Bears

Bears HC Ben Johnson said second-round WR Luther Burden III is going to get more targets as he continues to gain the coaching staff’s trust.

“He’s a guy who is starting to get more targets,” Johnson said, via Bears Wire. “It’s a trust level between the coaches and the player. It’s a trust level between the quarterback and a receiver. It continues to ascend. He has been very productive when he’s about to get the ball in his hands and there’s a strong argument that we should get it to him more.”

Packers

• According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Packers opened dialogue with LB Quay Walker on an extension in the preseason but hit an impasse and couldn’t close on a deal. He expects them to be motivated to try again this offseason.
• One NFC executive tells Fowler that Packers LT Rasheed Walker is a better play than Titans OT Dan Moore, who shocked a lot of people with a deal worth more than $20 million per year as a free agent last year. Fowler points out the Packers already paid RT Zach Tom big bucks.
• Packers WR Romeo Doubs is another pending free agent who has played his way out of a bargain deal, per Fowler.
• Packers HC Matt LaFleur said C Elgton Jenkins is “highly unlikely” to return this season after suffering a lower-leg fracture, via Matt Schneidman.

Vikings

Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy is 1-1 since returning to the starting lineup and struggled in Week 10’s loss to the Ravens. When asked if people are coming to quick conclusions on McCarthy, HC Kevin O’Connell said judging quarterbacks is becoming a “minute-to-minute” thing around the football landscape.

“I’ve long understood that’s what it is,” O’Connell said via Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. “I think you’re speaking in regards to not only the people in this room, but the people that fill seats in stadiums, the people that evaluate the quarterback position from many different landscapes. I think it’s becoming more of a minute-to-minute, day-to-day reflection and final verdict that you’re seeing.”

As for what he’s looking for from McCarthy, O’Connell said he wants to see the quarterback make some routine plays.

“Being able to put some routine things in the category of, I can expect them every time, and it becomes second nature. When a guy’s making his fifth start this week, it’s a lot to ask in the midst of games, especially how they’ve played out. There’s been a lot of encouraging things to go along with some things that we can improve on. And he knows that. We know that. That’s where I get to be as far as the space I’m in. Everybody’s entitled to their own opinion and making that judgment whenever they feel like it’s time to make that judgment.”

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