Probably one of the most prestigious hires head coach Matt Eberflus made when he took over was bringing in Tyke Tolbert to run the wide receiver room. This man has coached the position since back in 2003. During that time, he influenced the careers of several stars, including Anquan Boldin, Stevie Johnson, Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, and Emmanuel Sanders. This man has a mile-long track record and a Super Bowl ring to back it up.
He might be entering one of his biggest challenges yet with the Chicago Bears. Upon arrival, the team’s only notable name at wide receiver was Darnell Mooney. Since then, they added Byron Pringle via free agency and Velus Jones Jr. as a 3rd round pick in the draft. If anybody thinks this is discouraging Tolbert, they merely need to watch him work during rookie minicamps. Suffice it to say the man has plenty of power in his voice.
It seems pretty clear Tolbert likes what he sees so far.
Jones comes in with plenty of critics after the Bears took him in the 3rd round over what many felt were more established receivers. They think he’s more of a gadget-type player than a traditional pass-catcher. GM Ryan Poles doesn’t believe that’s a fair assessment, believing the Tennessee standout made considerable strides as a route-runner in 2021. That is something his new coach hopes to build on.
Tyke Tolbert is no stranger to inheriting underdogs. Johnson was a 7th round pick in Buffalo. Decker was a 3rd round pick in Denver. Darius Slayton had considerable success in New York as a 5th round pick. History says that if a player has talent, he’ll be able to mold them into something presentable. That might be why the Bears were more willing to wait on addressing receiver in the draft until later. They had faith Tolbert would be able to maximize whoever they got.
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