The Bear’s Den, August 16, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS / DRAFT / FREE AGENCY

Under Center Podcast: Takeaways from the Bears’ joint practice in Denver - NBC Sports Chicago - JJ Stankevitz and The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain break down the Bears’ joint practice with the Broncos, including how Roquan Smith looked, and more.

Biggs: With expectations high, Bears rookie Roquan Smith gets to work - Chicago Tribune - Bears’ first-round draft pick Roquan Smith worked with the second team Tuesday in joint practices with the Broncos as the team puts the linebacker in the fast lane to get him ready for the start of the regular season. Missed time aside, expectations remain high for the former Georgia star.

Biggs’ Bears Q&A: Will Roquan Smith start the opener? How about shifting some O-linemen? Which vets are on the bubble? - Chicago Tribune - Brad Biggs answers your Bears questions weekly. Will Roquan Smith start the season opener at Green Bay? What veterans could be on the bubble? Will special teams be improved this season?

Medina: Matt Nagy Doesn't Know if Roquan Smith Will Be Ready for Week One - Bleacher Nation - Roquan Smith has some catching up to do from a physical and mental standpoint, but it's realistic to believe he'll be ready for Week 1.

Medina: Mitch Trubisky Is Well-Positioned to Win NFL's Most-Improved Player Award - Bleacher Nation - Mitch Trubisky and Jared Goff were offseason roommates. Now, Trubisky looks primed to follow in Goff's footsteps.

Medina: Broncos QB Controversy Takes Center Stage as Bears Arrive for Joint Practices - Bleacher Nation - The Bears' joint practices with the Broncos will feature a little quarterback controversy. Neat-o!

Mayer: Bears tight ends shine in first joint practice - ChicagoBears.com - Bears tight ends stood out in Wednesday’s joint practice with the Broncos, with Trey Burton, Adam Shaheen, Daniel Brown and Ben Braunecker all making impressive catches in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills.

Mayer: First padded practice 'back to normal' for Smith - ChicagoBears.com - One day after ending a nearly month-long contract holdout, Bears rookie linebacker Roquan Smith displayed his sideline-to-sideline speed and instincts Wednesday throughout a joint practice with the Denver Broncos at their training facility.

Perez: Demaryius Thomas coaches up Kevin White during Bears-Broncos practice - Bears Wire - Denver Broncos WR Demaryius Thomas offered Chicago Bears WR Kevin White some pointers on route running during the teams' joint practices

Perez: Former Chicago Bears WR Cam Meredith dealing with undisclosed injury - 247Sports - Former Chicago Bears WR Cameron Meredith is dealing with an undisclosed injury at New Orleans Saints training camp

Hawley: Allen Robinson expected to see playing time Saturday for the Bears as recovery from ACL tear progresses - WGN-TV - If you're looking for a definitive time to see the Bears' first round pick on the field during a game, you're not going to get a clear answer.

Perez: Von Miller praises Bears QB Mitch Trubisky, calls him a ‘franchise QB’ - Bears Wire - Denver Broncos pass rusher Von Miller spoke highly of Chicago Bears QB Mitch Trubisky after the teams' joint practice on Wednesday

Hart: Vance Joseph looking forward to joint practices with Chicago Bears - Mile High Report - The Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears will have two joint practice sessions on Wednesday and Thursday before the two teams square off Saturday.

Lynch: Denver Broncos training camp 2018: Day 13 live updates - Mile High Report - The Denver Broncos start Day 13 of their training camp sessions today.

Eurich: Roquan Smith must play against Broncos - 247Sports - Roquan Smith needs to be on the field this Saturday night for the Chicago Bears.

Eurich: Mitch Trubisky called great by Von Miller - 247Sports - The All-Pro linebacker gave props to the Chicago Bears quarterback.

Eurich: Bears pass-rushing options - 247Sports - Options are still out there for the Chicago Bears at the pass-rushing spot.

Eurich: Roquan Smith stands out in Bears Broncos practice - 247Sports - The Chicago Bears wrapped up Day 1 against the Denver Broncos on Wednesday afternoon.

Barnwell: Bill Barnwell builds perfect NFL roster under 2018 the salary cap - ESPN - We gave Bill Barnwell $177 million to spend -- sort of -- and asked him to build a flawless squad ... with a few rules. This is the result.

Dannehy: Bears Need Roquan Smith On the Field Right Now - Da Bears Blog - The Bears will need Roquan Smith against Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers.

Patra: Roquan Smith doesn’t regret skipping Bears’ camp - NFL.com - Speaking with the media for the first time since ending his holdout, Bears rookie linebacker Roquan Smith shed little light on the details of his contract dispute but said he doesn’t regret the decision to miss training camp.

