Chicago Bears: Grading Mason Foster signing

Earlier this month, it looked like the Chicago Bears were about to sign inside linebacker Mason Foster to a three-year contract, but talks apparently fell through as no deal was completed. Since then, Foster received some cursory interest from the ILB-seeking San Francisco 49ers, who have also kicked around former Bear Lance Briggs as a potential signing, but he is now off of the market after signing with the Bears yesterday, per the National Football Post’s Aaron Wilson.

Foster’s deal is a one-year pact for an undisclosed amount of money, so basically the Bears aren’t risking anything by signing him. That’s a good thing, since Foster is a league-average starter at best. The main knock on him is that he struggles in coverage, and that prevented him from being an ideal fit as the starting middle linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Lovie Smith’s Tampa 2.

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Unfortunately, even though Foster’s forte is in run defense since he has coverage issues, he isn’t exactly a dominant run defender either. While he recorded 83, 106, and 90 tackles in his first three seasons in Tampa Bay, he had just 62 tackles last season and had slightly bloated tackle totals.

Foster is a quality run defender, but, per Pro Football Focus, he actually had a Run Stop% of just 6.2% last season, which was fourth-worst among 35 qualifying inside linebackers. In the previous season, he was 24th out of 40 in Run Stop%, but he was actually 8th in Run Stop% back in 2012 (his 106-tackle season).

It’s also worth noting that Foster did actually pick off three passes with seven total passes defended in 2013, so he’s more “inconsistent” in coverage than purely “bad”. In fact, his coverage ability probably won’t swing the meter either way on the Bears defense, since any issues he has in the passing game should be mitigated in a 3-4 defense that puts more stress on inside linebackers to play the run than to cover.

Theoretically, the move to a 3-4 defense should help Foster more, especially since he isn’t an athletic player, as evidenced by his 4.75 forty time coming out of Washington. Playing in the 3-4 for the Bears will allow Foster to focus more on downhill run-stuffing, and he won’t have to spend as much time moving in space, whether it be tackling running backs or tracking them in coverage. That makes Foster a quality fit for the Bears, and they aren’t exactly set at inside linebacker either.

You could still argue that ILB is a need for the Bears, since the current top trio of Foster, Jon Bostic, and second-year Florida State product Christian Jones isn’t the most formidable group around. However, Foster adds significantly more legitimacy to the position, since he is a plug-n-play starter who was once a successful run defender. At the very least, he can compile stats, though the production last season wasn’t exactly enticing (he had zero sacks and just three passes defended to go with his career-low 62 tackles).

Of course, stats don’t mean much at the inside linebacker position, so the Chicago Bears are hoping for Foster to set the tone against the run while avoiding any major slip-ups in coverage. That should be achievable, as Foster should be a good 3-4 ILB in run defense given his ability to diagnose plays. The awareness and instincts he’ll bring to the table should help the Bears out, and he’s an upgrade to a team that has struggled against the run in back-to-back seasons, even if Foster is coming off of a down year of his own.

One-year deals are rarely open for criticism, and it’s impossible to see Mason Foster making significant cash on this contract with the Bears. He’s simply a one-year option for a team that probably still wants to see what they have in their young players at the position, as they are now ruled by a new regime.

Foster buys them some time to find a true long-term replacement, since it’s clear that Foster isn’t good enough to be a long-term option. He’s just 26, but he doesn’t have enough speed or athleticism to qualify as a high-upside option. At best, he’s an above-average starter, but, at worst, he’s a liability as a starter or a great backup. For the Bears, he’s an upgrade, and that’s enough to give this deal a decent grade. He’s a cheap, smart LB who can set the tone against the run, and there’s essentially no risk in this deal, offsetting the fact that there isn’t any huge upside either.

Final Grade: B-

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