Not a lot went right for the Chicago Bears in 2016. Injuries completely infected the roster from top to bottom. The team finished 3-13, the franchises’ worst record ever in a 16-game season. To top it off every quarterback who started a game for them is now gone. It seems the only things they have to feel good about are Jordan Howard and a promising, young Bears defense.
In fact it’s the latter that seems to be generating some buzz around the NFL. Andy Benoit and Gary Gramling of the MMQB got on their most recent podcast to discuss 10 things happening in the league. Their final topic was none other than the Bears. Benoit then actually went out of his way to drop an interesting nugget.
Other NFL coaches are big believers in the Bears defense
Benoit has studied the Bears 2016 season in-depth over the past several weeks. He believes they’re a young team still trying to discover an identity but isn’t afraid to believe they are poised for a playoff push in the near future. The catalyst will be that defense. The unit showed flashes of brilliance at times with a dynamic pass rush led by Leonard Floyd, Pernell McPhee and Akiem Hicks.
Injuries played their part is masking what they could really be. Not to mention to fact they still have work to do on the secondary. However, there apparently is a growing chorus around the league that this group may be one of the 10 best in football.
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“That’s a Good Defense there in Chicago. multiple defensive coaches around the nfl have told me that’s one of the league’s 10 best defenses without question and it’s a better defense on paper now than it was a year ago.”
One of the biggest reasons cited for such optimism is the fact the team has been able to build within the system of coordinator Vic Fangio for the past couple years. Players are getting used to the nuances of it, and thus will begin to think less and play faster. A frightening concept considering how much speed they’ve added lately.
Veteran corners like Prince Amukamara and Marcus Cooper join the fray. They’ll give the secondary a bit more stability. Not to mention the hopeful progression of promising rookies like Floyd, Jonathan Bullard, Nick Kwiatkoski, Cre’Von LeBlanc and Deon Bush. If GM Ryan Pace can stack another strong draft on top of this group at the end of April, thing could get interesting real fast in Chicago.
