Chicago Bears rookie defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg has been one of the most surprising players at training camp. It seems that every day someone (reporters, coaches, fans in attendance) has shared how impressed they are with him. He flashed early on this offseason, and then once the scrimmages and drills started, he opened more eyes. He eventually earned time with the starters, and he held his own there too.
When the Bears held their most important practice to date earlier this week, it was van den Berg who lined up with the first-string defense for goal-line and short-yardage situations.
He met the media yesterday and, after saying how thankful he is for getting reps with the ones, how he still needs to work on his technique and fundamentals, how much the veterans have helped him, and how much he likes to “play with violence,” he was asked his thoughts on playing in Saturday’s preseason game against the Cleveland Browns.
“I can’t wait,” van den Berg said with a smile. “I can’t wait to prove myself.”
Some Bears fans are pretty excited to watch his preseason debut, as 56% of us can’t wait to see him play.
The Bears have already announced they’ll be sitting several starters, so we should get a hefty dose of van den Berg and all the other rookies too.
Rookie first-round pick Dillon Thieneman is the only rookie who has been running with the ones all camp, and I’d imagine he plays a bit.
Our friends at FanDuel Sportsbook have Thieneman at +3300 to win the 2026 Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, which are tied with Keldric Faulk for 11th-best odds.
Sam Roush is the third tight end, so we’ll see his debut, and he may even start if Cole Kmet sits.
Malik Huhammad II has been getting first-team reps at nickelback, so we should see him plenty.
Rookie center Logan Jones seems like a good bet to start, as 31-year-old Garrett Bradbury feels like one of the vets who will get the afternoon off.
The Bears vs Browns game will kick off on Saturday at Noon (CT), and FanDuel currently has the Bears at +3.5 points, so if you think Tyson Bagent and company can pull off the Dub, that’s a nice spread.