Chicago Bears will not play starters in preseason final vs. Kansas City Chiefs

LAKE FOREST, Ill. - Caleb Williams preseason is now over.

Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said Tuesday that majority of the starters will not play in the team's preseason finale Thursday against the Kansas City Chiefs.

This was never the plan Eberflus and the Bears had when starting the preseason. It was always going to be a week-to-week decision.

"It was an open-ending plan," Eberflus said. "That shows adaptability in terms of the veterans."

The veterans will now have three weeks until the Week 1 game at Solider Field against the Titans. This includes Williams, who finishes the preseason with 43 total snaps.

Bears offensive coordinator Shane Waldron said Williams' ability to diagnose plays and why they resulted the way they did in a quick fashion is a trait that's stood out. Eberflus doubled down on that Tuesday.

"He can see a lot of things and chunk a lot of information," Eberflus said. "It's been a process of two-way communication. It's been good."

Now, the team will turn its focus to Week 1 on Sept. 8. Eberflus said he has three main goals for the first-team offense and defense in that time frame: Stay conditioned, maintain fundamentals and stay healthy.

"We got a really good plan in place for that," Eberflus said. "We feel really good about the process."

The Bears' starters will now have to focus in staying shape while mentally getting ready for Tennessee, which is a team that has a first-year head coach, a quarterback entering his first full year as a starter and finished 6-11 last season.

The Bears aren't overlooking them at all.

"We got a lot of work to do," Eberflus said.