Robert Quinn is one of the best pass rushers of his generation. It’s easy to forget the guy has 82.5 sacks in his career and only just turned 31. Part of that success comes from having high personal standards. Quinn is a quarterback hunter. So when he doesn’t produce, nobody is more frustrated than him. So one can only imagine how he felt during his first season in Chicago.
Prior to 2020, Quinn’s lowest sack total was four. That came in 2016 when he missed seven games due to injuries. So when he notched just two sacks last year despite missing only one? It was undoubtedly a humiliation. Especially after signing for $70 million and coming off a year he had 11.5 sacks in Dallas. People are already calling him one of the worst signings in Bears free agency history.
A statement the man himself couldn’t really argue with.
“I’ll be honest: Just a terrible year for me, personally,” Quinn said.
When a reporter double-checked to make sure he heard Quinn correctly, the 11th year pro made it perfectly clear: “No, it was a bad year. Yeah. Unless you like those types of stats.”
Give it to the man. At least he’s not in denial about his situation. Rest assured that his future not only in Chicago but in general rides on this upcoming season. Many are starting to think he’s out of gas. A once-great pass rusher who can no longer stay healthy and lost his motivation the moment he got his last big payday. It’s safe to say he has a lot to prove.
The good news is Quinn seems to recognize that. Word quickly filtered out from Bears training camp that the outside linebacker arrived in great shape. Much better than the last offseason. Brief highlight snippets seem to back that up. He looked quicker and more nimble. He also didn’t waste time taking out his frustrations on the offense, getting multiple pressures on the quarterback including a “sack.”
* For the Bears defense, Eddie Goldman and Robert Quinn had noticeable days of practice.
* The longer the practice went, the more it felt like one of those days where coaches say that the defense is typically ahead of the offense at this point in camp.
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) July 29, 2021
An angry Robert Quinn is good for the Bears
Chicago will need the pass rush to produce in 2021. Their secondary is undergoing a transition following the exits of Kyle Fuller and Buster Skrine. So the coverage might not be as strong as it was the past couple of years. That means Quinn, Khalil Mack, Akiem Hicks, and Bilal Nichols must get to the quarterback more. Having Eddie Goldman back will be a key factor in all of this.
Not only will the nose tackle shore up the run defense, which was leaky last season. He’ll also command double teams, meaning more single blocks for everybody else. If Robert Quinn is even modestly healthy, then single blocks won’t be enough to keep him off the quarterback for 60 minutes. Throw in the fact he appears more than a little ornery about last season? It’s a safe assumption there will be some trampled offensive tackles in his wake.
He doesn’t need to be phenomenal, although that would be most welcome.
Quinn only has to be solid. Around 7-8 sacks in 2021 is a nice rebound and would make life so much easier for Mack who has endured double and triple teams since he arrived. This will be a storyline that could make or break the Bears defense this season. It will be interesting to see how new coordinator Sean Desai decides to utilize him.