The Bears are in full swing of training camp with the pads coming on this week. While the defense has reportedly been clicking well, but the offense has been inconsistent thus far.
Ben Johnson has shown that he will not tolerate players not being lined up correctly or not knowing their job, and has taken players out of drills, as most recently showcased when rookie Luther Burden was unable to get lined up and was subsequently taken off the field.
There will be growing pains on offense as everyone is learning a completely new scheme and playing with a bunch of new faces, but it will be even more difficult for the rookies that have missed time already such as Burden or will be out for an extended period as is the case with Shemar Turner.
Madden NFL 26's player ratings have begun to trickle out. The rookie ratings were released, so let's take a look at how the young Bears stack up.
Luther Burden III, WR - 76 Overall
Many believed Burden was a lock to be a first-round pick, but ended up falling to the second round, where the Bears snagged him 39th overall. Burden joins a very crowded receiver's room with veteran DJ Moore and former top-10 pick Rome Odunze.
Burden leads the Bears' rookie ratings even though he was not the team's first selection. His stats are highlighted by 92 speed, 93 agility, 83 catching, and 82 spectacular catching. Burden was one of the best receivers in college football, a dynamic player who excelled with the ball in his hands.
He also boasts a 93 rating in change of direction, so he will be a very shifty player in the game, just as he is in real life. He still has plenty of catching up to do in training camp as he missed some time early with an injury, but once he gets going, the sky is the limit on his potential.
Colston Loveland, TE - 73 Overall
Loveland was the Bears' first selection at 10th overall. There were arguments to be made that Tyler Warren out of Penn State was the better tight end, but both players bring elite playmaking to the field. Loveland has been viewed as the better pass-catching tight end and drew comparisons to Sam LaPorta, which makes sense why he was the first selection of the Ben Johnson era.
Loveland is the second-best rated rookie tight end after Warren and has the second fastest speed rating among rookie tight ends with 86. He also has 80 catching, 81 spectacular catching, and 78 catching in traffic. The catch rating may be a bit low for a guy who did not drop many balls in college, but rookies rarely get love in the Madden universe.
A 61 in run blocking will likely mean you should not be planning to run behind Loveland a whole bunch in the game, but rather utilize his speed and pass catching to find mismatches similar to what the Bears plan to do in real life.
Shemar Turner, DT - 72 Overall
There was unfortunate news reported last week that Turner is likely to miss four weeks due to an ankle injury. It is always tough when a rookie misses extended periods of time in camp, but it can be especially rough when he is battling for a spot on the depth chart.
The Bears' defensive tackle room is honestly pretty deep with likely starters Grady Jarrett and Gervon Dexter leading the way with big Andrew Billings and either Zacch Pickens or Chris Williams backing them up. Turner was likely going to be a part of the conversation in that second group, but now it will be interesting to see where he ends up.
Turner is tied for second in fastest rookie tackles in Madden with an 80 speed rating. He also has 85 acceleration, 88 strength, 76 tackling, 75 power moves, and 77 block shedding. Hopefully, he recovers quickly from the ankle injury and is able to get back in the rotation before the season kicks off.
Kyle Monangai, HB - 71 Overall
Many expected the Bears to grab a running back in this year's loaded class, but they were unfortunately unable to land any of the top names early on in the draft. They selected Monangai in the seventh round out of Rutgers.
Monangai is not going to win any races and is not a homerun hitter out of the backfield. He is, however, a very tough and well-balanced rusher that can provide some thunder to complement the lightning of D'Andre Swift. His 86 speed rating is only faster than the 85 of Cam Skattebo amongst rookies. Early reports out of training camp have been promising to say the least, as he will likely battle for carries with Roschon Johnson, who has a similar running style.
What he lacks in speed, he makes up for in ball security with a 96 carrying rating - the top mark amongst rookie running backs. This makes complete sense for a guy who had zero fumbles in college. He may not be the most flashy or exciting player to use in the game, but you can definitely run the clock and depend on him not to fumble the ball.
Ozzie Trapilo, LT - 71 Overall
There is a true competition at left tackle happening in Bears camp, and Trapilo is right in the middle of it. As Braxton Jones still gets back to full speed after a season-ending injury last year, the Bears selected the 6-foot-8 monster tackle with their second of three second-round picks at 56th overall.
it is rare that a rookie tackle comes in and immediately starts, especially on the left side. However, the reports early on have been nothing but praise for Trapilo. It still seems to be Jones' job to lose, but worth keeping an eye on.
Trapilo gets an 87 strength rating, 74 awareness, 75 run block, and 78 pass block. These are pretty mediocre numbers, as is to be expected with rookie linemen in the game. Nonetheless, he comes in as the fifth-highest rated rookie left tackle. Regardless of whether Jones wins the job this year, the Bears have a promising young tackle who can provide quality depth and potentially be the answer long term.
Zah Frazier, CB - 70 Overall
Frazier is another rookie who, unfortunately, has missed the majority of camp thus far, hindering his opportunity to make a push for a backup role. New defensive backs coach Al Harris pushed hard for Frazier in the draft and believes he can develop into a quality cornerback in this league.
He is the perfect player to have on a roster, as well as in a video game, standing 6-foot-3 and running a blistering 4.36 40-yard dash, which is showcased by his 94 speed rating. He pairs that with 96 acceleration, making him one of the fastest players on the Bears roster.
His pass coverage ratings are not nearly as impressive, with only a 69 in man coverage and a 65 in zone coverage. Frazier should not be expected to lock down many receivers, but rarely will one simply run past him.
Ruben Hyppolite II, LB - 67 Overall
This draft selection was met with many cries of, "Who?" amongst Bears fans. Hyppolite was not viewed as a draftable player, but then he ran a 40-yard dash that likely changed his life. A 4.39 time in the 40 at linebacker will definitely get your name on some teams' radars.
Hyppolite is battling for the final starting linebacker spot, but at the very least should be a quality special teams player this season with his speed. He comes in as the third-fastest rookie MLB in Madden with an 88 rating. His awareness is only a 70, along with 79 tackling and 79 hit power.
Similar to Frazier, Hyppolite should not be depended on to roam freely and make a bunch of plays, but his speed alone should get him on the field a ton this season, both virtually in Madden and in real life.
Read more: Fantasy analyst tries to go all-in on D'Andre Swift (and couldn't quite get there)