Campbell: Roquan Smith - Practice in full pads against Broncos 'went very well' - Chicago Tribune - The Chicago Bears and Denver Broncos practiced together Wednesday, and newly-signed rookie linebacker Roquan Smith is on the field.

Photos: Bears and Broncos practice together - Chicago Tribune - Photos from the Bears' joint practice with the Broncos in Englewood, Colo. on Aug. 15, 2018.

Rosenbloom: It looks like the Bears chose money over Roquan Smith’s immediate development - Chicago Tribune - In a protracted negotiation over money, language and some what-ifs that always seemed unlikely to happen, it looks like the Bears chose money over getting better – an amount of money a multibillion-dollar company could afford to shrug off if winning the Super Bowl quickly was the goal.

Roquan Smith's holdout is over — was he just a pawn in all of it? - Chicago Tribune - Welcome to the weekly Bear Download podcast with Rich Campbell and Dan Wiederer.

Jahns: Bears vs. Broncos practice - Five takeaways, including a good day for Mitch Trubisky - Chicago Sun-Times - From Mitch Trubisky's throws to Von Miller's rushes to Roquan Smith's pads, here is what we saw during the Bears' joint practice with the Broncos.

Jahns: Rookie Roquan Smith handles defensive calls - Chicago Sun-Times - In his first padded practice since Georgia, Bears rookie linebacker Roquan Smith handled defensive calls with the backups.

Finley: Health, confidence made Bears OLB Leonard Floyd 'more disruptive' - Chicago Sun-Times - Few players are more vital to the Bears’ season, considering Floyd’s Pro Bowl potential and the team’s paper-thin outside linebacker depth chart.

Finley: Bears LB Danny Trevathan - Roquan Smith's holdout will lead to more - Chicago Sun-Times - Other top draftees will get better deals as a result of the concessions rookie Roquan Smith received from the Bears during his contract standoff, inside linebacker Danny Trevathan said.

Golden Tate fires back at Jalen Ramsey’s friendly trash talk - Pride Of Detroit - It’s the Tates vs. the Ramseys in a little family rivalry.

Lions-Giants joint practice Day 2 observations: Defensive line comes alive - Pride Of Detroit - The defensive front finally showed signs of life during Wednesday’s practice.

Joniak's Journal: Roquan Smith Working Into Playing Shape - 670 The Score - "It was just back to normal," Smith says. "It's ball."

Gabriel: What To Watch For In Bears-Broncos - 670 The Score - The Bears still have plenty to figure out on their offensive line.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Bernstein: Jalen Ramsey Just Doesn’t Care - 670 The Score - Ramsey gave both scathing and complimentary critiques of opposing quarterbacks.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Mid-week rant: Minnesota Vikings - Daily Norseman - Just my jumbled thoughts

Brett Hundley is auditioning to play for a team other than the Packers - Acme Packing Company - Green Bay already knows Hundley isn’t a serviceable backup. He’s not staying as long as DeShone Kizer stays healthy.

NFC North Fantasy Football Preview: Packers players to avoid - Acme Packing Company - With the preseason in full swing, it’s time to look at some Packers players that you might want to second guess come draft day.

Jaire Alexander & Josh Jackson have good odds to win Defensive Rookie of the Year - Acme Packing Company - An online sportsbook has each of the Packers’ top two rookies in the top 12 candidates for this year’s award.

Jalen Ramsey doesn’t think Aaron Rodgers sucks, which is pretty high praise - Acme Packing Company - The outspoken corner has flaming-hot takes on a lot of QBs, but Rodgers isn’t among those players.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Wiltfong: Bears vs Broncos joint practice recap 8/15 - Windy City Gridiron - The Chicago Bears have completed their joint practice with the Denver Broncos and we have some info from the day right here.

Sunderbruch: Making The Most of Opportunity - The Bears Receivers 2015-2017 - Windy City Gridiron - Over the last three years, a single GM and a single head coach shaped the Bears’ offense. This is a dive into that time period to see which wide receivers had the most opportunities and which were the most productive when given a chance.

Infante: Jordan Howard and Eddie Jackson named to ESPN’s “perfect 53-man roster” - Windy City Gridiron - Both Howard and Jackson are great values at the price of their contracts, and it seems as though ESPN has taken notice of that.

Lemming: What to watch for against the Denver Broncos - Windy City Gridiron - After a shakey outing from the starters last week, can Bears fans expect a bounceback this Saturday?

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

2 Minute Drill - Website - iTunes - Andrew Link; Steven’s Streaming – Twitch – Steven Schweickert; T-Formation Conversation - Website - iTunes - Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; WCG Radio - Website - iTunes - Robert Zeglinski

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