Check out our Getting to Camp page for alternate routes.

Friday, July 30: 3-5 p.m.

Saturday, July 31: 7-9 p.m.

Sunday, Aug. 1: 3-5 p.m. (Hispanic Heritage Day)

Monday, Aug. 2: Noon-2 p.m. (Jr. Bears Reporters)

Tuesday, Aug. 3: 3-5 p.m.

Wednesday, Aug. 4: 7-9 p.m.

Thursday, [...]]]> Note: Camp opens one hour before practice begins each day and closes one hour after practice ends. Days with special events are marked in bold.

Friday, July 30: 3-5 p.m.

Saturday, July 31: 7-9 p.m.

Sunday, Aug. 1: 3-5 p.m. (Hispanic Heritage Day)

Monday, Aug. 2: Noon-2 p.m. (Jr. Bears Reporters)

Tuesday, Aug. 3: 3-5 p.m.

Wednesday, Aug. 4: 7-9 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 5: 3-5 p.m.

Friday, Aug. 6: Family Night at Soldier Field

Saturday, Aug. 7: CAMP CLOSED

Sunday, Aug. 8: 7-9 p.m.

Monday, Aug. 9: 3-5 p.m.

Tuesday, Aug. 10: 7-9 p.m. (Family Night)

Wednesday, Aug. 11: 3-5 p.m.

Thursday, Aug 12: 3-5 p.m. (Run with Staley & Youth Football Day)

Friday, Aug. 13: CAMP CLOSED

Saturday, Aug. 14: PRESEASON GAME: Bears @ Chargers, 8 p.m.

Sunday, Aug. 15: CAMP CLOSED

Monday, Aug. 16: 3-5 p.m.

Tuesday, Aug 17: 7-9 p.m.

Wednesday, Aug 18: 3-5 p.m. (Safety Service Day)

Thursday, Aug. 19: 3-5 p.m.

Coming off a preseason-opening loss in which Buffalo Bills quarterbacks completed 29 of 34 passes, the Chicago defensive backfield was still a topic of conservation as the team opened its final week of training camp at Olivet [...]]]> The Chicago Bears’ secondary was of primary concern as the team headed back to the practice field on Monday.

Coming off a preseason-opening loss in which Buffalo Bills quarterbacks completed 29 of 34 passes, the Chicago defensive backfield was still a topic of conservation as the team opened its final week of training camp at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais.

With Charles Tillman still on the mend following back surgery, cornerback Nathan Vasher is the Bears’ most experienced defensive back.

But Vasher has struggled at times during training camp, and he was beaten twice by Bills receiver Lee Evans on Saturday.

“(That’s) not as well as he needs to play,” Bears coach Lovie Smith said of Vasher’s performance against the Bills. “But I’ll say that about a lot of them. We didn’t perform the way we will later on. Some guys need to pick it up, and of course, Nate is one of them.”

Smith singled out third-year cornerback Trumaine McBride for playing well in the opener. McBride recorded a team-high seven tackles against the Bills.

Afalava stepping in

Rookie safety Al Afalava also played well against the Bills, Smith said.

Afalava, a sixth-round pick out of Oregon State, has emerged as the starting strong safety in the Bears injury-depleted secondary.

In his first game as a professional, Afalava was caught off-guard by the speed of play, he said.

“Oh yeah, I was surprised,” Afalava said. “The first couple plays, I was kind of nervous. (But I) got a couple tackles, got it out of my system and just played on from there.”

Afalava missed almost all of the Bears’ organized team activities while still in school, but has made up for the missed time by putting in extra work studying the playbook.

With the regular season opener in Green Bay less than a month away, bringing Afalava along quickly is important, and Afalava’s performance thus far has given the team a reason to be confident in him, Smith said.

Smith also said Afalava has the special look in his eyes that a good safety needs to have.

“To play safety, you need a different look,” Smith said. “I won’t say odd or strange, but you need a different look. He definitely has that. At the same time, he’s confident in his ability. After you’ve gone through some practices and now you’ve got a game under your belt, it even picks up more.”

The secondary could have more help on the way soon in second-year cornerback Zack Bowman, who was having a strong training camp before going down with a hamstring injury.

