Chicago Bears: 5 Players who need to step up in Week 5 vs Raiders

3. Trevis Gipson should continue his good play

One of the players that most NFL analysts wanted to see do more was linebacker Trevis Gipson. He saw only 71 defensive snaps last season (7 percent of the defensive snaps), but showed flashes of talent.

This season, Gipson has already seen 58 defensive snaps, 22 percent of the total defensive snaps. He’s on his way to bowling away his 2020 totals. Against the Lions, he recorded a sack, two tackles for loss, a QB hit, a pass knockdown and a forced fumble.

The starting outside linebackers, Robert Quinn and Khalil Mack, are having very good starts to the season. Add Gipson and Jeremiah Attaochu as solid backups, and the Bears have themselves a very tough unit.

If Gipson can continue to do well with the snaps he sees, he’s sure to see more. He can show the coaches that he can play enough snaps to help give Mack or Quinn some rest, allowing them to continue to play at an elite level.

The Bears lead the NFL in sacks so far with 15. That pressure has helped cover the weakness of the secondary. The defensive front needs to keep putting pressure on the quarterbacks. Gipson can help get that done.