Derek Jeter's Advice Inspires Bears Rookies in Preseason Debuts
CHICAGO — When New York Yankees icon Derek Jeter walked into a Chicago Bears team meeting last week, he delivered a message that rookie tight end Sam Roush wrote down on a full page of notes. The advice centered on handling nerves, and it resonated deeply with the team's first-year players ahead of their NFL preseason debuts.
“One of the things he said was basically if you don't have butterflies, you might be a psychopath, but it probably means that you don't care enough,” Roush said Saturday after the Bears' 34-10 preseason win over the Cleveland Browns at Soldier Field. “Obviously I had butterflies. I get nervous before the games. Always.”
First-round draft pick Dillon Thieneman echoed that sentiment: “If you don't have that, you don't love the game.”
Iowa's Logan Jones Shines in Extended Action
With the Bears resting their starting offensive line, second-round pick Logan Jones out of Iowa saw significant playing time at center. The 6-foot-4, 310-pound lineman played into the second half alongside undrafted right guard Caden Barnett, who signed with a guaranteed contract exceeding $277,000.
The duo helped spring running back Salvon Ahmed on a 49-yard screen pass touchdown, with Barnett shoving Browns linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio to create the opening.
“You take one and you give one,” Barnett said. “I'm not going to act like I didn't have my own welcome-to-the-NFL moment getting put on my back. It happens. But it was such a huge blessing.”
Jones, who played in a pro-style system at Iowa, acknowledged the speed difference at the professional level.
“It's crazy how much quicker it is than college ball,” Jones said. “We've been practicing for 12 or so practices and then to get in the game — it was a lot of fun actually to compete against somebody else.”
Rookie Cornerback Malik Muhammad Makes His Presence Felt
Fourth-round pick Malik Muhammad recorded five tackles while splitting time between outside corner and nickel. With the Bears' secondary dealing with injuries, Muhammad's versatility has become crucial.
“I'm a rookie, man, I just go out there and play,” Muhammad said. “What do I really got to lose? They put the challenge to me. They put a lot on me with playing nickel and corner, and I just go out there and play. Just let it rip.”
Muhammad has been seeing reps with the starters during training camp, and the coaching staff appears willing to give him meaningful snaps if he continues to find the football.
Sam Roush Records First Career Catch
Roush hauled in his first NFL reception on a pass from Tyson Bagent near the sideline, finishing with two catches for 15 yards. The Stanford product also contributed as a blocker in the running game.
“Once I took one or two snaps it was like, 'All right, playing football, I've been doing this for a while,'” Roush said. “It's not a whole lot different than it was in college.”
Head coach Ben Johnson has plans to deploy his tight ends frequently, evidenced by the game's first offensive play featuring four tight ends on the field. Roush lined up as the X receiver on that play.
“You've got to know everything,” Roush said. “If we're in this formation, where am I? You've got to understand kind of what everybody's doing.”
Jeter's Message: Calculated Aggression
Roush, who admitted he wasn't a big baseball fan growing up, was still impressed when Jeter addressed the team at Halas Hall.
“You've just got to go out there with a calculated approach and a calculated aggression and the butterflies start to go away,” Roush said.
It appears they did Saturday, as the Bears' rookie class took its first meaningful steps toward NFL careers.