The Chicago Bears aren’t usually in the habit of trading productive players unless they’re about to enter a full rebuild. That is why they unloaded guys like Khalil Mack and Roquan Smith a few years ago. Outside of that, you rarely see them deal players to other teams unless the player is a locker-room distraction. That is what made Gervon Dexter a surprise. The defensive tackle is only 24, had 6 sacks last season, and by all accounts was a superb teammate. You’d be hard-pressed to find anybody with a bad word to say about him.
Why then? Why deal such a player right before the season begins? Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune asked around the league for answers. The most consistent answer that came back was that the new coaching staff, led by Dennis Allen, didn’t like Dexter’s foot speed and get-off. He wanted more explosive guys on the interior. The Bears flipped him to Atlanta for cornerback Clark Phillips and a 5th round pick. Dexter has been disruptive through the first month of the season, resulting in the Falcons handing him a $78 million extension. Did the Bears make a mistake?
People around the NFL weighed in on Gervon Dexter.
So how could Dexter be such a poor fit in Dennis Allen’s scheme and a coveted guy for Falcons coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who blends in some 3-4 fronts? Ulbrich cited Dexter’s foot speed as something that stood out last month when talking to Atlanta media. He didn’t always have impressive get-off times with the Bears.
“Our scouts did not like him,” said an assistant general manager for another team. “One of us is missing the mark bad here. I’m going to have to watch him. I was caught off guard because those kinds of things don’t fly under the radar.”
“We had backup grades on him previously,” a pro personnel director said. “Maybe he’s gotten better, but I think that’s an overpay.”
The Bears don’t seem to regret it.
The big fear upon trading Dexter was that the team would lose what little interior pass rush they had. None of their options performed well last season, including pricey free agent Grady Jarrett. While the Bears did spend on defensive tackle this offseason, it was mostly on second-tier options like Neville Gallimore, Kentavius Street, and James Lynch. However, Allen and the coaches already had a plan. It involved a strategy they’d wanted to use in 2025 but couldn’t because of injuries.
It involved moving defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo inside on passing downs with Montez Sweat and Austin Booker on the edges. Odeyingbo had better foot speed than Gervon Dexter and combined it with excellent length and power. The results are hard to argue. Odeyingbo has 3 sacks and 3 QB hits in the first 4 games of the season. Chicago already has 10 sacks as a team, 1/3 of the 30 they had all of last season with Dexter in the lineup. So yes, while his playing great might make the trade look bad, the truth is it wasn’t.
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This was a win-win deal.
Dexter got to join a team that had a plan for him and the money to pay. That is something the Bears couldn’t really offer. Their cap situation was never strong enough to consider an extension anywhere close to what he got from Atlanta. This way, he gets his money while they get some draft capital and save some cap space for other potential moves elsewhere. The defensive line doesn’t seem to miss him much at all. It is one of those times where it feels like addition by subtraction.
It is unfortunate Dexter didn’t morph into the true game-changer the team was hoping for when drafting him in the 2nd round. He never quite fulfilled his full potential. Still, he’s become a quality NFL defensive lineman with a long career ahead of him. The Bears will see him on the other side of the line of scrimmage next week. No doubt he’ll be motivated for that one.
