LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Maybe Cam Lewis has always been wired this way. The Chicago Bears would be grateful.
Growing up in Detroit, the now 29-year-old defensive back said he "just couldn't stop moving" as a kid. Before a future as a professional football player ever came into view, there was track, soccer and -- his favorite -- baseball. He was an athlete before he put the pads on at Consortium College Prep (Mich.) as a wide receiver and defensive back. He was, as coaches and teammates still call him today, a Swiss Army Knife.
"You just got to be willing to do things that I wasn't really comfortable doing at first," Lewis said of that comparison during an interview at Halas Hall this summer.
With the season opener approaching, Lewis has already lived up to his moniker, channeling his adaptability to play his role on a new-look Bears defense.
"He gets every inch, every ounce out of his body. You're going to get that out of him," said Lewis' college cornerbacks coach, Taiwo Onatolu. "And it's his love for the game. Some people say it; he never ever talked about it. You just saw it every day."
In just one summer with the Bears, Lewis has been tested across the secondary. He opened training camp filling in at nickel for Kyler Gordon, who is sidelined indefinitely with a calf injury. Then, when prized free-agent signing Coby Bryant went down with a knee injury in early August, the coaching staff asked Lewis to turn his attention to safety. Lewis spent the back half of camp taking starting safety snaps opposite rookie Dillon Thienemen.
Lewis' versatility intrigued the Bears during their relatively quiet free-agent shopping in March. He spent his first seven NFL seasons with the Buffalo Bills, starting 14 games and contributing at corner, nickel and safety.
"Every person on the team has a role; no one is more important than the other. But here's the thing: you got to own your role, and that's what Cam does really well," Bears assistant defensive backs coach Matt Giordano said in August. "He understands he can play multiple spots. … He's a true pro at it and works at his craft every day to maintain a high level of football."
Lewis didn't get much time to warm up to his new team before his role changed from plug-and-play depth piece to potential starter. On the unofficial Week 1 depth chart, Lewis was listed as the starting defensive nickelback, though rookie Malik Muhammad could start in Week 1, as he has been the first-team nickel for most of the summer.
Either way, Lewis' impact will be key for a team missing starters in the secondary.
"I play wherever you need me to play," Lewis said. "Football is a great team sport, and I love it so much because it's not individual-based. That's why I can play safety, I can go play nickel, I can go play dime if you need me to, I can go play special teams.
"It's not about me; I play for the whole team, the whole city, and just try to go out there and play my best. That's the only thing I can do."
For as soft-spoken as Lewis can be, there's an edge to him that dates to his days at the University at Buffalo. Onatolu, the former Bulls cornerbacks coach, remembers when Lewis arrived on campus as a stocky, 5-foot-9, 170-pound freshman. The coaches thought Lewis would redshirt his first year until they saw him in practice. Even now, Onatolu describes Lewis as the "toughest kid I've ever coached or been around."
"He just was always this quick, explosive, physical player that played bigger than he was," Onatolu said. "He didn't say a whole lot. A very, very quiet kid and just kind of handled his business. But he's really, really passionate about football. And you saw that right away."
Lewis played in all 12 of Buffalo's games as a freshman, working his way into a starting cornerback role as a sophomore. He also took snaps at safety, on special teams and at nickel, which in certain packages played more like a weakside linebacker, Onatolu said.
Lewis calls it "cross-training," the ability to play different positions, and says he's been doing it his entire career. Former Bulls quarterback Tyree Jackson remembers times in the college offseason when Lewis would run routes for him on the practice field. The two have remained friends since college and, afterward, navigated their adjustments to the NFL as undrafted free-agent signings of the Bills.
"I think anyone that gets to know (Lewis) off the field would just say he's a great person, but on the field, he definitely has a switch, and he's a different kind of animal," Jackson said. "It's interesting. He's not always talking loud, but his play is loud."
With no invitation to the NFL combine, Lewis didn't have high expectations for the 2019 draft. Instead, he focused on where he could create an opportunity for himself and made an impression on the Bills during their local pro day.
Lewis remembers walking into the locker room for his first day of Bills practice. He introduced himself to his new teammate whose locker stall was next to his. Less than one hour later, that player was cut.
That's when Lewis realized his versatility wasn't just a talent. It was a lifeline.
"You always got to compete; every day is an opportunity to continue to prove yourself, to put your best foot forward, to show why you need to be here," Lewis said. "They always want to bring somebody in to replace you; that's how I look at it."
In Buffalo, Lewis worked his way up from the practice squad to become a consistent contributor, playing in all 17 games in each of the last three seasons. When free agency came this spring, Lewis said he knew he and his family would likely be leaving Buffalo, their football home for the past 11 years, which wasn't particularly easy for his wife, Alexis, and their three young children.
But Chicago presented a new beginning, which Lewis welcomed. He joined a team looking to build on last season's success, something Lewis knows a thing or two about. His teams in Buffalo never won fewer than 10 games and won the AFC East in five of his seven years. Lewis said success was often player-led, with team dinners and bonding events forming the foundation for the team's identity. He said he'd like to help build similar camaraderie in Chicago.
On the field, even though Lewis may be familiar with preparing to play multiple spots, that doesn't mean it comes easy to him. After one late-August practice, Lewis was particularly candid about the learning curve. Practice ended with a long live drill, and Lewis expressed frustration after allowing quarterback Caleb Williams to complete a scramble-drill deep shot to tight end Coleston Loveland for 55 yards.
"I don't feel like I made enough plays on the ball," Lewis said afterward. "I do my job to communicate fairly well, but I don't know. It's just not up to my standard. It feels a little rocky.
"I'm still learning the defense, how (defensive coordinator Dennis Allen) wants it to be played. … Coaches may feel like it was a pretty good camp, but to me it doesn't feel that way. So still got some room to get better, and that's a good thing."
The coaching staff used the preseason to make decisions in the secondary. After the final preseason game against Tennessee, Allen said the picture was becoming clearer but wouldn't elaborate on what that meant for the lineup. The Bears signed veteran Xavier Woods after Bryant's injury and listed him as the Week 1 starter at safety on the unofficial depth chart.
There are certainly question marks on the Bears defense, and shuffling within the secondary could trickle into early weeks of the season. But come Sunday in Carolina, all that matters is if the team can find the right answers.
"I can tell Ben wants to win. He wants to score points, and (Allen) wants the offense to fear you. That's how you're supposed to play defense," Lewis said. "We still got to grow. It's still early, going to be a lot of ups and downs, but the closer this group gets together, the better we'll be."
With all the unknowns, one thing is certain: Lewis will be ready, wherever the team needs him.
"He's our Swiss Army Knife basically," Giordano said. "There are growing pains to learning that many positions, but what he does great every single day is he comes to work with the right attitude, and he meets with me extra just to learn the defense and learn specific assignments and responsibilities. He's doing great; it just takes time."
This article originally appeared in [The Athletic](https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7579619/2026/09/10/cam-lewis-bears-defense-swiss-army-knife/).