Chicago Bears: 3 Things to watch in Preseason Week 3

The Bullard/Robertson-Harris battle heats to a boil

Okay, I know that I’ve harped on this battle for some time. It’s because of the importance of this battle. Jonathan Bullard and Roy Robertson-Harris are locked in a battle for the defensive end spot opposite of Akiem Hicks.

The battle’s importance cannot be understated. Hicks had to deal with constant double-team and wore down late in the season. He needs some help on the other side so he can be freed up. Also, if the guy on the other side doesn’t get the job done, teams will just go away from his side.

Bullard is the guy I feel the team wanted to win the job. They’ve groomed him for this, but he just hasn’t been able to grab the handle and take the job. He couldn’t beat out Mitch Unrein and now he can’t pull away from Robertson-Harris. In fact, at this point, I think Robertson-Harris is ahead in the battle.

So far in the preseason, Robertson-Harris has a total of six tackles and 3.5 sacks. On the other hand, Bullard has six tackles and a sack. The sack number is the key. The Bears need to get to the quarterback in order to force more turnovers. If the quarterback just stands in the pocket without much pressure, the secondary gets burned, especially with the quarterbacks in the NFC North.

Let’s see who starts the game and takes the majority of the snaps. That’ll tip the coaches’ hands as to who is actually winning the battle.