Manning Family Backs Mitch, Aaron Lynch Practices, Important Helmet Rule Tweak, and Other Bullets

A week from today, each of the NFL’s 32 teams will have completed the preseason and we’ll start to see some final rosters take shape.

Remember, last year was the first in which there weren’t several cut-down days. Instead, we saw a massive wave of cuts after the final preseason game. Some cuts have started to trickle through, but the big ones are just around the corner. Stay tuned.

  • Leave it to the NFL to have one small word tweak a bigger story. We recently discussed the non-changes in the league’s new helmet rule, but Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio points out a “critical adjustment” for the rule, which states: “Inadvertent or incidental contact with the helmet and/or facemask is not a foul.” Florio sees it as a major change because the previous version of the rule made the presumption that lowering the head signified intent. It’s a pretty big deal that a new rule that is already being tweaked is seeing changes right before the preseason dress rehearsal. Hopefully, things can get ironed out before the games count in the standings.
  • Josh Allen aside, this is great company for Mitch Trubisky to keep:
  • Here’s something fun to think about: Trubisky having the support of the entire Manning family. Peyton Manning dropped by the Bears and Broncos joint practices and Larry Mayer of the Bears’ official website shed light some insight on what was shared between the two from Manning’s perspective. Trubisky comes off as eager and prepared from Manning’s point of view, which is encouraging. The Bears’ second-year quarterback needs to grow up quickly if he is to take this offense to another level.
  • And even Archie Manning is “in” on Trubisky:
  • Peyton is “in” … Archie is “in” … are you next, Eli? I guess we’ll find out when the Bears and Giants square off in Week 13. By then, we’ll have a 24-game regular season sample on which to judge Trubisky. And we’ll be just 23 days away from Christmas. Makes me think I should get my shopping started soon.
  • We’ll soon see how much Trubisky has progressed. But first, highlights:
  • If Dion Sims (concussion) and Adam Shaheen (ankle/foot) are out for an extended period of time, Trubisky will need to get a crash course with the reserves on the roster rather quickly. Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times writes about Daniel Brown and Ben Braunecker filling in for the Bears’ injured tight ends. This position group is one of the more deeper collections of talent, even if there aren’t many name brands. Brown received extensive experience last season after Zach Miller went down and Braunecker has gotten some additional burn during this preseason with the second unit. I’ll be intrigued to see what both can do with the spotlight on them against some stiff competition on Saturday.
  • Larry Mayer sees Braunecker as being comfortable in his third year with the team, even though it’s his first season with this set of offensive coaches. I’m not surprised to see that a player becomes more productive as he gets more comfortable in their surroundings. Here’s hoping that comfort on the field also comes with success.
  • On the other side of the injury equation, Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune reports outside linebacker Aaron Lynch returned to practice. Lynch’s career with the Bears has been star-crossed from the get-go, fighting through multiple injuries that have limited his practice time and kept him from playing in the preseason. If Lynch can’t give it a go on Saturday, he’ll have just one preseason game to get it together and get up to speed with his teammates before the regular season kicks off in Green Bay.
  • I mean, if you put it this way, I guess Roquan Smith is going to be alright after all:
  • I’ve got a feeling that James Daniels is going to be one of the five starters on the offensive line … and soon:
  • Jordan Howard is out here dropping truth bombs:
  • And finally, what sort of sorcery is this:
  • written by

    Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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