Where Bears Need to Focus Most in Offseason
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The area of focus for the Bears when offseason personnel changes begin has become rather obvious.
It was as apparent as Aaron Rodgers standing in the pocket for 10 seconds or more, then moving around a few more seconds before throwing without any form of presssure.
The Bears have no pass rush in the 4-3 defense Matt Eberflus put into effect and general manager Ryan Poles provided only one player who has done this with anything resembling regularity.
The Bears need defensive ends, they need defensive tackles and they need players who can rush the passer without getting burned by the run in a single-gap scheme. They have 16 sacks, lowest total in the NFL. Their leading sack man is safety Jaquan Brisker with three, and he didn't play the last two games. All of their defensive ends and tackles combined have produced 8 1/2 sacks.
Finding great defensive tackles is never an easy task in free agency as they're difficult to come by and are usually locked up long before the signing period begins.
It's easier to come up with pass rushing ends in free agency but not necessarily the type the Bears will be looking to sign or draft.
A bigger left end is one thing they look for, if not at both end spots. They're not looking for the 320-pound types like the Bears used at end in their old 3-4 scheme but players bigger than a 3-4 edge, most likely in the range of 275-290 pounds.
The last six weeks have been a dead zone for Bears defensive linemen. In Sunday's loss to Green Bay they even tried defensive tackle Justin Jones lining up at end for a bit. Jones has been their most successful defensive tackle, but not so impactful that they could label him a great success.
"So Justin, when he was with the Chargers, obviously he played along the line, which is great," coach Matt Eberflus said. "And that's why we liked him. He played five (technique), he played nine, he played three, he played one, he played all the techniques and that was very intriguing to us.
"We like a bigger guy out there sometimes at left end. If you go ahead and look back at the past where I've been, we've had guys that are 285-290 at that left end spot. That to me should be a thumper guy at times in the run game. We just thought for him, to utilize him, because we have some depth at tackle, to be able to have a bigger guy at end to be able to play the run a little bit more solid over there, and he's done a good job. He can do all the movements and all the different things. And he's a solid rusher out there too. So that's why we did it."
Most of the rushing damage the Packers did Sunday came on the opposite side, the right defensive end. However, numbers say Jones' impact wasn't the greatest in the game, so apparently it wasn't much of a solution. He had two assists on tackles and no other stats.
The Bears do have depth at tackle in terms of bodies, but no serious football person would look at what they've done in production and call them successful.
This is where GM Ryan Poles failed the Bears most last offseason and it started with the failed signing of free agent Larry Ogunjobi as a three-technique tackle. The move was a failure because Ogunjobi failed the physical after a playoff injury to his foot.
However, it wasn't much of a move anyway considering what Ogunjobi has done or hasn't done with the team he eventually joined. He signed with Pittsburgh and for the year has half a sack and three tackles for loss. He's been even less impactful than Bears defensive tackles.
Jones, who signed after Ogunjobi's failed physical, has been more impactful.
Here's a ranking of players on the Bears defensive front and their statistical output, which explains why this is their greatest current need barring some sort of late-season miraculous turnaround.
Fans of offense will look to get Justin Fields receivers in the draft but until the Bears get their defensive line problems in order they'll repeatedly lose games 28-19 or 50-49.
1. DT Justin Jones
With eight tackles for loss, Jones is easily the most productive lineman and has intermittently done what needs to be done in the running game at the three-technique. He has learned the position in this defense. He has 38 tackles, two sacks, six pressures, five QB hits and no sacks since Oct. 9 at Minnesota.
2. DT Armon Watts
With 31 tackles and four for loss, Watts has exceeded the norm for this defensive front and also for what you can expect from players claimed on waivers. This doesn't mean he has been overly productive and three of his TFLs came in the last four weeks. He had one to show for the first nine games. Watts has one sack and that came against the Jets Nov. 27, the only one he has made this year. But before waving him off as a non-contributor note this is the only sack made by any Bears defensive lineman at any position since Jones sacked Kirk Cousins at Minnesota on Oct. 9.
3. DE Trevis Gipson
He rates third only based on two sacks in one game. At least it showed he can produce. That came in Week 2 against the Packers. Gipson hasn't had a single sack since then. He has 21 tackles and just three for loss, none of those during the last eight weeks. He does have eight QB hits and 13 pressures but it was his position where the Bears moved Jones to last week.
4. DE Al-Quadin Muhammad
He made the only sack by a Bears defensive end since Week 2 when he sacked Carson Wentz at Soldier Field on Oct. 13. It was the only sack this year by a player the Bears signed in free agency because of his experience in this system under Eberflus. Muhammad plays a pass rushing position and has two QB hits with nine pressures on the year
He has been in on 23 tackles and played on 62% of snaps this year.
5. DE Dominique Robinson
He was a smashing success and praised by everyone after the first game as he had 1 1/2 sack and seven tackles in his debut. Since then he hasn't had a quarterback hit or sack, and has made 27 tackles on the year. He has two tackles for loss, one coming in the opener, and eight pressures on the year.
6. DT Mike Pennel
He has played on only 32% of defensive snaps and has no sacks, two QB hits, four pressures and one tackle for loss.
7. DT Angelo Blackson
Following Week 3 he's been in a backup role after starting last year when they were in a two-gap system. Blackson has 18 tackles and one QB hit but no sacks, with four pressures. His role has declined each week and the last three games he had in nine, 18 and three plays.
8. DE Taco Charlton
He's been in three games and 33 plays and has made an assist.
9. DT Andrew Brown
A player they just brought in from the Cardinals practice squad. He played for the first time Sunday and made a tackle.
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