Even being off the field, Bowman has been trying to improve.

“It’s all been mental reps,” Bowman said. “I’ve been watching practice closely.”

Bennett making strides

He may have lost his shorts, but Earl Bennett held on to the ball. Bennett’s diving catch – one of two diving catches he made in team drills Monday – momentarily left him without all of his practice apparel.

Bennett’s strong play throughout training camp earned him a starting receiver spot for the preseason opener, but he had only one catch against the Bills.

Still, the experience was valuable, said Bennett, who didn’t have a catch as a rookie last season.

“I think it’s very important, going out and playing the preseason, (getting) as many reps as possible leading up to the season,” Bennett said, “Any time I’m in there, I’m trying to make the best of it, learning (and) trying to make plays.”

Injury Notes

* Linebacker Nick Roach and defensive tackle Matt Toeaina each sat out practice Monday after suffering slight concussions against the Bills.

* Defensive tackle Tommie Harris, running back Matt Forte and tight end Greg Olsen all returned to practice after sitting out Saturday’s game.

* Zack Bowman practiced some Monday, but sat out of team drills as he returns from a hamstring strain.

* Danieal Manning is day-to-day with a hamstring injury.

While on his way to a humane society event in Englewood, Vick was seen at O’Hare on Tuesday night, which led to rampant speculation that the Bears were in talks with [...]]]> Wednesday began with the Internet buzzing about a Michael Vick sighting at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago. The day ended in much more uneventful fashion.

While on his way to a humane society event in Englewood, Vick was seen at O’Hare on Tuesday night, which led to rampant speculation that the Bears were in talks with the maligned free agent quarterback.

Coach Lovie Smith has gone on the record saying Vick deserves another chance, he is great friends with Vick’s new mentor Tony Dungy, and the Bears’ backup quarterbacks (Caleb Hanie and Brett Basanez) don’t have NFL experience.

However, the Bears seem to have no interest in Vick, with Bears media relations manager Jim Christman telling TMZ — the news organization that first reported Vick’s Chicago appearance — the team was not in talks with the quarterback.

With that issue squashed, the Bears went through practice, their final padded practice before Saturday’s preseason opener at Buffalo.

The team, suddenly a bit nicked-up after a relatively injury-free first week, went through the workout with hardly so much as a cramp.

Cutler’s input

It’s no secret that competition is hot for the last wide receiver spots on the roster.

What wasn’t known until Wednesday, however, is that Cutler wants to provide his two cents for which receivers are kept.

“If they don’t ask me, I’m going to tell them,” said Cutler, who only speaks with the media on Wednesdays and Saturdays during training camp. “But (offensive coordinator Ron Turner) and I have been on the same page and we know where we want to go with this group.”

Cutler kept his current choices secret.

Who stays; who goes?

Assuming Devin Hester and Earl Bennett have their spots on the team secured, and assuming the team keeps five wide receivers on the 45-man active roster, the Bears have to choose from eight receivers for the final three spots.

Rookie draft picks Johnny Knox and Juaquin Iglesias could get the treatment that Bennett received last year and wind up on the practice squad.

Fellow rookie draft pick Derek Kinder will likely be cut, as will undrafted rookie free agent Eric Peterman and second-year player John Broussard.

If that’s the case, Rashied Davis’ spot on the team will be safe, and camp standouts Brandon Rideau and Devin Aromashodu will be secure as well.

However, if the Bears decide to put either Iglesias or Knox on the active roster (Iglesias is the more likely candidate for that as the team may not want to expose him to waivers), either Davis, Rideau or Aromashodu would be a casualty of the numbers game.

Other tough choices

While the numbers game will lead to difficult choices among some young hopefuls at receiver, veterans may be the main sufferers of that game at other positions.

At defensive tackle, Dusty Dvoracek is currently getting lots of work with the first unit, but could actually be auditioning for his job with all the depth at the position. Assuming Tommie Harris is physically able to be placed on the active roster, he will join Anthony Adams, rookie Jarron Gilbert and second-year player Marcus Harrison as virtual locks to make the final cut to the 45-man active roster, as the Bears are unlikely to expose Harrison or Gilbert to waivers by placing them on the eight-man practice squad.

