Bear Digest

Why the Chicago Bears could look into market for cornerback help

The Bears' great strength has been their pass coverage for three years in a heavy zone-based scheme but times have changed and they may need a personnel adjustment.
Gene Chamberlain|
Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson goes up in the end zone for a pass with Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson covering.
Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson goes up in the end zone for a pass with Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson covering. | David Banks-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The staple for years in Chicago has been playing zone defense, even before Matt Eberflus returned the Tampa-2 style to pass coverage.

Vic Fangio's scheme from 2015-2018 focused on cover-3 and quarters before he altered it by the time he went to the Eagles.

Now times have changed again for the Bears. With it comes the need for personnel who are more capable of playing man-to-man defense.

For that reason it shouldn't surprise anyone if the Bears look at cornerbacks later in the draft or even at bargain bin free agents. It's been a team strength, Hail Mary passes aside, but one suited to a particular scheme over the past three years.

It's not as if they plan to look like Bill Belichick's Patriots teams of the 2000s and go man-to-man extensively. However, there going to be a change if defensive coordinator Dennis Allen sticks with what he did in the past that made the Saints effective.

It's difficult to use last year's numbers because Allen didn't coach past the ninth game but when the Saints used his scheme last for a full season, in 2023, they had the fifth-highest rate of being in man-to-man coverage at 32.2%. The Bears, on the other hand, played man-to-man at the fifth lowest rate in the league for 2023, a year when they had a strong defense and played it most often the way Eberflus preferred and with the way the roster was built.

This might require something different from the roster if they're planning to go man-to-man heavy in coverage. They do have two cornerbacks starting who can do it, and nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon was among the highest-rated in man-to-man coverage in the league.

Sure, they have Jaylon Johnson and he'll play pretty much anything they ask effectively. He'd relish the chance to go man-to-man defense and blanket a top receiver, and often did when they let him cover the top opposing receiver man-up.

Tyrique Stevenson was drafted into a zone scheme but scouts across the board noted his physicality coming into the league and his man-to-man coverage ability was noted.

It didn't seem this way last year, when he and Saints cornerback Paulsen Adebo had the highest rate of being targeted in man-to-man coverage in the league. They had to target Stevenson or else challenge Johnson.

Still, Stevenson had shown the ability to play man-to-man in his rookie year and in college.

It's after this where the Bears' defense could find it is lacking ideal cornerbacks to play in Dennis Allen's new scheme.

Terell Smith was lauded often by the coaching staff for his skills to the point where it was almost comical. They kept sticking with Stevenson, though, even when he went through issues with the Hail Mary pass and other mistake. Obviously they think Smith isn't as good at something or he would have been starting.

Smith's skills seemed better suited to zone coverage and this can be expected from all of their backups because they were in zone so often.

When you're looking for players to fill the roster for depth, the best you can hope for is players who fit the basic requirements and that was playing their defense of major emphasis, zones.

The Bears are going to need to bring in a few cornerbacks who can play man-to-man defense better as depth pieces, or players like Smith, Jaylon Jones, Josh Blackwell and Reddy Steward are going to need to show they can handle man-to-man coverage better.

This shouldn't affect their safety position as much because even when they played less man-to-man, they were in single-high safety coverage more often than the Saints were, 54.7% to 53.7%.

The Bears lack a pick in Round 4 and Day 3 would start for them in Round 5.

The problem with most position rankings in draft analysis at this point is not as many go deep into the talent pool with rankings, but Drafttek.com has always rated players well beyond those draftable.

Here's who the Bears could find available if they're looking at cornerbacks at the back of the 2025 NFL Draft.

  • Nohl Williams, California
  • Quincy Riley, Louisville
  • Upton Stout, Western Kentucky
  • Dorian Strong Virginia Tech
  • Jermari Harris, Iowa
  • Jordan Hancock, Ohio State
  • Zy Alexander, LSU
  • Caleb Ransaw, Tulane
  • Jason Marshall, Florida
  • O'Donnell Fortune, South Carolina
  • Brandon Adams, Central Florida
  • Mello Dotson, Kansas
  • Bilhal Kone, Western Michigan
  • Tommi Hill, Nebraska

There are always veteran backup cornerbacks available in free agency at a lower end of the pay scale, and they'd be looking for those with scheme experience or the ability to play man-to-man.

  • Ifeatu Melifonwu, Lions (safety/corner)
  • Avonte Maddox, Eagles
  • Adoree Jackson Giants 
  • Tavierre Thomas, Buccaneers
  • Kindle Vildor, Lions
  • Noah Igbinognene, Commanders
  • Eli Apple, Chargers
  • Fabian Moreau, Vikings
  • Rock Ya-Sin, 49ers
  • Michael Ford, Browns

The need exists at safety, but not necessarily because of the scheme. The sense of urgency should be greater at safety because Jaquan Brisker’s health can’t be assumed and Kevin Byard is in his 30s.

While they have adequate backups in Elijah Hicks and Jonathan Owens, it’s potential starting safeties where they need to look in the draft.  

In free agency the perfect fit might be to find a scheme-familiar safety for short term who can help transition to the new defense.

An obvious place to look among free agents for help could be the Honeybadger, Tyrann Mathieu, who has played the last three years in Allen’s scheme. Of course, the price would need to be friendly in this case.

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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.