Chicago Bears at Indianapolis Colts: 5 Things to Watch for

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Aug 13, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears head coach John Fox during the first quarter of a preseason NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bears take a step up in competition in their second preseason game, this time playing Andrew Luck and the Colts Saturday night in Indianapolis.

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We’ll do a full preview elsewhere, but in this post we’re going to take a look at five things to watch as the Bears begin to give starters a bit more playing time. Before we delve into the first topic, though, let’s quickly revisit the first preseason win against Miami.

The Bears, largely on the strength of solid performances from their reserves, defeated the Dolphins 27-10 in the first preseason game. While there were many bright spots for the Bears, it was a little concerning to see the starting defense give up a lengthy touchdown drive on the only drive they played. On the flip side, the offense looked a little disjointed before putting together a solid drive that ended in a field goal on their second possession.

Fortunately, the reserves picked the Bears up, with backup running backs Ka’Deem Carey and Senorise Perry scoring touchdowns and backup linebackers Sam Acho and John Timu each collecting interceptions in the second half, pushing the Bears over the top.

Aug 13, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears linebacker Sam Acho (49) celebrates making an interception during the second half of a preseason NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins at Soldier Field. Chicago won 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

The main success of that first game, though, is that the Bears avoided any serious injuries. Tracy Porter, Alshon Jeffrey, Willie Young and Lamarr Houston were all held out of the game with minor injuries, while we already knew rookie receiver Kevin White would be missing significant time. Two of those players – Jeffrey and Houston – are likely starters, while Porter and Young could be fringe candidates, especially if they have trouble getting healthy and on the field.

The limited playing time for the starters didn’t exactly solve any of the debates about who should be in the starting slots against Green Bay in Week 1 of the regular season. Likely the starters will see more playing time against the Colts and in the third preseason game, against the Bengals on Aug. 29.

At that point, as players unlikely to make the roster see their playing time whittled down and more time’s allotted for starters and primary reserves, we’ll have a clearer picture of who will be starting for the 2015 Bears.

But that doesn’t mean, though, that the coaching staff isn’t switching a few things up prior to kickoff against the Colts. So let’s start there.

Next: The Latest in a Long Line of Candidates

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