The Chicago Bears‘ pass rush was tough to watch at times last season. While Montez Sweat did have 10 sacks, he was pretty much the lone bright spot. Grady Jarrett disappointed. Austin Booker missed half the season with a knee injury. Dayo Odeyingbo tore his Achilles and wasn’t that good even before it happened. The team finished with just 30 sacks in 2025. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen clearly lacked that definitive difference-making rush presence. It is why fans were so baffled that the Bears didn’t make a more concerted effort to find one in the offseason.
Apparently, it’s because they didn’t have to. Almost out of nowhere, the Bears have 7 sacks and 52 total pressures through the first 3 games of the season. How is that possible? The personnel didn’t change much. It’s still almost the exact same lineup. The only notable difference is that Gervon Dexter is no longer there. It turns out the answer is one that Allen had been working towards since last season.
The original plan was simple: have Sweat and Booker on the edges, with Odeyingbo moving inside on passing plays. Chicago never used it last season because of injuries. Allen finally got to deploy it to start 2026. It has produced 4 sacks in 3 games.
Dennis Allen apparently knew what he was doing.
The Bears’ defensive coordinator took a lot of grief last season for failing to find a solution to the problem. It’s easy to say in the moment. In reality, Allen was dealt a tough hand. Two of the three critical pieces to his plan suffered massive injury setbacks. Unless you have an All-World star like a Myles Garrett or Maxx Crosby, it is very difficult to generate a consistent pass rush unless you have a solid rotation of good players. The 2025 Bears never did. Sweat stayed healthy, but the other pieces didn’t.
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Dennis Allen truly believed that if he could get those three guys on the field together at the same time, it would yield the desired results. He was willing to wager on it by shifting valuable team resources to other key positions, such as safety and cornerback. That decision may have helped transform one of the NFL’s worst units into one of the best. Sweat, Booker, and Odeyingbo have combined for 5 sacks and 25 pressures. Meanwhile, rookies Dillon Thieneman and Malik Muhammad each have an interception.
This defense isn’t great, but it doesn’t need to be.
The goal was never to reach elite status this season. Chicago knew they didn’t have the resources to make it happen. What they had to do was turn into something solid. Anywhere between 12th and 17th in ranking would be a major step up. This offense is so good at piling up points that allowing around 20-23 points per game stood a great chance of getting you a victory. Through three games, this defense is allowing 17.66 points per game. They are 2-1 and right in the thick of the NFC North race.
This entire situation should remind you that Allen is not ignorant. Football can’t just be about the talent you have. You need a good plan on how to use that talent. He understood almost immediately that the Bears lacked a true star up front. His job was to find a solution that could make the pass rush effective anyway. He had one in mind from the start. Injuries just got in the way.
All he asked of people going into this year was that they trust the plan. He might be owed an apology after what has happened over the first three weeks.