That could squeeze Dvoracek out the door.

At linebacker, Hunter Hillenmeyer could be in a similar situation, as he is no longer competing for a starting outside spot and has been relegated to backup middle linebacker duties. Currently, Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, Nick Roach, Pisa Tinoisamoa and Jamar Williams all seem to be ahead of Hillenmeyer in the linebacker pecking order.

Injury updates

* Tight end Greg Olsen slightly tweaked his hip Wednesday but isn’t expected to miss much time.

* Tommie Harris (knee, hamstring) was in pads but once again withheld from team drills.

* Danieal Manning (hamstring) sat out and Al Afalava took his place at starting free safety, which is what will likely happen if Manning is unable to play in Saturday’s preseason opener in Buffalo. Corey Graham started at nickelback.

* Jamar Williams (shoulder) sat out practice.

* Tight end Fontel Mines suffered a torn ACL in Monday’s practice and will miss the season. He is expected to agree to an injury settlement.

* Long snapper Patrick Mannelly (hip) sat out practice and isn’t expected back before Saturday’s game.

* Zackary Bowman (hamstring) did not return to action Wednesday and also isn’t expected to play in Saturday’s game.

* Ervin Baldwin (elbow) returned to practice in full while fellow defensive lineman Joe Clermond (shoulder) returned to limited action.

With each deep catch Brandon Rideau makes down the left sideline, the roars from the fans at Olivet Nazarene University become louder.

After each impressive practice, the media contingent around Rideau afterward gets bigger.

Almost every day, coach Lovie [...]]]>

Cornerback Nathan Vasher is making a name of previously unknown receivers like Brandon Rideau. The Daily Journal/Mike Voss

With each deep catch Brandon Rideau makes down the left sideline, the roars from the fans at Olivet Nazarene University become louder.

After each impressive practice, the media contingent around Rideau afterward gets bigger.

Almost every day, coach Lovie Smith receives more questions about the virtually unknown receiver.

A training camp hopeful, simply looking for a roster spot, suddenly makes good — a great story, right?

Not if you’re a Bears fan.

There’s a big problem right now in the Bears’ secondary, and it has little to do with the injury concerns of Charles Tillman, Zack Bowman and Danieal Manning.

Nathan Vasher is struggling, fans, and badly. Before you start cheering Jay Cutler and Rideau for those long pass plays, remember this: You’re going to need Vasher to play well, too, and it’s not a good sign to see him get toasted four or five times a day.

Rideau, Earl Bennett and even camp longshot Devin Aromashodu have taken turns dominating the Bears’ starting right cornerback, with Bennett spending the better part of the first six practices getting the best of Vasher.

The performances by Bennett early in camp gained the second-year player all sorts of attention. Reading the reports, you’d never know that Bennett was so unimpressive last season that he couldn’t get playing time behind the likes of Brandon Lloyd and Marty Booker.

Yet he’s getting the best of Vasher nearly every day.

Late last week, it was Rideau’s turn to make a name for himself at Vasher’s expense. Aramoshodu has gotten in on the act in the last couple of days as well.

Vasher has gone on the record as saying adjustments to new defensive back coach Jon Hoke’s style have gone a little slower than he’d expect.

Other defensive backs have talked about soreness due to some of the extensive training, including heavy amounts backpedaling during offseason team activities and mini-camps, that Hoke has had them undergo.

After Friday’s practice, Vasher doesn’t seem concerned about his performance thus far in camp.

“I think it’s still pretty early,” he said. “I think people are still making a lot of mistakes right now. It’s just one of those things where you try to get that ironed out every day.”

He also said that the impressive performances of Bennett and others is partly attributable to good work by the offense.

“That’s more just more or less him getting open,” he said. “Coach Drake and Coach Turner are giving those guys opportunities to run some routes and get open, and get in some space. Whenever Jay (Cutler) is out there, he’s going to put it there, right where it needs to be.”

That’s all fine and good, but the job of the secondary is to make sure the receivers DON’T get open.

Still, deciding whether or not Vasher’s early struggles carry any consequence whatsoever depends on how much stock one puts into training camp.

