Chicago Bears Training Camp: 5 position battles heating up

Sam Acho getting head start

The position battle everybody is talking about right now is at the outside linebacker spot. Leonard Floyd has his starting position down pat, of course. But, on the other side, it’s a different story.

So far, Aaron Lynch has yet to practice and is sitting out with a hamstring issue — seems to be a common thread within the linebackers as Danny Trevathan has been out with the same thing.

Rookie sixth-round pick Kylie Fitts was looking phenomenal early on, but he was just sidelined with an arm injury. If you know anything about his history, Fitts has been unable to stay healthy throughout his career.

So, that leaves us with veteran Sam Acho starting. Behind him is Lynch, followed by Fitts. On the other side, Isaiah Irving is backing up Floyd, followed by Kasim Edebali. The one guy who jumped off the field to me while I was in attendance, though, is undrafted rookie Elijah Norris out of Shepherd. He looked fast and regularly beat his man during individual drills.

Acho is a capable starter, but he’s never been known as a true pass rusher. So, if Lynch and Fitts can get healthy, they’ll give him a run for his money without a doubt. This has become such a huge issue that fans have been whispering about the Bears going after either a free agent or maybe even trading for a pass rusher — it’s gotten that bad.