5 Chicago Bears players with a lot to prove in 2022

Chicago Bears player no. 4: Eddie Jackson, Safety

Eddie Jackson came out of the gates looking like a Hall of Famer. In his first three seasons, he had 11 turnovers (10 interceptions and a fumble recovery)and five touchdowns. He had two Pro Bowl appearances and an All-Pro First Team on his resume.

Things have been different in his last two seasons, however. He has just one turnover (a fumble recovery and zero interceptions) and one touchdown.

Without his turnovers and touchdowns, the fanbase noticed that Jackson isn’t exactly the best tackler. He was never a great one, but his other talents made up for it. Without that, the missed tackles were noticeable.

Jackson himself knows that his play hasn’t been up to par lately.

"Yeah, it wasn’t the best at all. I think that’s probably one of my worst seasons. I gave up too many deep balls. Just trying to eliminate that. The little things with your eyes, breaking on the ball, attention to details. Little things, little fixes that you could make."

Now Jackson has a clean slate. He has new coaches and a new system that he says is better fitted for him. He just has to look at the quarterback and make the play.

In addition to a new system, Jackson is now a leader and mentor. The Bears drafted safety Jaquan Brisker to play alongside Jackson. Jackson is helping mold Brisker and that, in turn, helps Jackson.

The Bears also drafted Kyler Gordon to help in the secondary. Add in Tavon Young and this secondary could go from an Achilles heel to a strength. That also helps Jackson.

With all the new talent surrounding him now, he will get more opportunities to make the plays he made earlier in his career. Now it’s just a matter of getting the job done and returning to form.