After all, this isn’t the first time big receivers (Rideau is 6 foot 3 and Aromashodu is 6 foot 2) have been impressive against Bears’ defensive backs in training camp. Rarely has it been a forecaster for regular season success or failures.

For example, Reggie Harrell, a 6 foot 3, 210-pound wide receiver, had an extremely impressive camp in 2006. The Bears did OK that year, advancing to Super Bowl XLI behind their stout defense. Also, fan favorite Mike Hass recently had great camps in back-to-back years. Somehow, the defense was able to recover each time.

Vasher is a proven NFL cornerback with a reputation as a ballhawk and playmaker. His problems at this early stage may very well be much ado about nothing.

But it is worth noting.

Rob Laird can be reached by phone at 815-937-3390 or by e-mail at rlaird@daily-journal.com.

Cornerback Zackary Bowman, who had been taking most of the reps with the first-team defense in Tillman’s absence, went down with a hamstring injury during team drills. He will be listed as day-to-day.

Bowman’s injury was not [...]]]> With starting cornerback Charles Tillman still on the mend, the Bears’ secondary suffered another casualty at training camp on Wednesday.

Cornerback Zackary Bowman, who had been taking most of the reps with the first-team defense in Tillman’s absence, went down with a hamstring injury during team drills. He will be listed as day-to-day.

Bowman’s injury was not severe and is not uncommon in training camp drills, coach Lovie Smith said.

“It’s worrisome when you go down,” Smith said, “but I don’t think it was a real bad pull or anything like that. He should be back in time.

“When you’re running hard and practicing hard, especially with the skill-position guys, (hamstring injuries) happen.”

While Bowman is out, third-year cornerback Trumaine McBride will play with the first-team defense.

“Trumaine has been a good football player around here, so we’ll take a look at him,” Smith said.

Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer also sat out most of practice with a sore calf.

Competition for LB spot

Newcomer Pisa Tinoisamoa is locked into a battle with Nick Roach for the starting strongside linebacker spot.

The two rotated series playing alongside Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs on the first-team defense on Wednesday.

Roach started nine games at strongside linebacker for the Bears last season. Tinoisamoa, meanwhile, led the St. Louis Rams in tackles, but said he expected to have to compete for a starting spot with the Bears.

“It’s the Chicago Bears,” he said. “I don’t expect anything less than competition. In order to win, you have to have guys that want to play, and that’s what we have here.”

Tinoisamoa said he believes the competition will help the team.

“We’re all making each other better,” he said. “When you can do that, I think you make the team better, and that’s definitely what we’re doing right now.”

Eli Manning’s big contract

Among the biggest National Football League news on Wednesday was the report out of New York Giants’ training camp that quarterback Eli Manning had signed a six-year, $97.5 million contract extension.

Although new Bears quarterback Jay Cutler will have two years remaining on his contract after this season, the possibility of an extension has already come up.

Cutler said that even though he is interested in remaining with the Bears long-term, he needs to prove himself with the team before the two sides will discuss a big-money extension.

“At a certain point, there is going to be a time and a place for that,” Cutler said. “But this year, I’ve still got to go out and play, and prove myself on the field. Maybe after this season, maybe after next season, we’ll sit down.”

Mort comes to camp

Chris Mortensen of ESPN will make an appearance at training camp today. Mortensen’s visit is in conjuncture with his “Mort Goes to Camp” feature currently running on the network.

Mortensen’s NFL coverage colleague on ESPN, John Clayton, was at practice on Monday.

Mortensen has been to San Antonio for the Cowboys’ training camp, Metairie, La. (Saints), St. Louis (Rams), Green Bay, Wis. (Packers) and Mankato, Minn. (Vikings). After leaving Bourbonnais, he’ll head to Terre Haute, Ind., for the Colts’ camp.

The end of the first week of training camp is traditionally a time for fighting.

Players fight for a higher spot on the team’s first official depth chart, set to be unveiled prior [...]]]>

Chicago Bears' defensive end Marcus Harrison practices with the tackling dummies in the gauntlet Tuesday afternoon at Bears Camp. The Daily Journal/Michelle Gannon

The end of the first week of training camp is traditionally a time for fighting.

Players fight for a higher spot on the team’s first official depth chart, set to be unveiled prior to the first preseason game.

