Bears injury report: Progress from Dayo Odeyingbo, T.J. Edwards, but 2 players hurt Tuesday

The Bears had good and bad news on the injury front at mandatory minicamp Tuesday afternoon.

Defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo and linebacker T.J. Edwards, both coming back from major injuries, participated in team drills, which was significant progress. Odeyingbo tore his Achilles midseason, and Edwards broke his leg in the playoffs.

However, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and linebacker D’Marco Jackson were hurt late in practice. Stevenson, who’s favored to start at outside cornerback opposite Jaylon Johnson, appeared to injure his left foot or ankle. Jackson, the top contender to be the Bears’ third linebacker next to Edwards and Devin Bush, looked to have a problem with his left arm.

Nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon, who played just three games last season because of various injuries, was out with a soft-tissue injury but was at the facility.

Needs improvement

A big part of the Bears’ formula for getting their defensive line on track is more production from tackles Grady Jarrett and Gervon Dexter. With no major additions in the offseason, they’re banking on upgrades in the form of Dexter playing better and Jarrett being healthier.

It’s a pivotal season for Dexter, who was a second-round pick in 2023 at No. 53 overall. He’ll be a free agent at the end of the season if he fails to earn a contract extension.

“I’m looking at it as another year for me to grow,” he said. “I’m here to help this team win. We didn’t [reach] the end goal we wanted last year, so I’m here to help get to that.”

More Bears bites

Johnson has continued to hammer throwing accuracy with Williams, not only in terms of completions but in delivering the ball in a way that helps a receiver make a play. Johnson said Tuesday he has been using a letter-grade system for any pass Williams throws, whether in team drills or individual work.

• Jaylon Johnson had two interceptions against Williams in team drills. Fellow cornerback Jaylon Jones almost had one when he raced into the backfield to break up a screen pass.

• Defensive end Montez Sweat, who skipped organized team activities the last two weeks, was back at Halas Hall for practice. He’s the Bears’ highest-paid player this season with a salary-cap hit of $25.1  million.