Another One-Year Safety Deal
Tashaun Gipson's fit in the Bears secondary proved to be worth another look.
The Bears agreed Monday to a second one-year deal with Gipson, according to ESPN's Dan Graziano.
The veteran safety started every game last year in the regular season and also the playoff loss to New Orleans after coming in to replace Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who had played one season as a replacement for Adrian Amos.
The Bears didn't try to bring back Clinton-Dix, but apparently have appreciated Gipson's play more after he tied for the team lead with two interceptions and made 66 tackles, the most since his second season in the league.
Gipson was an iron man of sorts with 1,054 snaps or 98 percent of the defensive plays. Sportradar says he allowed a passer rating of 96.3 and three touchdown passes against when targeted last season, as well as a 63.6% completion rate.
Gipson drew a positive grade from Pro Football Focus and was ranked the 18th best safety last year with a 72.0 grade, including a 69.9 in pass coverage. PFF actually had him graded above teammate Eddie Jackson.
The Bears signed Gipson last year after he'd been a standout with Jacksonville but then had fallen out of favor with the Houston Texans. He started his career with the Cleveland Browns.
The move takes some pressure off of general manager Ryan Pace to come up with a safety later in the draft, although they could look to the position again with an eye on the future because it is only a one-year contract.
The Bears also have safeties Jordan Lucas and Marquis Christian under contract in addition to Jackson and backups Deon Bush and DeAndre Houston-Carson.
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