They fight fatigue and tired legs as they work themselves back into game shape.

They fight the heat of the dog days of August. They even fight each other.

Tuesday’s practice at Olivet Nazarene University saw players partake in all those fights.

Temperatures approached the upper 80s, Marcus Harrison made his return from the nonfootball injury list and several minor skirmishes between players broke out in one of the more entertaining practices of this year’s camp.

The tussles all occurred late in the workout, with the first one being an altercation between offensive lineman Tyler Reed and defensive end Mark Anderson that saw several players intervene and Reed’s helmet getting thrown from the ensuing pile-up.

Later, during the first red-zone drills of this year’s training camp, wide receiver Earl Bennett and cornerback Zack Bowman got into a shoving match. When offensive tackle Chris Williams came to the defense of Bennett, madness broke out, with center Olin Kreutz trying to tackle defensive lineman Israel Idonije. Guard Roberto Garza entered the fray, throwing some knees at no one in particular.

“It’s always fun to go out there and mess around with the defensive line,” Garza said. “After a couple days in camp, it’s going to happen.”

Later, Kreutz put a nasty block on safety Danieal Manning, who took exception and appeared ready to confront Kreutz, only to be immediately rebuffed by guard Josh Beekman.

The fights didn’t really accomplish much and served only to take time away from actual practice. Coach Lovie Smith has never really been a fan of such fights, but has come to realize they’re a part of training camp.

“It’s just a matter of time before tempers flare, but no damage done,” he said. “I tell the guys, if you’re going to fight, just fight like you would fight your brother.”

Harrison returns

Harrison, a late-round draft pick in 2008 who made an impressive rookie debut, wasn’t expected to be taken off the NFI list until later in the week, but the 25-year-old from the University of Arkansas apparently worked himself into shape quickly after arriving to camp overweight.

“It was hard watching your teammates as they went through the grind,” Harrison said, “but now it’s time for me to get back in it.”

The issue was not only a speed bump on the career path of Harrison, who expected to enter camp with a chance to win the starting nose tackle position, but it was also a sort of public embarrassment to be placed on the NFI list essentially for being out of shape.

“I think he learned his lesson the first day,” Smith said. “What you learn is that life goes on without you. He wants to be a part of this. He’s one of the guys now.”

Harrison was humble, soft-spoken and even a bit humorous in talking with the media after practice, stating he thought his weight was “dropping as we speak.”

Harrison, who gained the weight while rehabbing from offseason knee surgery, saw little action in the practice, being limited to individual drills.

Anthony Adams still appears to hold the starting spot at Harrison’s position, with Dusty Dvoracek hoping to stay in the mix and rookie Jarron Gilbert waiting in the wings.

Gilbert made a nice play while taking some of his first-ever reps with the first unit in 7-on-7 drills. With the offense lined up in the popular Wildcat formation, Gilbert contained a rollout attempt by Devin Hester, who was lined up at quarterback.

Gilbert is a third-round draft pick out of San Jose State, known for his almost freakish athleticism for his 6-foot-5, 285-pound frame. He gained a bit of viral notoriety earlier in the year when a home video of him jumping out of a four-foot deep swimming pool began circulating the internet.

Other notes

• The hot and humid conditions likely played a factor in causing one fan to faint just behind the ropes near the 10-yard-line. A police officer who responded said the woman was OK.

• The Bears signed guard Maurice Miller on Monday night, but the undrafted free agent from the University of Mississippi failed to pass his physical and was released before the team announced his signing. The Bears still have two open roster spots and will likely fill at least one of them in the coming days, though with only one player (cornerback Charles Tillman) currently missing practices, it’s not a pressing issue.

• Smith in the past has stated he wants Brian Urlacher to be a member of the “5-5-5 Club” — register five sacks, five interceptions and five forced fumbles in one season.

If Urlacher has a similar goal in training camp, his interception total is already two-fifths complete.

For the second time this camp, quarterback Jay Cutler apparently failed to know the location of Urlacher and threw a pass right to the middle linebacker. Urlacher earned an easy interception, causing several members of the media to scramble for their Blackberry phones and other devices to report the play on social networking Web sites.

• Cutler got some redemption later, zooming a pass right by Urlacher to tight end Greg Olsen for a touchdown in red-zone drills late in the workout.

