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Bears announce who will be their punt returner and kick returner to start 2024 regular season
LAKE FOREST, Ill. – The Bears answered the final question about their Week 1 starting lineup on Thursday. According to special teams coordinator Richard Hightower, it will be Velus Jones Jr. who begins the year as the team’s kick returner while DeAndre Carter handles punt return duties. At the time of publication, each player was listed as a first-teamer at…
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Bears players, coaches share why they love what Velus Jones Jr. brings as flexible offensive playmaker
LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Velus Jones Jr. stuck with the Bears as they formed their initial 53-man roster this year. For now, it appears he’s going to get an opportunity to impact the game however he can, whether that’s special teams, at wide receiver or running back. When going through roster projections, Jones Jr.’s status was one of the...
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Velus Jones Jr. makes initial Bears 53-man roster. Why team made decision to keep him
Velus Jones Jr. will have another shot with the Bears this season. The team made a big wave of cuts on Tuesday as it formed its first 53-man roster, and Jones Jr. earned a spot on the team. Jones Jr. represented the biggest question mark when it came to roster projections this season. On one hand, he’s an intriguing...
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These Bears veterans could be on cut watch this summer, after starting for team in years past
Instead of following key position battles for the Bears this summer, we’ll be doing things like tracking Caleb Williams completions and counting takeaways for the talented defense. After tearing down the roster in 2022, GM Ryan Poles has built it back up again. There’s significantly better talent across the board this year than last year. Accordingly, most– if not...
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Why Bears believe Velus Jones specifically will benefit from new rule for 2024 season
LAKE FOREST, Ill. – The NFL’s new kickoff rules have teams thinking creatively about how to best set up their offenses, while pinning back their opponents. The Bears have already said they’ll consider how new punter Tory Taylor could be a weapon on the play. Special teams coordinator Richard Hightower also singled out one potential return man who could...
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Bears vs. Panthers: Justin Fields out, Velus Jones benched
The Bears are benching Velus Jones for their Thursday Night Football matchup against the Carolina Panthers. The team announced the embattled wide receiver was a healthy scratch before the game. Here’s the full list of the team’s inactives: Justin Fields wasn’t able to get healthy enough for the game after the team left the door open a crack for...
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Velus Jones Jr. explains what happened on ‘devastating' dropped TD in Bears' loss vs. Chargers
Sunday saw Velus Jones Jr. add another costly mistake to his early-career ledger. The wide receiver explains the puzzling slip that cost the Bears a touchdown.
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Alex Brown on Velus Jones: ‘This should be his last game on the roster'
Alex Brown has seen enough of Velus Jones. The second-year Bears wide receiver had another game filled with mistakes in the team’s 30-13 loss to the Chargers on Sunday Night Football, including a big dropped touchdown with no defenders near him. That was the last straw for Brown. “This should be his last game on the roster,” Brown said...
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Bears studs and duds: Defense struggles in blowout loss to Chargers
As expected, the Chargers were a much tougher opponent than the Raiders. One week after the Bears won decisively against a Brian Hoyer-led offense, the defense struggled to stop Justin Herbert, Austin Ekeler and Keenan Allen for much of the evening. On offense, too many mistakes prevented the team from sustaining success and scoring points. Will this loss stop the…
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WATCH: Velus Jones Jr. and Tyson Bagent can't connect on wide wide-open throw
Well, that hurts. The Bears, as of this writing, are down 17 points to the Los Angeles Chargers. Tyson Bagent and Velus Jones Jr. had a chance to connect on a wide-open touchdown, but couldn’t execute it. Check out the video. Hope you have a drink in hand. The Bears trail 17-0 nearing halftime as of this writing.
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Bears vs. Packers inactives: Velus Jones, Equanimeous St. Brown will not play
Velus Jones Jr. and Equanimeous St. Brown will not play for the Bears when they take on the Packers in the 2023 NFL regular season opener. The team announced that each wide receiver will be among the team’s inactive players on Sunday. The Bears opted to run with five wide receivers on Sunday: DJ Moore, Chase Claypool, Darnell Mooney, Tyler…
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Velus Jones unfazed by early-career trials, confident he'll shine for Bears when opportunity arrives
Velus Jones’ career has gotten off to a rocky start, but his confidence is unshaken. He knows he can help the Bears, he just has to wait for his opportunity.
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Bears name Trent Taylor punt returner, but won't give up on Velus Jones Jr. yet
The Bears have a new punt returner. GM Ryan Poles announced on Wednesday that the team is in the process of signing wide receiver/return specialist Trent Taylor, and that Taylor will be the new starting punt returner when he’s officially in the fold. The Bengals cut Taylor on Tuesday as they trimmed down to their 53-man roster, and the...
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Tyler Scott emerges as return man contingency plan
When the Bears drafted Tyler Scott in the fourth-round the team talked about him as a raw receiver with impressive speed. They knew his route running could use some polishing, but with DJ Moore, Chase Claypool and Darnell Mooney in the fold, they didn’t need him to do too much in the offense as a rookie. If he could...
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DJ Moore practices at punt returner but won't be Bears' ‘No. 1 option'
The Bears gave DJ Moore some work with the punt return unit Monday, but don’t expect to see that on Sundays this fall.
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Schrock's Bears joint practice observations: Justin Fields, offense show good and bad vs. Colts
A few splash plays aside, Justin Fields and the offense’s timing was off on Day 1 of joint practices with the Colts.
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Matt Eberflus points to fundamentals talking about Velus Jones Jr.'s muffed punt
On Saturday, Velus Jones Jr., the Bears’ third-round pick from the 2022 NFL draft, got the call on two punt returns during the team’s first preseason game against the Tennessee Titans. He let both balls drop to the ground and muffed the second of the two punts he got a crack at. “It comes down to fundamentals,” head coach Mat…
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What we learned as Justin Fields, DJ Moore electrify in Bears' 23-17 preseason win vs. Titans
The Bears opened their preseason with an 27-17 win vs. the Titans, but the day belonged to Justin Fields and DJ Moore.
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Velus Jones Jr. improving comfort level, confidence in his role with the Bears
Velus Jones Jr.’s rookie season wasn’t pretty. The third-round pick out of Tennessee wasn’t able to find a role with the passing corps, playing 22% of offensive snaps. Where he did find a role, however, was becoming the team’s punt returner. Though, he messed that up early, muffing two crucial punts in the first four weeks of the season....
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Chicago Bears training camp observations: Justin Fields sharp on Day 1
Things were dreary outside Halas Hall as the Bears started their first training camp practice due to poor air quality and thunderstorms in the area, but inside the Walter Payton Center the offense was sharp. The team was nearly at full health, with Dante Pettis being the only man who didn’t participate on the field at all. Cole Kmet...