The Chicago Bears are not entering the regular season at full strength, particularly in the secondary where rookie safety Dillon Thieneman will be learning on the fly as he starts his first-ever NFL game this weekend against the Carolina Panthers.
Chicago’s initial plan was to line up Thieneman, the No. 25 overall pick in Round 1 of this year’s draft, next to Super Bowl-winning safety Coby Bryant, an accomplished veteran who represented the team’s biggest free-agency investment this offseason after inking a three-year deal worth $40 million total.
But a knee injury during training camp and a subsequent surgery will sideline Bryant for months to come. As such, Thieneman is now going to play primarily with Cam Lewis, who moved over to the safety room from the nickel cornerback spot following Bryant’s injury, and Xavier Woods.
Still, despite the abrupt and unexpected change, Thieneman said there is a level of comfort and assurance he will carry with him into his professional debut.
“I feel very comfortable with them, both vets,” Thieneman said, per Mike Pendleton of USA Today’s Bears Wire. “They definitely have a lot of experience [and are] able to help me. I’ve been talking to them a lot just in the meeting room, like how they see things, and out on the field, we’ll talk once we’re on the sideline. I feel very comfortable and able to communicate and kind of anticipate what the other guys are thinking.”
Kyler Gordon Rehabilitating Away From Team, Bears Have ‘Some Optimism’ for His Return
Before hopping into what is likely to be a starting safety role, Lewis was filling in at nickel cornerback for the injured Kyler Gordon.
Gordon, who also inked a three-year deal worth $40 million in Chicago that kicks in this season, missed all but three contests last year with an injury. He begins the 2026 campaign sidelined by injury and will sit out at least the first four games.
However, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network updated Gordon’s status earlier this week with the first bit of potentially positive news Chicago has gotten on that front in months.
“#Bears standout CB Kyler Gordon, who is on IR with a calf injury, is away from the team working with his own trainer to accelerate recovery, sources say,” Rapoport reported via X Tuesday. “The plan is for Gordon to return a few weeks into the season and begin practicing shortly thereafter. Some optimism here.”
Bears’ Offense Will Shoulder Winning Burden Early in Season
Chicago can rely on a potentially elite offense toward the beginning of the season while allowing time for the defense, namely the secondary, to get healthy and gel.
The Bears’ biggest question mark on the other side of the football is how Braxton Jones will hold up as the starting left tackle while Ozzy Trapilo finishes the final stages of his rehabilitation from a ruptured patellar tendon he sustained during the playoffs in January.
“I’m proud of myself for fighting back. That’s a great accomplishment,” Jones said Wednesday of his benching and subsequent injury issues in 2025, per ESPN’s Courtney Cronin. “Not a lot of fifth rounders get the opportunity to do that, and I think I’m going to continue to try to seize that moment and do the work that nobody’s watching me do and I think everything will take care of itself. But yeah, I am proud of myself.”
Bears’ Dillon Thieneman Sounds Off on Injured Secondary Ahead of NFL Debut