Bear Digest

Bears GM Ryan Poles at ease over defensive coordinator fits

A 3-4 or 4-3 for the new Bears defensive coordinator won't make a lot of difference to the Bears personnel department says GM Ryan Poles.
Gene Chamberlain|
Bears GM Ryan Poles addresses media after Ben Johnson's hiring.
Bears GM Ryan Poles addresses media after Ben Johnson's hiring. | Photo: Chicago Bears Video

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The hiring of a defensive coordinator by the Bears can be the type of thing to cause stress for GM Ryan Poles and the personnel department.

After all, a Bears coordinator with a different scheme than they have played might require different types of players, especially along the defensive front between a 4-3 or 3-4 formation.

Among known defensive coordinator candidates, veteran coordinator Dennis Allen has been a 4-3 coach, while Vikings secondary coach Daronté Jones comes from Brian Flores' 3-4 scheme and Rams defensive passing game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant has been with a 3-4 team every season since he started in the league since 2013 except one year with Detroit in a 4-3.

Yet, Poles is feeling at ease about it all in the wake of Ben Johnson's hiring.   They shouldn't be pressed into restaffing a full defense.

"But we're going to stay open-minded if we need to adapt to, you know, 3-4 or 4-3, we can we can do that," Poles said. "And actually, a lot of our guys have the flexibility to do that."

The only player in their front who might be facing a challenge would be linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.

Even defensive end Montez Sweat has some experience as an edge linebacker as opposed to playing with his and in the dirt at end in the 4-3. He played as a rookie at outside linebacker in Greg Manusky's 3-4 scheme with Washington.

Along the front, defensive tackle Andrew Billings played interior in a 3-4 with the Raiders for one season before coming the Bears. At Florida, Gervon Dexter played in an attacking front like the Bears' 4-3 but also played in a read-and-react front.

"So I've pretty much played in every scheme, 3-4, 4-3 in college," Dexter said. "Know I can play in any scheme."

He doesn't favor one or the other.

"Nah, I like to play ball," he said. "I'm a ball player so line me up in anything, I feel like I'd do a good job in at."

End Demarcus Walker was in a 3-4 at Tennessee before coming to the Bears.

Rookie defensive end Austin Booker played both read and attacking schemes in his college career at Kansas and at Minnesota.

Both linebackers T.J. Edwards and Jack Sanborn played interior linebacker in a 3-4 for Wisconsin under Jim Leonhard.

The only Bears player in their front who would have an adjustment would be Tremaine Edmunds. He has been in a 4-3 as a middle linebacker but has the body frame and the speed to play a strong side linebacker in he 3-4. In fact, he might even be better in a roving linebacker type of position.

To Walker, it's not a matter of scheme as much as it is something else.

"Being a disciplined, detailed, tenacious team is something that we need to do to surpass going home early and being able to play playoff football," Walker said.

It's exactly what Ben Johnson has promised they'll be. Soon he'll have the full staff who can make this happen.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.