Cubs News: Johnson talks growth, OL duels & DJ Moore’s slot experiment

Ariana Pensy · Correspondent · Wednesday, June 04 2025

CHICAGO - Tues. June 3 marked the beginning of Ben Johnson’s first mandatory minicamp as the head coach of the Chicago Bears.

From rookie minicamp to OTAs to mandatory minicamp, Johnson has seen constant improvement.

“We’re seeing gradual improvement. It’s been great. Six practices the previous two weeks, and one here (Tuesday), and you can see growth from each guy. You can see growth from each unit, and it’s pretty cool to see it all come together,” Johnson said. “So, like expected, we had everyone in the building here today. Whether they’re out there on the field or not is another story. But, it was good to get everyone together.”

The offensive line was a major emphasis in the offseason, with a focus on trades, free agency signings, and the draft. In the 2024 NFL Draft, Chicago drafted offensive lineman Kiran Amegadjie in the third round.

The following year, the Bears drafted Ozzy Trapilo in the second round to add to their young offensive line room.

“(Ozzy)’s really polished in terms of the mental aspect of the game,” Johnson said. “We’re looking to key up some things, quicken up his steps, his identification process and Kiran’s done a nice job just for the little bit that we had him as well, just the growth process. So far, so good.”

With all of the offensive linemen the Bears have, there will be some competition. Amegadjie and Trapilo are expected to compete for the starting left tackle position.

What this competition will most likely come down to is who is the better pass protector, as Johnson has identified that as the most important aspect of a tackle.

“To me, the number one job of an offensive tackle, doesn’t matter right or left, is to pass protect. And so, you need to be able to block their best pass rusher one-on-one and to me, that’s the number one job and everything we can get out of them in the run game will be gravy on top of it,” Johnson said. “But, we got to find out who the best pass protector is, the most consistent pass protector is, and really that’s for all five guys up front.”

Tight ends are also crucial to protection and despite having a talented tight end in Cole Kmet, Chicago chose to use their first round selection on tight end Colston Loveland. Since Ben Johnson’s offensive schemes typically utilize two tight ends, it makes sense that both of these players could have significant playing time this season.

Kmet is also one of the veterans on the team as no one on the active roster has been with Chicago longer than Kmet.

“High intelligence factor, it’s clear from the get-go. He’s a pro, takes his work seriously, positive energy, great teammate. You could tell instantly when he was around the other offensive players, the rest of the team, there’s an instant respect level,” Johnson said. “I believe he’s been here the longest out of anybody on the roster right now and you can tell that they respect him for that. There’s a lot to be said there. He’s done things the right way for a long time and so, it’s been great. Not just him learning the offense, but helping others in the process as well.”

During the first day of mandatory minicamp, DJ Moore was seen playing a little bit in the slot, despite historically not playing there in previous seasons. When asked about this, Johnson said that nothing is set in stone.

Chicago’s coaching staff, including wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle El, are putting players in different positions to see what everyone is capable of.

“We’re not necessarily putting guys and plugging them into certain spots and saying stick and stay. We’re moving guys around. We’re getting a great feel this springtime of what guys can and they can’t do and then, once we get into training camp and certainly further along in training camp, we’ll start honing in and having them master certain routes and their route tree that way,” Johnson said. “So, right now, it’s really a free-for-all. Coach El is kind of moving everybody around. Who can be our choice route runners? Who can do some of the option things? And we’re taking it from there.”

It is hard to see what a player is capable of when they are not on the practice field. One of Chicago’s other second-round selections, wide receiver Luther Burden III, has a soft-tissue injury and was unable to participate in the first day of mandatory minicamp. He also has yet to sign his rookie contract. Trapilo and defensive lineman Shemar Turner also have not signed their rookie contracts yet.