Most of the focus by Chicago Bears fans regarding roster discussions is on offense. That is natural since it’s one of the worst in the NFL. Changes feel necessary when a unit performs so poorly. It appears head coach Matt Eberflus got the memo as Sam Mustipher is officially benched at center. That said, the offense doesn’t hold a monopoly on this issue. There are some lingering question marks on the defensive side as well.
None are more irritating than Al-Quadin Muhammad. Chicago signed the veteran defensive end in free agency to rejoin Eberflus. The two worked together for years in Indianapolis. Undoubtedly, the coach hoped Muhammad could become a nice presence for their new 4-3 alignment. That has not been the case. Through six games, he has one sack. By contrast, rookie Dominique Robinson has 1.5 on fewer snaps. Where it really stands out is true pass situations. Robinson has a win percentage of 14.8 with four pressures in 32 snaps. Muhammad is 3% with one pressure in 34 snaps.
The Chicago Bears need more pass rush juice.
They’ve had a hard time getting heat on the quarterback for weeks. Robert Quinn looks nothing like the player he was last year. Trevis Gipson is their most efficient rusher with 14 pressures and two sacks, but even he’s getting fewer reps than Muhammad. The only viable reason the coaches can offer for this decision is he might be their best run-stopping defensive end. Yet even that is questionable since Robinson has the same number of stops for no gain (5) and only three fewer tackles despite playing half the number of snaps.
From an outside point of view, it’s hard not to see this as coach favoritism. Eberflus spent years developing Muhammad. He may want to give his understudy a serious chance to build on his success with the Colts. Yet that isn’t his primary responsibility. His responsibility is to play the best players. Right now, that is Robinson. The Chicago Bears defense has already embraced a youth movement. You might as well go all the way.
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