Of all the training camp storylines that sound so good in August, the notion that the Bears’ first-year coordinator will be an upgrade and boost a stagnant defense has legs as much as any of them.
The Bears’ offensive line issues threaten to derail every potential upgrade the Bears are hoping for on offense before the season even starts.
Darnell Mooney’s giant leap, Cole Kmet’s breakout season and David Montgomery reaching the next level aren’t likely to happen if Teven Jenkins, James Daniels and Germain Ifedi are out. Andy Dalton looks like an upgrade over Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles in the early going of training camp — but even that upgrade could be muted, if not imperceptible, if the Bears have similar line issues to last season.
That said, even with an unusual spate of injuries that does not bode well at this point, there is one training camp narrative that seems likely to have legs — the idea that first-year defensive coordinator Sean Desai will provide a boost for a once elite defense that lost its bite in two seasons under Chuck Pagano.
That doesn’t mean the Bears will return to their dominant 2018 form under Vic Fangio — even Fangio would have been challenged to maintain that level of destruction had he not left to take the Broncos’ head coaching job. But Desai’s influence, which seems to have breathed new life into this defense, still has a chance to increase the takeaways and sacks it was missing under Pagano.
Buying training camp storylines is an occupational hazard of covering the NFL. In 2019, many of us thought Mitch Trubisky and the Bears’ offense was struggling in training camp because it was going against a stellar defense coming off a dominant season. As it turned out, it actually was because it wasn’t very good.
Anthony Miller’s maturity, Ted Ginn’s speed at 35 and Germain Ifedi being better at his natural position of guard didn’t quite work out. The “best shape of his life” storyline — a training-camp staple — is hit-and-miss. It worked for linebacker Roquan Smith last year. Will it work out as well with center Sam Mustipher? We’ll see.
We’ve only had a cursory look at the Bears so far — most practices in shorts, key players like Eddie Jackson and Eddie Goldman missing, no outside competition yet. But Desai’s approach as a young, Ivy League-educated guy providing a fresh voice with new ideas — as well as being a coach who came of age under Fangio and knows the strengths and weaknesses of these players — is a clear winner as the best training camp narrative of 2021.
2. Matt Nagy’s revelation that he would not let Desai leave the Bears’ staff when Fangio was hired in Denver would be an interesting twist if Desai revitalizes the defense.
At this point, it appears Nagy erred by letting outside linebackers coach Brandon Staley go with Fangio. Staley became the Rams’ defensive coordinator in 2019 and turned that defense into a juggernaut — from 17th to first in the NFL in points allowed and from 13th to first in yards allowed. More pointedly, Leonard Floyd had 10.5 sacks in Staley’s defense — more than triple the three sacks Floyd had under Pagano (and more than double the four sacks Floyd had under Fangio in 2018).
Staley parlayed that success into the Chargers’ head coaching job and then hired highly regarded Bears defensive line coach Jay Rodgers — considered a significant position-coach loss for the Bears.
Nagy made the unusual move of prioritizing the quality control coach. It could turn out he knew what he was doing all along.
3. Senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine figures into the Desai equation as well. The impact of a senior analyst who provides another set of eyes is sometimes dubious — see Childress, Brad — but Pettine’s experience supporting a rookie coordinator seems like a workable dynamic.
Pettine, a former Browns head coach, was let go in Green Bay because of playoff failures, including a miscommunication with Matt LaFleur that led to Tom Brady’s 39-yard touchdown pass to Scotty Miller at the end of the first half in a 31-26 loss in the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau Field. But Pettine’s defenses in general were pretty good and he often won the battle on Sunday — including games against Nagy and the Bears.
The Packers were 13th in points allowed last season, but ninth in yards allowed. It remains to be seen if their regular-season defense will be better under new coordinator Joe Barry. Between Desai and Barry, it’ll be interesting to see which team got the better upgrade.
4. Newcomer Alec Ogletree seems to know Matt Nagy’s offense better than many of the offensive players do. The veteran linebacker, a seven-year NFL starter with the Rams and Giants, had six interceptions in his first four practices with the Bears last week after being signed on Wednesday.
With the Giants, Ogletree had two interceptions against Chase Daniel and the Bears in 2018 — including a pick-6 on the second play from scrimmage in a 30-27 Giants overtime victory — and he intercepted Mitch Trubisky in the end zone in the Bears’ 19-14 victory in 2019. So Ogletree has nine interceptions in six days against Nagy’s offense.
5. Rookie left tackle Teven Jenkins’ back injury is looking more and more ominous with every practice he misses. The Bears have given no specifics on the injury, have not given any updates and don’t have a timetable.
Jenkins did not play in Oklahoma State’s final four games last season after suffering a hip injury against Oklahoma and coach Mike Gundy noted that Jenkins was dealing with back pain at the time he opted out.
It’s reminiscent of the ill-fated rookie season of offensive tackle Chris Williams, the Bears’ first-round draft pick in 2008 who, suffered “back spasms” during individual drills on the first day of practice. He ended up having surgery for a herniated disc, didn’t return until Week 9 and only played sparingly on offense as a rookie. Williams had played through a herniated disc at Vanderbilt, but the Bears were not concerned it would be an issue — until it was.
6. If Jenkins remains out, fellow rookie Larry Borom could battle newly activated Elijah Wilkinson for the start at left tackle whenever Borom returns from concussion protocol. Borom, a fifth-round draft pick (“We had second- and third-round grades on Larry Borom,” Nagy said.) impressed the coaching staff in a brief stint with the first team at left tackle before suffering the concussion — good enough to consider him a contender for the starting job, and not just by attrition.
“He’s a contender because of what he did [in practice],” offensive line coach Juan Castillo said. “He got in there with the first team and did a great job against a good [defense]. We’re very fortunate to go against a defensive line we’re going against.
“He’s been doing a good job on the right side, too. He went [to the left side] and did a really good job, so that gives me confidence that he’s in a dogfight for that left tackle position.”
7. It remains to be seen if rookie Justin Fields develops into the elite level quarterback who gets first-round production out of mid-round receivers. But keep an eye on Rodney Adams, a 2017 fifth-round pick by the Vikings out of South Florida who has developed an early connection with Fields on the second-team offense — as well as making plays for Andy Dalton.
The 6-1, 189-pound Adams spent last season on the Bears’ practice squad.
8. Defensive tackle Angelo Blackson looks like an under-the-radar offseason acquisition that will pay dividends.
Blackson had a dominant stretch in a live drill last week — two safeties and a pressure that led to another safety. And even though it was against an overmatched second-team offensive line, Blackson’s NFL resume indicates he’ll be effective when the bell rings. He had 2.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits and four tackles-for-loss in 16 games (nine starts) with the Cardinals last season.
9. Josh McCown Ex-Bears Player of the Week: Steelers offensive lineman Rashaad Coward started at right guard in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday could be in a battle for the full-time starting job with Kevin Dotson, who just returned from an injury.
“His level of maturity is showing and that’s an asset to him and us,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters.
10. Bear-ometer: 8-9 — at Rams (L); vs. Bengals (W); at Browns (L); vs. Lions (W); at Raiders (L); vs. Packers (L); at Buccaneers (L); vs. 49ers (L); at Steelers (L); vs. Ravens (L); at Lions (L); vs. Cardinals (W); at Packers (W); vs. Vikings (W); at Seahawks (W); vs. Giants (W); at Vikings (W).
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