Pillar Article 3

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For my third pillar article I will be writing solve a problem article.

For this case the problem I will be solving is the Bears defense.

If the 2015 NFL playoffs told us anything about the game of football, it’s that defense does in fact win championships. This past year’s playoffs had some of the top defenses in football including the Broncos, Panthers, Cardinals, Vikings, Chiefs, and Seahawks. In fact, many people around the league think that the Broncos defense single handedly won them the Super Bowl. In a league where offensive players make all the money, defense still rules. Growing up a Bears fan, I had always thought this same thing. I idolized players like Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, Charles Tillman, and Julius Peppers. The first couple of years that I started paying attention to football, Brian Urlacher lead the Bears defense as one of the best in the league. Year in and year out, it always seemed like the Bears could rely of their defense. Not so much anymore. I has pained me the last couple years to watch the Bears Defense get absolutely shredded by other teams. In the following paragraphs I will point out how I think the Bears and GM Ryan Pace can successfully turn this defense around.

Let’s start by taking about the defensive line. Switching from a four three to a three four defense has taken a lot of attention away from the line and given a lot more attention to the linebackers. Even though they don’t get a lot of attention, every defense still starts up front. Last year the Bears had a large combination of starters at every position on the line. Jarvis Jenkins, Will Sutton, and Mitch Unrein including others all played reps at defensive end for the Bears in 2015. Unrein was a late addition to the Bears but proved to be somewhat surprising. He also played fullback for the Bears in 2015. Having said this he is not good enough to be considered for the future of this defense. Jenkins seems like a keeper after his first year with the Bears. He is coming into the prime of his career and baring any injury is going to be around for at least four or five more years. Will Sutton is really a four three defensive end. Having said this I think he played well enough for the Bears to keep him on the roster. The nose tackle job was shared by Jay Ratliff and Eddie Goldman. We all know what happened with Ratliff but Goldman played extremely well at the end of the year for a rookie.  I think Goldman should prove to be a very effective tackle in his second full year in 2016. That leaves one open spot for another defensive end opposite of Jenkins. It doesn’t sound like the Bears are going to use their first pick on a lineman, but there are options in free agency. Chris Long, brother of Kyle Long is available and would probably love to play alongside his brother. The guy I think would fit perfectly as a big 3-4 DE is Denver’s Malik Jackson. He is coming off a huge year playing for one of the best defenses in league history.

Now let’s talk about the linebackers. Vic Fangio’s defenses have always had big name linebackers that can be counted on in big games. The Bears inside linebackers, the leaders of the defense, are anything but. Fangio stated early on last year that he really liked Shea McClellan, but after another terrible year it seems like the Bears are finally going to move on from him. That leads to the biggest hole on this defense, the play caller and inside linebacker. Almost all of the mock drafts have the Bears taking Shea’s replacement with their first pick. It would be awesome if Myles Jack fell to the Bears. Many believe he is by far the best linebacker in the draft. If Jack is taken before the Bears pick I think Alabama LB Ragland could also be a huge addition. Alabama is known for their defense, just like the Bears once were. The other inside linebacker spot was shared by Christian Jones and John Timu. Timu surprised many late in the season and I think they should again split time in 2016. As for outside linebackers, I think the Bears are set. Pernell McPhee looks like a monster as long as he can stay healthy. On the other side, both Willie Young and Lamar Houston had great bounce back years from torn acl’s. The Bears are going to draft multiple linebackers in this year’s draft and that should help out a lot with the depth at this position.

Finally, let’s talk about the secondary. This position group played both really well and extremely poor in 2015. Kyle Fuller still looks shaky but should be better in year two of Fangio’s defense. That solves one cornerback spot. The other cornerback spot was a mess all year. Alan Ball was a huge free agency dud and Sherrick McMannis is just about as bad as cornerbacks come. This is definitely an area of need for the Bears. Sean Smith of the Chiefs is a free agent and was one of the best cornerbacks in the league last year. He could be a huge addition to this defense and he is only 28 which means he could play at least three of four more years. The Bears have the money this off-season to sign a couple big free agents and I think Smith will be one of them. When it comes to the safety position it gets a little foggy for the Bears. Adrian Amos played well for a rookie but will have growing pains in his second year. On the other side, Antrel Rolle was on the sideline for much of 2015. If he can stay healthy, Rolle is one of the most consistent safeties in the league and would be a huge asset to teach the younger guys like Amos. I think the Bears will look to add Rolle’s replacement in this year’s draft but I think their starting safeties are already on this roster.

To conclude:

Here are three steps that I think will solve the problem that is the Bears Defense

1.       Add Malik Jackson via free agency from the Denver Broncos

2.       Draft Myles Jack if he is available at number 11

3.       Add Sean Smith through free agency to take over one cornerback spot


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