Chicago Bears: 5 Strong safeties to target in 2020 NFL free agency
5. Vonn Bell (Age: 25)
The New Orleans Saints defense took a lot of grief over the years for not being very good. The defense was pretty good in 2019, however. Well, the run defense was pretty good. While the pass defense finished in the bottom third in most categories, the rush defense was a top-ten unit. It ranked second in rush attempts, fourth in rushing yards allowed and ninth in rushing touchdowns allowed.
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Vonn Bell had a hand in that. He provided good run defense for the Saints. He is a good tackler and when he gets to the ball carrier he usually makes the stop. In 2019, he had career highs in total tackles (86), passes defended (5), and fumble recoveries (5).
Bell isn’t a ballhawk. In fact, he got his first career interception in 2019. With the Chicago Bears, he doesn’t need to be, though. There are other ballhawks on the defense. He just needs to provide help against the run and make solid tackles.
He’d be a good fit in the Chicago Bears defense. I think he could flourish and Jackson can roam the field, return to create havoc once again.
With Bell, the Bears would have a good, athletic and young safety duo. He just turned 25 and is younger than Jackson, who just turned 27.
The Saints have some decisions to make. They have about $9 million in cap space. Future Hall of Fame quarterback is a free agent and so is backup Teddy Bridgewater. If Brees comes back it’ll take some money to get the signing done and they still need to sign a backup.
I recently wrote that offensive guard Andrus Peat is also a free agent. Even with cuts and contract restructures, I don’t think the Saints re-sign everyone. Bell will have some suitors so he could be on his way out of New Orleans. The Saints’ loss could be the Bears’ gain.