Chicago Bears: 5 Players who need to step up vs Steelers in Week 9

Robert Quinn, Edge Rusher

Last week, the Chicago Bears ruled Khalil Mack out because of a foot injury he was dealing with for about a month. With his absence, the Bears’ defense needed a big game from the other edge rusher, Robert Quinn.

Quinn started out well, with an early open-field tackle that helped stall a Niners drive. He also had a tackle for loss. However, he only had one more tackle the rest of the way. Also, he failed to record a sack or a quarterback hit. As a result, Garoppolo had all day to throw and found his open receivers. He finished the game with 322 passing yards.

Quinn has to have a big game this week since Mack was ruled out again this week. He has to lead the way to Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Roethlisberger is not a mobile quarterback so he could be a good target. Quinn won’t have to worry about him making moves to get away. If Quinn gets into the backfield, he needs to hit Roethlisberger.

Mack and Quinn have been a pretty good duo when together. They’ve combined for 11.5 sacks. With them leading the way, the Bears pass rush led the NFL in sacks until last week. The entire unit failed to get close to Garoppolo and it cost them. That cannot happen again this week. Quinn must step up and be the leader in Mack’s absence.