2020 Defensive Situation

DL

   One of the best fronts of the league, the Bears can try to bolster their Dline by getting some insurance players if Akiem Hicks or Eddie Goldman get hurt (knock on wood). Bilal Nichols is still on evaluation and the only way he gets debunked from the starting unit is if he gets in a slump or the Bears get some kind of pro bowl player on the roster. There is really no need to get Roy Robertson-Harris back if his price is too high, it might benefit the Bears more if they let him go to pile up a possible compensatory pick for next year's draft.

   Free agency has some intriguing picks but all of them will probably demand a big contract that the Bears can use elsewhere.

LB

   This position is where it gets interesting, Ryan Pace has several options he can take to strengthen this area, what there is no question is that the pass rush at the EDGE need to improve, this is not a total hit on Leonard Floyd who I think is a very good player but he is not winning in the sack department by taking advantage of the attention placed on Khalil Mack by opposing offenses. I wouldn't blame Pace for sticking with Floyd but he needs to get the QB down more than he has in his career or Chuck Pagano has to shake things up for someone else to do the dirty work and let's face it, behind Floyd there is a big gap in talent so there is need here, it could be filled at FA with guys like Kyler Fackrell or Jordan Jenkins but a draft pick would be best. MLB has even more options, I like the one they keep Danny Trevathan and Kevin Pierre-Louis and let go Nick Kwiatkoski. Funny I prefer to let the young one go after a great year to keep the old guys on the roster, but Kwiatkowski’s emergence feels a bit fishy, he was a guy who couldn't cover for his life but was a good run stuffer, all of a sudden he isn't a liability in coverage and blitzer like a maniac? I don't buy it, let him get a starting job elsewhere and elevate the chance for a compensatory draft pick for 2021. Trevathan can still play and Pierre-Louis was a nice surprise, Roquan Smith should get better this year. I wouldn't bother searching for someone on FA to fill the gaps.

CB

   With Prince Amukamara gone, its Kevin Toliver’s job to lose against anyone Ryan Pace brings to compete for the spot which he needs to do. Kyle Fuller is set on the other side and the nickel can improve but Buster Skrine did his part very well. These two seem to be at their prime age and could be declining any moment in the next couple of years, there is no rush in finding replacements for this position but it’s a though position to fill so it’s a good idea to bring in one or two rookies to evaluate. There is a lot of options for the slot on FA, Kendall Fuller is a nice player that can be brought in to play with his brother but for be CB2 position maybe Logan Ryan is a nice veteran presence who has solid play that can come cheap.

S

   Eddie Jackson needs a new partner, the HaHa Clinton-Dix experiment wasn’t a complete failure but didn’t have the results I expected, interceptions went way down compared to the previous season probably because the pass rush wasn’t all there so there weren’t many opportunities to exploit the two ball hawking FSs on the field, it didn’t help pulling Jackson to the line of scrimmage on some plays to help stop the run, he need to be downfield reading the defense at all time, so it’s very likely that the Bears go back to the normal formula of a pounding SS. Deon Bush is still an option but he needs to improve on coverage, it looks like there are some nice candidates on this draft for the Bears to consider with their mid round picks, as for FA there are guys like Tony Jefferson, Reshad Jones or Tavon Wilson that could be nice options at the right price.

ST

   Pat O'Donnell and whoever is the snapper will likely stay put, they just need to beat the competition like every year. Eddie Pineiro on the other hand needs to be tested with fire once again, bringing in a veteran and a rookie and not let him feel comfortable until he gets to the final 53 man roster, then Matt Nagy can loosen up on him a bit.