Bear Digest

Is Bears Defensive Line Better Than in 2018?

The Bears dominated against the run in 2018 and with Eddie Goldman's reported return from an opt-out last year they could be on track to return to their old form.
Gene Chamberlain|
Is Bears Defensive Line Better Than in 2018?
Is Bears Defensive Line Better Than in 2018?

 The fear Bears fans have had since Eddie Goldman failed to report to mandatory minicamp is over.

The Bears will have their nose tackle at training camp when players report for practice on Tuesday, according to a Chicago Tribune report. This means the interior of their defensive front will be stable and entirely intact for the first time since Week 5 of the 2019 season.

It's possible this makes the Bears one of the best defensive lines in football again. It might even be best.

It might be better than the 2018 line, which is saying something.

The last time the Bears had both Goldman, defensive end Akiem Hicks and defensive end Bilal Nichols all available and playing together was the Week 15 21-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers in 2019. And that game was the first time playing since Week 5 for Hicks, who didn't play another game after it due to his elbow injury. He couldn't do as much as he normally would with a brace on the elbow, and gutted it out that day.

In 2020 Hicks played all but one game, while Goldman opted out of the entire season.

The Bears led the NFL in stopping the run in 2018 when they had Goldman, Hicks and Bilal as the front three in their base 3-4 defense.

When Hicks and Goldman are in the lineup since Matt Nagy has been coach, the defense allows just under 80 yards a game on the ground. That's roughly the average they allowed in leading the league in rushing defense in 2018. They allow almost 110 yards a game on the ground when one of the two or both are missing.

Goldman's presence is not entirely a run-oriented asset for the defense. He has 12 1/2 sacks and 20 quarterback hits in his five seasons and tends to push back the pocket in the passer's face.

Usually, Goldman is off the field on obvious passing downs and when healthy played about half the defensive snaps between 2015 and 2019.

"Obviously, to get a guy who has some proven history in this league and played at a high level, that is exciting for all of us," defensive coordinator Sean Desai said earlier this offseason. "Again, we gotta make sure he gets back and we see him play football because none of us have seen him play football in a year."

At least now they can be certain they'll get to see him.

Deeper than 2018

With Goldman available and the full starting front three healthy, the Bears might have the deepest front line in the NFL.

They also have Angelo Blackson, who has started 30 games and played in 85 in a six-year career. They re-signed defensive end Mario Edwards Jr., who has found a niche as a three-technique pass rusher in the four-man pass rush. They signed former Chiefs defensive lineman Mike Pennel, and in 2018 they didn't have a 330-pound backup who could play behind Hicks, Nichols and Goldman.

The 2018 line didn't have Nichols at his current playing level. He was just breaking into the league then and found his way onto the field because he was better than Jonathan Bullard, who was cut in 2019. Now Nichols is difficult for many offensive linemen to handle. That line had Roy Robertson-Harris, but he wasn't yet at the level he attained in 2019 and 2020 as he was just a season removed from being a developmental project for former line coach Jay Rodgers..

If you're counting the edges as part of the defensive line, Khalil Mack hasn't lost anything. He was dominant in 2018 but last year Pro Football Focus gave him his highest grade as a Bear. Edge rusher Robert Quinn had only two sacks last year but 2018 edge Leonard Floyd didn't tear it up with four sacks.

The edge depth is better with former Broncos edge Jeremiah Attaochu, who is  better than both 2018 backup edges Aaron Lynch or Sam Acho.

PFF Says Sixth

Pro Football Focus came out with its rankings of defensive lines and put the Bears sixth. 

While it's a debatable point, a few of those ranked ahead of them should draw raised eyebrows. Philadelphia was ranked ahead of them. The Eagles might not even have the second best defensive front in their own division let alone fifth best in the league.

The Rams were ranked ahead of the Bears, and while L.A. has the best defensive lineman in the league, that's singular. They lost Michael Brockers and counting on Floyd to be a force like he was last year might be wishful thinking because he's never had a year close to what he did in 2020. The Bears have more good starters and more good backups than the Rams do on the defensive front.

Tampa Bay was ranked ahead of the Bears, and they're counting on a defensive lineman a few years older than the 31-year-old Hicks. A struggling, anemic Bears offense didn't have too much trouble with that defensive front last year.

The PFF article has the Steelers ranked No. 1, but without Bud Dupree? They could be in for regression.

The Bears have had their defensive regression. The pieces appear in place for another defensive ascension in Chicago.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven

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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.

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