Bears writers reveal their winners and losers from week 1 of training camp

It was just a short time ago that there was concern over Jaquan Brisker's availability due to a potential contract holdout. But that situation was resolved quickly and Brisker picked up where he left off in the offseason program. He's been flying around the ball and making plays in seemingly every practice. Whether it's an interception, fumble, or a pass breakup, Brisker has made a strong impression already in the secondary.

Brisker is solidifying himself as the team's starting strong safety, opposite Eddie Jackson. The next step will see how he fares during preseason games but there's no reason to think he can't keep up this play.

Brisker isn't the only rookie defensive back that's making an immediate impact. The Bears first pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, cornerback Kyler Gordon, has had a strong start to camp as well. Gordon missed the team's mandatory mini camp earlier this summer with an injury, but hasn't been slowed by anything during camp. He's shown his versatility, playing both outside and nickel corner in team drills. Gordon is flying all over the field and as his teammate Jackson puts it, is making plays even when it's not his man.

Gordon has the ability to play either cornerback spot, but has spent more time at the nickel position working against slot receivers. It's a position that has plagued the Bears over the last few years and wherever Gordon can have the most impact, that's where he'll play when the season begins. Still, he's making his presence known while going up against the team's receivers.

Heading into camp, the Bears top wide receivers appeared to be set with Darnell Mooney, Byron Pringle, and Velus Jones Jr. with the rest likely battling for a roster spot or positioning on the team. But through one week, veteran Equanimeous St. Brown has been turning heads and consistently building a rapport with Fields as one of his go-to options. St. Brown is one of the team's bigger receivers and is starting to stand out. It helps that he has experience in this offense after coming over from Green Bay, but his chemistry with Fields is what might be most exciting.

St. Brown has been connecting with Fields more frequently, catching passes for big gains and scoring over defenders in team drills. Fields singled him out as the other receiver he's building a rapport with, outside of Mooney. St. Brown could even become one of the starting receivers by stacking more solid practices on top of each other.

Arguably one of the biggest surprises of camp thus far has been cornerback Kindle Vildor. The third-year defensive back was essentially left for dead after his poor season in 2021 and with the Bears drafting Gordon, it was reasonable to expect him to be a benchwarmer at best. But Eberflus has other plans and has been impressed with Vildor's ability. For a good portion of camp, Vildor has been starting at the outside cornerback positon opposite of Jaylon Johnson, with Gordon playing nickel.

Vildor has shown up big in the run game, both in previous seasons and in this year's camp. His pass coverage still needs to improve but he's in a good position to become a starter if he can continue to get better.