Bears

The Bears signed veteran DE Marcus Davenport this offseason, reuniting him with DC Dennis Allen from their time together with the Saints, when Allen was their defensive coordinator and head coach. Allen said Davenport has always been a “disruptive player” and is a good fit for their system. 

“We drafted him in New Orleans. He’s always been a disruptive player,” Allen said, via BearsWire. “You can put on a lot of tape and see him in the backfield creating a lot of disruption. Everybody talks about production. There’s a lot of hidden production in that he creates a lot of opportunities for other people. He understands the mentality and the mindset of how we want to play defense, and I think he’s a good fit. Obviously, the biggest thing for Marcus, and it’s been that way throughout his career, is his ability to be healthy and maintain his health. But when he’s out there, he’s a disruptive force.”

• Bears OT Darnell Wright returned to practice on Wednesday after leaving early on Tuesday with an elbow issue. (Courtney Cronin)
• Chicago WR Luther Burden III also returned to practice on Wednesday for the first time since his groin injury on August 8th. Burden participated in individual drills but nothing team related. (Cronin)
• Per Brad Biggs, Bears DE Austin Booker is week-to-week with a groin injury. 
• Biggs also mentioned DT Gervon Dexter did not make the trip to Nashville with a hamstring issue. 

Lions

Lions HC Dan Campbell said CB Rock Ya-Sin has been the most consistent option in Detroit’s competition for the No. 2 outside cornerback job, while CB Ennis Rakestraw Jr. has continued to improve.

“It’s another position where, (Ya-Sin)’s making plays. We’ve been with (Ya-Sin), we know what he’s about, we know the way he competes,” Campbell said, via the team’s website. “We’ve got high hopes for Rakestraw too. You see flashes with him, there’s some good stuff. There’s some just, same thing, inconsistencies with him a little bit. But then I would say those are less and less every day, which is good news.”

Campbell added that CB Nick Whiteside has forced his way into the cornerback competition by consistently making plays throughout the opening practices of camp.

“There has not been a day yet, we’ve had four practices, where he has not made plays,” Campbell said. “So, this is about to get interesting. It’s going to be really interesting.”

• Campbell said S Christian Izien will miss some time and might miss the season opener. (Justin Rogers)
• Campbell added LB Trevor Nowaske has a strain that the team isn’t as concerned about. (Rogers)
• Campbell said RB Isiah Pacheco also has a back injury along with his MCL sprain, though they aren’t concerned about the knee. “I can’t give you anything definitive,” Campbell said about Pacheco’s Week 1 status. (Colton Pouncy)
• With safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph on the PUP list, Campbell plans to speak with GM Brad Holmes to decide on their possible activations: “Both of those guys are doing well right now.” (Eric Woodyard)

Packers

• Packers GM Brian Gutekunst said WR Matthew Golden is “much more confident” with their system as he enters the second year of his career: “I think he’s much more confident in the scheme and what we’re asking him to do.” (Ryan Wood)
• Packers RB Josh Jacobs could be facing a suspension after being arrested in May on domestic-abuse-related charges. Gutekunst said they are comfortable with their depth at the position if Jacobs misses time: “I’m pretty confident we can sustain it. That doesn’t mean we wouldn’t do (claim a RB), but we’ll deal with that when that comes. We’ve obviously been preparing for that.” (Wood)
• Packers TE Tucker Kraft is entering the final year of his contract. When asked about negotiations with Kraft, Gutekunst said they’d love to get a deal done but is unsure if something will get finalized by Week 1: “We would love to have that done. These things are complicated at times. … Whether we accomplish that before the beginning of the season, we’ll see. We’re excited for what he’s going to do for us both this year and in the future.” (Wood)

Vikings

• Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell said S Theo Jackson is progressing well and the team is hopeful he’ll be ready for Week 1. (Alec Lewis)
• Minnesota QB J.J. McCarthy got a rest day on Wednesday because of his ankle. Reps were previously split between McCarthy and Carson Wentz to help his ankle, and they’re working through it to see if McCarthy can still start the preseason finale. (Ben Goessling)