(670 The Score) Bears head coach Ben Johnson has proclaimed his team will embrace competition in practice this week.
After reviewing the tape of the Bears’ 52-21 loss to the Lions on Sunday, Johnson expressed frustration with a lack of attention to details. In particular, he pointed to poor effort from players who weren't directly involved with the play.
Johnson reiterated that message prior to practice Wednesday at Halas Hall. The Bears (0-2) will welcome the Cowboys (1-1) to Soldier Field on Sunday.
“Our practice habits are yet to reflect a championship-caliber team,” Johnson said.
“We should be going to the football, finishing hard,” he added later. “We talk about it all the time with the offensive players – our fundamentals, our finish and our technique, they need to show up in walkthrough, they need to show up in the practice field. That’s how it shows up on game days.
“It’s the little things you learn in youth league football that even at this level, they make a huge difference.”
The 52 points the Bears surrendered Sunday were the most they had allowed in a game since 2014. The 511 yards they surrendered were the most they had allowed in a regulation-length game since 2013.
Johnson didn't single out any particular player's efforts, but he's eager to see how the Bears respond in practice this week.
"We're going to have a lot more competition,” Johnson said Monday. “Just what these guys look like when the ball is not in their hands, that's a big deal for us. There were some plays (Sunday) that we weren't quite as pleased with what that looked like on tape. So, we're going to find out this week at practice who wants to practice hard and who wants to be a little bit more involved with the game plan here going into Sunday."