Olsen has apparently taken over Desmond Clark’s starting spot in single tight end formations, as he is getting the grand majority of the first-unit reps.

• Before his scuffle with Bennett, Bowman stepped in front of Olsen for an interception of a Cutler pass in red-zone drills. The interception came one play after Cutler missed a wide open Brandon Rideau for what would have been an easy touchdown, prompting one fan to vocally berate the new QB by comparing him to Rex Grossman.

• Gilbert snuffed out one of the offense’s plays from the Wildcat, but the offense had some success earlier in the practice in the formation with running back Matt Forte under center.

With buzz around campus subsiding, Chicago Bears Training Camp seemed to start for real on Monday afternoon at Olivet Nazarene University.

A skirmish broke out, a rookie made an eye-opening appearance and, for the [...]]]>

Running back Adrian Peterson protects the ball as safety Josh Bullocks reaches out to stop him. The Daily Journal/Mike Voss

With buzz around campus subsiding, Chicago Bears Training Camp seemed to start for real on Monday afternoon at Olivet Nazarene University.

A skirmish broke out, a rookie made an eye-opening appearance and, for the first time this year, the practice ended with the wildly popular two-minute drill.

In an otherwise inconsistent day for the new Bears’ quarterback, Jay Cutler made a couple fine throws in leading the offense to a field goal against the defense in the two-minute drill. He would have likely scored a touchdown if wide receiver Earl Bennett had held on to the ball while attempting to make a remarkable diving catch near the goal line on a deep pass.

“He’s been in the (two-minute) situation a few times,” coach Lovie Smith said. “We feel comfortable with him. That’s the money part of the game. With a guy like Jay, that seems like that’s been his track record. He knows how to take us down the field.”

The two-minute drill capped a workout that earlier saw veteran wide receiver Rashied Davis mix it up with second-year cornerback Trumaine McBride, a standout in last year’s camp.

Davis and McBride briefly shoved each other, with the young defensive back losing his helmet before he and Davis calmed down and broke themselves apart without needing to be separated.

The skirmish attracted some attention from those in attendance. The size of the crowd was substantially less than Sunday’s record crowd of 11,000, though the workout was still well-attended. In all, attendance during the first four practices has totaled approximately 30,000.

Big man on the run

Fourth-round draft pick Henry Melton, who is buried deep on the depth chart at defensive end, has shown his chops as a possible special teams contributor thus far in camp. On Monday, he took it a step further, lining up as a returner and chugging upfield during drills.

Melton, who ran the ball briefly his freshman season at the University of Texas, may even get a chance to return a kickoff during a preseason game. Melton, at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds, would certainly be quite a load to take down on a kickoff return.

Position battles unclear

If anybody is trying to glean an idea of which players are winning the various position battles, they probably aren’t having any luck just yet.

Most of those battles see players splitting time, such as Nick Roach and Pisa Tinoisamoa at strongside linebacker. Meanwhile, repetitions with the first unit at other positions may not be indicative of who is winning the battle, Smith suggested.

Right now, for example, Josh Beekman is getting the majority of the reps at left guard, even though Frank Omiyale, a free agent signed from the Carolina Panthers in the offseason, is expected to win the job.

Smith downplayed the relevance of Omiyale not getting first-string reps.

“We really don’t have a depth chart right now,” Smith said. “(Beekman) is getting great work with our best defensive linemen. We’ll get the guys in their rightful position as far as the depth chart once we do a little bit more.”

Harrison still out

Another key position battle is at the nose tackle spot, which won’t fully begin until second-year player Marcus Harrison works his way back into shape.

Harrison could be back by the end of the week, though Smith wouldn’t specify an exact timetable.

“I’ll just say soon,” Smith said. “Every day he misses, of course, is hurting him because there’s great competition at the nose guard position. Of course, Dusty Dvoracek and Anthony Adams aren’t worried about him not being out there and our team has to move on.”

Adams currently is receiving the majority of the first-unit reps at the spot and likely will continue to do so even when Harrison returns, but his grip on the job is tenuous at best.

Adams received inconsistent playing time last year and was even inactive for six games, including five times when he was healthy.