Speaking before practice, coach Ben Johnson told reporters that the Bears offense completed the fourth of 12 installs Friday and that he’s not frustrated with the unit’s performance in camp thus far.

“We’re not frustrated at all,” Johnson said. “We’re right where we need to be. In fact, I told the unit [Friday] night, to see where they came from, the springtime, to where we’ve been for three days, we’re not having to coach alignment, we’re not having to coach finish, we’re not having to coach the standard.

“Now we’re coaching football. Now we’re reading coverage and we’re able to accumulate reps. The beautiful thing about it is our guys, they’re learning. We’re not making the same mistake twice. That goes for the guy that’s getting the rep and that goes for the guys not getting the rep. They’re learning from everything. We’re not frustrated whatsoever.”

Johnson is confident that Williams will play faster once the second-year quarterback gains a firmer grasp of the new offense.

“There really isn’t a ton of carryover from what he was asked to do with the play calls or anything of that nature [as a rookie],” Johnson said.

“He’s always been very comfortable as a shotgun quarterback going back to college and even last year. He’s very comfortable in a two-minute setting. He’s very comfortable with tempo-type plays. Now we’re asking him to be a little bit more structured in terms of the play calls. Sometimes there’s multiple calls. There’s shifts, there’s motions, there’s a lot more going on mentally than probably there’s ever been for him.

“And so at some point, this thing will start slowing down and he’s going to be able to catch up and his physical ability will take over from there. But right now, because mentally it is what it is, he’s playing a little bit slower than what he’s capable of.”

Johnson revealed that his aggressive mentality as a coach and play-caller stems from when he was between jobs in 2019 after being relieved of his duties by the Dolphins. He joined the Lions as a quality control coach later that year and eventually became their offensive coordinator in 2022.

“Probably a light came on for me when I got fired from Miami and I was out [of football] for however long that was, 6-7 months,” Johnson said. “Fortunately, [I] got an opportunity there in Detroit to stay in the NFL and I think at that point it was, ‘you know what, go big or go home.'”

Wanting to employ the same aggressive mentality on the other side of the ball, Johnson hired veteran defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.

“[We are] very similar,” Johnson said. “His DNA, his thought process, is very much the same. We were just talking about it the other day in terms of starting practice early with that pressure period. That’s a good way to wake our guys up.

“There will be some games where we want to go in, we want to do that, and we want to heat up and put some pressure on the opposing offense. But at the same time, we’re also going to be very smart and calculated when that occurs. He’s got a great feel for that. That’s the best thing about him having all the experience that he has.”

First-round pick Colston Loveland, a tight end from Michigan, participated in team drills for the first time. He had been doing only individual work after being cleared to practice following offseason shoulder surgery.

“He’s awesome,” Odunze said. “He’s been great; great in the locker room, he’s been great in the meeting room. Guy’s on the field doing everything possible he can. He wanted to get back on the field and now that he’s getting the good reps in, it’s been awesome to see. Great hands, very agile, can block. He’s got everything you desire in a tight end. So really looking forward to his development in the years ahead.”

The No. 2 offense capped its two-minute drill with rookie Jonathan Kim’s 44-yard field goal. It was set up by completions from quarterback Tyson Bagent to running back Roschon Johnson and receiver Maurice Alexander … Cairo Santos made a 55-yard field goal earlier in practice … Right tackle Darnell Wright was given a day off … In 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills, passes were broken up by defensive backs Josh Blackwell, Elijah Hicks, Nick McCloud and Tyrique Stevenson … Running back Deion Hankins made a nice catch on a deep pass down the right sideline from quarterback Case Keenum … The Bears will be off Sunday before conducting their first padded practice Monday.