One thing to always remember about offseason work is it never delivers exactly what you expect. Invariably, there are always two or three players nobody talked about who rise up to snag roster spots by the end of the preseason. The Chicago Bears have seen this happen many times over the years. It falls on the coaches to keep an open mind whenever that happens, allowing young men the opportunity to advance their careers by earning it on the field. It sounds like it's happening again.
At first glance, the Bears tight end position appears locked in. Cole Kmet is an established starter. Colston Loveland is their 1st round pick and the ideal complement to him. That leaves veteran Durham Smythe, who has plenty of value as a blocker and connections to Ben Johnson from their time in Miami together. Nobody expected much to change with that alignment going into training camp.
That assumption may have been premature. Multiple reports indicated another veteran, Joel Wilson, has been making more than a few plays. It's been enough for Johnson to single him out personally.
"You saw him today with a big catch. He's kind of had one or two of those almost every OTA. He's got a little savvy in how he moves. He's got a nice route feel about him. The test will really be when we get going in camp how he holds up in the run game and the pass pro game. But so far in the running route section of tight end play, he's stood out in a positive light."
Wilson may finally have a home with the Chicago Bears.
The tight end has an interesting story. He was a nobody at Central Michigan for three seasons. Then over the final two years, he caught 11 touchdowns. It wasn't enough to get him drafted. Still, experts liked him. While he didn't have great power or speed, he deeply understood route-running and a hard-nosed approach to blocking. It was enough to get him picked up as an undrafted free agent. Sadly, he bounced around the league with four different teams the past two years before the Chicago Bears scooped him up last October. Kmet and Loveland won't be worried about him, but that third spot could be up for grabs as training camp begins July 19th.
