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Bears receivers coach Darryl Drake refused to sugarcoat the dropped passes by Brandon Marshall during Thursday’s first day of training camp.
"He’s still trying to get used to it, but he understands and knows that that’s something that we’ve got to work on," Drake said. "We can’t drop the football. I expect him to make those non-routine catches. And he expects to make him. I’m going to be tough on him when he doesn’t."
It was somewhat of a tough day for the offense in general, although that is to be the expected this early in camp with so many new faces. Rookie receiver Alshon Jeffery and running back Kahlil Bell had fumbles.
Quarterback Jay Cutler has some miscommunication at times with Marshall and was picked off by D.J. Moore. Cutler made up for it with some extremely difficult short passes in tight spaces.
"He’s still trying to get used to it, but he understands and knows that that’s something that we’ve got to work on," Drake said. "We can’t drop the football. I expect him to make those non-routine catches. And he expects to make him. I’m going to be tough on him when he doesn’t."
It was somewhat of a tough day for the offense in general, although that is to be the expected this early in camp with so many new faces. Rookie receiver Alshon Jeffery and running back Kahlil Bell had fumbles.
Quarterback Jay Cutler has some miscommunication at times with Marshall and was picked off by D.J. Moore. Cutler made up for it with some extremely difficult short passes in tight spaces.
The guy who appeared to be the most consistent Thursday, at least in terms of catching the ball, was rookie tight end Evan Rodriguez, who struggled during minicamp.
Offensive coordinator Mike Tice wasn’t the least bit pleased with the offensive output on Day 1.
"You can't put the ball on the ground," Tice said. "You cannot put the ball on the ground. And you can't jump off-sides. I know it was the first day and we're working a lot of things on the line of scrimmage, but we're also coming off of an offseason with a bunch of practices and a bunch of times that we did it, we did it right. We can't come out the first day and look like we never did it before. We're not going to put up with that."
On a positive note, Matt Forte looked stronger and faster than ever while backup quarterback Jason Campbell displayed a starter’s arm. J’Marcus Webb saw most of the reps at first-team left tackle over Chris Williams, while Gabe Carimi got his repaired knee tested by a blazing quick pass rush from Julius Peppers.
Defensively, Brian Urlacher wore his brace to protect the left knee he injured at the end of last season. Urlacher practiced without restriction, as promised. Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina played with his right hand wrapped and in a cast. He broke the hand during offseason workouts and is expected to have the cast removed tomorrow.
Both starting safeties, Major Wright and Chris Conte, seemed to have improved in terms of breaking toward the ball and overall communication. And rookie defensive end Shea McClellin, who worked primarily with the third team, showed a nice speed burst while pressuring Campbell during 7-on- 7 drills.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...ears-offense-at-camp-20120726,0,5181357.storyOffensive coordinator Mike Tice wasn’t the least bit pleased with the offensive output on Day 1.
"You can't put the ball on the ground," Tice said. "You cannot put the ball on the ground. And you can't jump off-sides. I know it was the first day and we're working a lot of things on the line of scrimmage, but we're also coming off of an offseason with a bunch of practices and a bunch of times that we did it, we did it right. We can't come out the first day and look like we never did it before. We're not going to put up with that."
On a positive note, Matt Forte looked stronger and faster than ever while backup quarterback Jason Campbell displayed a starter’s arm. J’Marcus Webb saw most of the reps at first-team left tackle over Chris Williams, while Gabe Carimi got his repaired knee tested by a blazing quick pass rush from Julius Peppers.
Defensively, Brian Urlacher wore his brace to protect the left knee he injured at the end of last season. Urlacher practiced without restriction, as promised. Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina played with his right hand wrapped and in a cast. He broke the hand during offseason workouts and is expected to have the cast removed tomorrow.
Both starting safeties, Major Wright and Chris Conte, seemed to have improved in terms of breaking toward the ball and overall communication. And rookie defensive end Shea McClellin, who worked primarily with the third team, showed a nice speed burst while pressuring Campbell during 7-on- 7 drills.
