Will Chicago Bears get this player involved more vs. Vikings

When the Chicago Bears take on the Minnesota Vikings it will be a good chance to get some work for their rookie wide receiver Velus Jones. I do not need to tell you about how weak the Bears’ wide receiver room looks right now. They need some sort of a jolt.

That is why it was surprising to see that Jones played zero offensive snaps in his NFL debut. It is obvious that he should be behind Darnell Mooney, the top dog, and also Equanimeous St. Brown, who does the dirty work of a top outside wide receiver.

Will Chicago Bears play Velus Jones on offense?

Still, Dante Pettis and Ihmir Smith-Marsette getting offensive snaps over Velus Jones is a  questionable decision all the way around. If the team believes in their rookie, he should be better than these two players who have bounced around the NFL.

One reason that Jones was probably behind these names was that he was still returning from a hamstring injury. He had practiced for about a week and a half before returning, but most of those were limited participation.

The team wanted to get him suited up for his debut, play special teams, and then be depth at wide receiver. That was enough to get him going, but not overwhelm or potentially see a reinjury.

Now, Jones is two weeks removed from any injury issues. He practiced in full every day this week. There are a lot fewer excuses about why he would not be getting on the field this weekend. It is fair that Pettis has been working in the offense since August, and he is going to be the safer bet.

Still, Velus Jones has the upside and the potential for a splash play that they need. Pettis can not bring that in the same manner.

Beyond that, the ways in which Jones can win make it easy to get him involved. Jones should be used to catch a screen, perhaps run a jet sweep, and even motion into the backfield, just to give the defense something new to worry about.

The Chicago Bears do not need to pound him with targets or have him run the diverse route tree of an X starter. They do need to get him on the field on offense and try to design a play or two to get the ball in his hands, though.