Despite a plethora of injuries to the Chicago Bears defense, it finished in the top 15 in yards allowed last season, but a new-look group should find the top 10 in 2017.
At 3-13, the Chicago Bears suffered through one of their worst seasons in franchise history. It continued the team’s trend over the past four seasons. In that period, they own a record of 22-42. Over a third of those wins came 2013 when they won eight games.
A team that prides itself on great defensive play took it to the chin. Too many times, they gave up 50+ points. Too many times they let Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers do whatever he wanted to do.
Last year, despite a number of injuries that hit the defensive unit, it ranked in the top 15 in yards allowed. The defense was especially stout against the passing game. It ranked fourth in pass attempts allowed and seventh in passing yards allowed. Additionally, the unit ranked 11th in passing touchdowns allowed. Not bad considering, at times, they had rookie free agents starting games for the team.
In the offseason, general manager Ryan Pace invested in the defense. He signed safety Quintin Demps, cornerback Prince Amukamara, defensive linemen John Jenkins and Jaye Howard, and also drafted safety Eddie Jackson.
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Add these players to a unit that already has some talented players on it like Leonard Floyd, Eddie Goldman, Pernell McPhee, Danny Trevathan, and Jerrell Freeman and you have the makings of a very good, dare I say, dominant defense.
Yes, I understand that while the defense did well in terms of yards allowed, it gave up too many points. The Bears gave up 399 points, good for 24th in the league. However, 109 of those points came in the last three games when things just completely broke down. With better players on the field manning their positions, that should change.
Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is happy with what he sees so far. In a recent interview on the team’s official website, he spoke on some of the players and their progression.
He had this to say about second-year edge-rusher Leonard Floyd:
"“He’s got really good potential. I think he’ll be a very good player for us and looked upon as a very good player in the league. If you’re looking for statistical numbers, I can’t put a finger on that. But he’ll be a damn good player.”"
Then there’s Jonathan Bullard. The Bears expected Bullard to make an impact after they drafted him in the third round of last year’s draft. He failed to do that, but is having success so far in camp. Fangio had this to say:
"“He’s doing better. He’s much more mature physically. He weighs, if you can believe it, almost a little bit too much, so his weight’s not an issue. I think he’s more mentally and emotionally ready for the rigors of playing in the NFL trenches against grown men. We’re hopeful. I like where he’s at now. I think his arrow’s pointing up; we’ll see how far it goes up.”"
Fangio liked what he saw from the defense last year. He did lament the play of the last three games, but other than that, he felt he had a really good defense, per the Chicago Sun-Times:
"I thought, for the most part, we played hard, hung in there tough under adverse situations and were really, in some ways — although the record sucked — making progress. But then the last three games . . . the dam broke on us."
Next: NFL Power Rankings 2017: Preseason Week 1
I don’t know how the offense ends up playing in 2017. What I feel, however, is that the defense will open a lot of eyes and the Monsters of the Midway return once again.