Bears to allow Owens to miss practices to watch Biles at Olympics

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- The Chicago Bears are allowing safety Jonathan Owens to miss several training camp practices so he can travel to the Olympic games and watch his wife, USA gymnast Simone Biles, compete in Paris.

Owens has excused absences July 29-Aug. 3 and is expected back at practice on Aug. 4. Women's gymnastics qualifying begins July 28 where Biles will contend for four events: the all-around, vault, uneven bars and balance beam. Biles, a three-time Olympian, is the reigning all-around champion and has the top U.S. score on every event except uneven bars.

"Just because we respect the Olympics," coach Matt Eberflus said. "That is a big deal. And he's just supporting the one he loves the most. And I think that's so cool that he gets to do that. We welcome that and it's going to be awesome. Go USA."

Owens, 29, signed with the Bears as a free agent in March after spending the 2023 season in Green Bay, where he appeared in 17 games with 11 starts. He is competing for a backup safety role behind Bears starters Kevin Byard and Jaquan Brisker and is expected to occupy a role on special teams, where he logged 54% of plays last season for the Packers.

Following Chicago's third day of training camp practice Monday, Bears offensive lineman Teven Jenkins provided an updated timetable for contract extension talks with the team's front office.

"Last I was told, I've got to wait until after the bye week to reconvene about it," Jenkins said.

The Bears bye comes during Week 7, one week after an international trip to London to host the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur. In June, Jenkins said that his agents had reached out to the Bears to begin conversations about an extension, but that "nothing is on the table."

Jenkins is coming off his best season with the Bears despite sustaining a calf injury during joint practices with the Colts in August 2023 and being sidelined until Chicago's Week 5 win at Washington. Various injuries have caused the left guard to miss 20 games throughout his three seasons with the Bears, from appearing in a career-low six games as a rookie to playing in a maximum of 13 games in 2022.

Jenkins revealed Monday that he has spent "a lot more on my body than I ever have" -- nearly "double" the amount he invested previously in physical therapy, a private chef, massages and other forms of rehabilitation away from the Bears facility ahead of his fourth NFL season.

"I made it vocal many times that I want to be here on the Chicago Bears, and whatever I need to do of how much I'd need to pay forward to get it back on the back end, and that's the determination I have to keep doing that and understanding that I need to spend more short term to get more long term for myself and my family," Jenkins said.