RESOLVING THE LEDGER
This is one outlet's own report from Yahoo Sports — the article as it was filed. Other outlets are covering the same event; open the full story to compare every source side by side.
See the full story · 1 sourcesThe most talked-about rookie in all of training camp for the Chicago Bears is undoubtedly rookie defensive lineman Jordan van den Berg, who's made a strong impression since the pads came on in practice.
Van den Berg has done what the coaches have asked of him, played hard and shown strong instincts, according to defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, and it's making him a standout player.
"He’s another guy that has really taken to the coaching," Allen said. "He plays with great pad level. He can get in a good stance and come off and strike the line of scrimmage. And he’s got some pretty good football instincts. He plays extremely hard. A lot of the things that we saw on tape at Georgia Tech, we’re seeing a lot of those same athletic qualities show up. And I think that’s what training camp is all about. You have to go out there and you have to let the guys go out there and compete."
As a sixth-round draft pick, van den Berg started out taking reps with the third-team defense. He has quickly ascended to getting some first-team reps after showing impressive physicality in one-on-one drills against some of Chicago’s second-team offensive linemen.
"When you start off with the threes and then all of a sudden you show up and you catch our attention, then we’ve got to find ways to get you some reps with the twos," Allen said. "And if you continue to catch our attention, then we’ve got to find some ways to get you some reps with the ones because that’s how you really evaluate what you have in the player. And so it’s one thing to say you can play really good against the third group, but can you take that same level with the twos and with the ones? And so, I think any time a guy does well, catches our attention, he earns the opportunity to get more opportunities."
One opportunity he probably has earned is a chance to get a lot of snaps in Chicago’s first preseason game against the Cleveland Browns on Aug. 15. Especially for a rookie, there is nothing more valuable than getting a chance to play in real games against other teams. This will also help the coaching staff assess where van den Berg is on the depth chart on the defensive line so far.
Follow Bears Wire on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Dennis Allen had big praise for Bears rookie Jordan van den Berg
AIPROPX is an independent multi-source news index — we track, compare, and connect coverage from across the web into one place you won't find anywhere else.