and exalting.
At Missouri, Burden was once thought of as a potential top-10 pick before ultimately sliding to the second round because of a somewhat disappointing 2024, which saw him total 61 catches for 676 yards and three touchdowns. However, the year prior, Burden was one of the SEC’s best receivers, with 1,212 yards and nine scores.
With Odunze and Moore on the perimeter, Burden could end up playing a slot role, something he did 85.3% of his snaps last year at Missouri.
It was hard not to notice No. 97 in white flying around the edge or knifing back inside against Chicago’s left tackles, regardless of whose turn it was to get beaten.
Bosa, 30, came to the Bills on a one-year, $13 million deal this offseason, with the hopes of finally staying healthy and resetting his value for one more potential payday. Over the past three seasons, Bosa has played in only 28 games while collecting 14 sacks.
On Friday, Bosa was leading the charge alongside Rousseau, showcasing the burst and power that made him a five-time Pro Bowler with the Chargers before his release in March. On multiple plays in team periods, Bosa would have had a pressure or outright sack of Williams.
“He’s had so much success in the league,” Rousseau said. “He’s a great guy. He and I talk about everything, not just football. We talk about everything; I love to pick his brain. We go back and forth about a whole bunch of things. Great dude, great teammate. Glad to have him here.”
Bosa’s presence could wind up being a positive not only in increased sacks for him, but also for the aforementioned rookie trio up front along with Rousseau. Last season, Buffalo ranked 18th with 39 sacks, with Rousseau’s eight sacks pacing the squad. After signing an $80 million extension this offseason, Rousseau is expected to keep improving, something Bosa and others can help with.
“It’s coming together good,” said Rousseau of the defensive line room. “We’ve got a lot of competitive guys—the guys who want to be here and are highly motivated. I have a lot of conversations with Ed (Oliver), (DaQuan Jones), Joey [Bosa], A.J. [Epenesa], all of them. We talk ball all day. We’ve got a tight relationship. It’s exciting and I’m hyped for the season.”
If the Bills are going to reach their first Super Bowl since 1993, it starts with Josh Allen, but this group is a close second. In their four playoff losses to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, Buffalo has sacked the two-time MVP just five times.
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