Lovie Smith: "This was a Super Bowl for some of the players"

Bears coach Lovie Smith opted not to play all of his starters and most of his key reserves. But, Smith still recognized that the preseason finale mattered to many of the players who were — at least for one more night — Bears.

“You want to finish the preseason this way,” Smith said. “This was a Super Bowl for some of the players trying to earn a spot on the roster or just establish their position.”

He highlighted running backs Lorenzo Booker and Armando Allen, safety Jeremy Jones, punter Ryan Quigley, receiver Dane Sanzenbacher and veteran quarterback Josh McCown, who were all key in the Bears 28-20 win.

“First off, I don’t think anyone really played bad,” Smith said. “A lot of players in there won’t be with us anymore. And I assume as a player going out, you don’t want to have any regrets. And you don’t have regrets if you say, ‘Hey, I played as well as I could, the last time out,’ and I think most guys can say that tonight.”