Bears

Bears HC Ben Johnson formerly worked with Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown during his time in Detroit and favorably compared WR Luther Burden to the Pro Bowler.

“St. Brown in Detroit, who I have a strong affinity for, he plays the game the same way,” Johnson said, via NFL.com. “I feel that from Luther. I know he wasn’t a full-time starter for us a year ago, but the snaps that he did have, he’s got that competitive edge and desire to be great. It’s carried over into the spring and summer as well. He’s been a regular in the building, working with our strength staff. He wants to be the most conditioned player on the team. Wants to be one of the strongest receivers on the team and just continues to soak in all the knowledge.”

• Bears WR Luther Burden III is expected to miss the preseason after suffering a groin injury. Chicago HC Ben Johnson said Burden will “hopefully” be ready for Week 1, per Courtney Cronin. 
• As for Bears OT Ozzy Trapilo‘s recovery from a ruptured patellar tendon, Johnson said the lineman is “hitting his hurdles” and could return by the end of training camp, per Cronin. 

Lions

The Lions are currently having competition for the starting right tackle job between Larry Borom and first-round rookie Blake Miller. When asked about the position, HC Dan Campbell said Miller has looked good thus far, and Borom brings a lot of experience, but both players still have a shot as they get into padded practice. 

“Well, there again, this is the first day of pads, so we like where Blake (is at). We feel like he’s gotten a little bit better every day and that’s a good thing. Larry’s played in this league. But now here we go, now it’s real, right. So, we can talk about how good somebody looks, how much better they get without pads on. Well, now the pads are on. So, yeah, anybody’s got a shot. So, we’ll see what it looks like. My gut tells me that Blake’s going to continue to grow, but we’ll see. It goes back to what I said. I mean, we’re about to find out a lot now, so that’s good news,” Campbell said, via LionsWire. 

Vikings

• Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell said QB Kyler Murray has “shown enough” after naming him the team’s starter. (Kevin Seifert)
• Despite losing the competition, O’Connell feels QB J.J. McCarthy has shown growth. (Seifert)
• O’Connell confirmed McCarthy is the backup QB and reiterated his belief in the young signal-caller’s future with the organization. (Seifert)
• O’Connell continued on McCarthy: “As he knows, he’s holding the pen on his story and we’re going to support him and try to just help him continue to improve as a young player in the most difficult position in sports.” (Seifert)