Bears tight end Cole Kmet wore a Julius Peppers jersey when he walked into Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium for the Bears’ preseason opener against the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday in Canton, Ohio. But — with all due respect to Peppers — he would have rather been wearing a Steve McMichael jersey.
“I have to be honest [the Peppers jersey] was handed to me,” Kmet said. “I probably would have [worn] the McMichael if I had to choose. Nothing against Peppers. I was still honored to rep it, though. That was cool.”
Kmet, the son of former Bears practice squad player Frank Kmet, grew up a Bears fans in Lake Barrington and Arlington Heights. He said McMichael, who was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, was his dad’s favorite player, because his blue-collar, workmanlike, style.
“When he talks about McMichael, it’s always about [how] … I guess [Dan] Hampton was the good-looking guy and the sacks and obviously Richard Dent had all the sacks,” Kmet said. “But McMichael was just kind of the lunch-pail guy in the middle — a grinder that brought a ton of attitude and he was always drawn to that. That was pretty cool to hear.”
Hard Knocks preview
The Bears’ “Hard Knocks” documentary series won’t debut until Tuesday, but backup quarterback Tyson Bagent might already be able to claim the funniest reaction.
A clip released earlier this week shows rookie quarterback Caleb Williams introducing himself at the front of a team meeting. He lists the schools he went to, the catch phrases from each and then how much money he got to sign with the Bears.
“I’m Caleb Williams,” he said. “I went to USC and Oklahoma. ‘Horns down’ still. Fight on. And my signing bonus is $25.5 million.”
As his teammates jump up and down to celebrate the number, Bagent, the backup, goes slack in his chair in the front row, as if he’s fainted. He then starts shaking. Williams then points to the back of the room, where general manager Ryan Poles is smiling.
“Hard Knocks” debuts Tuesday night and will run every Tuesday night for five weeks.
Injury list grows
Defensive end Montez Sweat and right tackle Darnell Wright were among seven starters who did not practice Saturday.
The others were safety Jaquan Brisker, cornerbacks Kyler Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson, guard Nate Davis and defensive tackle Andrew Billings.
Gordon has been out since July 25 (seven practices). Davis has been out since July 27 (five practices). Coach Matt Eberflus indicated the other absences were more precautionary than long-term.
Mix and match
With Davis and Wright out, Bill Murray (right guard/left guard) and Matt Pryor (right tackle) took reps with the first team offense Saturday. Eberflus indicated the Bears could do even more experimenting with backups against the first-team defensive line this week.
“We’re just working guys to see if they can elevate their game,” Eberflus said. “Just to see the skill set and see if they can rise as we go, because we never put ceilings on players.”
Legacy Bear
Undrafted rookie wide receiver John Jackson, who had kick returns of 31 and 28 yards against the Texans, is the son of former Bears receiver John Jackson, who played in 36 games in four NFL seasons, including five for Dave Wannstedt’s Bears in 1996.
“He was definitely excited about it,” Jackson said of signing with the Bears. “He’d always tell me the stories about Michael Jordan’s steakhouse — he just lives and dies off that place.
“But it’s cool. He talks about different ways to help myself stick. He’s big on knowing every [receiver] spot, doing as much as you can and being as good of a teammate as you can possibly be. It’s good having a dad with that level of experience and somebody you can ask questions that you don’t want to ask your coach.”