Chicago Bears: Analyzing free agency moves made so far
Bears sign Buster Skrine
The Bears will miss Callahan. The problem is, they just couldn’t get into a bidding war for him, especially given his injury history. The other teams might overlook that considering the great 2018 season he had, but Pace and company can’t.
In his place, they’ll have Buster Skrine. Skrine made an impression on Nagy. The Bears played the New York Jets back in October and Nagy had high praise for Skrine, per Bears Wire.
"He’s one of the better nickels in this league, if not the best. I mean, he’s good. He’s a good nickel in there."
Skrine is a hard hitter. He enjoys rattling the ball carrier. He has the speed to play on the outside as well as the slot.
Some people around the league don’t agree with Nagy. They feel that Chicago downgraded with Skrine. I think the Bears are betting that, with better players surrounding him, Skrine will play better. The Jets didn’t have a very good defense on the field and that makes one’s job difficult. The Bears have one of, if not the best pass rush and that eases pressure off the secondary.
Going from Bryce Callahan to Buster Skrine is a helluva downgrade for Chicago. Hopefully Chicago adds competition in the draft. I don't think Skrine is good enough to have a job locked in
— Ian Valentino (@NFLDraftStudy) March 12, 2019
The Bears signed Skrine to a three-year, $16.5 million deal. They’ll draft a corner early and have Kevin Toliver play in a rotation with Skrine. The draft pick could eventually become the full-time slot corner. Nagy saw something in Skrine that he felt he needed. Hopefully, he’s right and Skrine plays well.