The Chicago Bears defense played arguably its best game of the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday. That may sound puzzling since they allowed 24 points. It’s not like they pitched a shutout. However, context is always key. They allowed just 24 points despite the offense turning it over 5 times on the night. Tampa Bay had 14 offensive drives on the night. That works out to a mere 1.71 points per drive. Based on current NFL standings, that is the 6th-best rate in the league for any defense. Hidden beneath all of that was what Austin Booker did.
Most of the attention in that game was on Jeffery Simmons. Fans are enamored with the star defensive tackle following the trade to acquire him. That is understandable. He was a menace all night. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson also drew praise for his game-altering pick-six. Flying beneath the radar was Booker, who finished with 5 pressures and a sack. Mind you, this wasn’t just him getting some free shots at the QB via stunts or well-timed blitzes.
Often he went toe-to-toe with Buccaneers Pro Bowl left tackle Tristan Wirfs and gave him the business.
Austin Booker has become a master of efficiency.
Making a great player like Wirfs look overmatched multiple times in a game is no small feat. It is further proof of how much Booker has evolved in the past year. His motor was always great. Now he’s started marrying it with a bevy of pass rush moves, from his long-arm bull rush to the quick shoulder dips and so on. He has 5 sacks this season, which is already more than the 4.5 he had in 2025, and there are still 8 games left to play. Yet none of that is the craziest part. It is how he’s managed to do it without full-time reps.
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Last season, Austin Booker logged 30 or more pass rush attempts in a game 10 times in 12 games. This season, he has done it only twice. On Sunday against Tampa Bay, he only rushed 29 times. He still led the team in pressures. Yet that still isn’t the full story. While everybody talks about the pass rush, Booker has quietly become one of the NFL’s best run defenders. Among all NFL edge defenders who’ve logged at least 20% of the snaps this season, he has the second-highest run-stop percentage in the league at 13%, according to PFF.
He has 9 stops for no gain or a loss
The 2024 draft class is becoming something special for the Bears.
Caleb Williams is already a star. He’s everything the Bears could’ve hoped for at quarterback. Rome Odunze is finally improving his consistency at wide receiver after two up-and-down seasons. Tory Taylor is having his best season as a punter. Yet the best story is Booker. Remember, the Bears had no picks left when day three of that draft began. General manager Ryan Poles had to engineer a trade that got him back into the draft just so he’d have the chance to draft Booker. It was a gamble, but one the team felt was worth it.
Now he is their most productive edge rusher and is improving at a rate that should have other teams terrified. It was one thing when he ran stunts to get pressures or beat a backup tackle for a sack. When a guy starts finding ways past one of the NFL’s best left tackles, it is time to stand up and pay attention. Despite the lack of fanfare, it certainly looks as if Booker has finally arrived.
