Matt Bowen's Guide to Padded Practice

Up until now, the practices have all been pretty much no hitting, no hard contact, and more about footwork and positioning than about the physical contact of a very physical game. So when the pads come on, tonight the Bears will actually be hitting each other.

So what are some of the things to watch out of players in these padded drills? Matt Bowen gives us a few pointers in his latest article.

Good news for those of us expecting to see what Shea McClellin and the offensive tackles will be capable of - second up on Bowen's list is the one-on-one pass rush drills. Pass rush and pass protection are probably the two biggest worries if you're a Bears fan, so this ought to be a very interesting drill.

Then there's Alshon Jeffery, who's made quite a few plays himself in the early going - we'll see if he can keep it going now that he'll have to deal with some more physical play and how he reacts to tighter press coverage and jams.

Check out the rest of the article - what do you think are some important things to look for when the players are allowed to hit?