Defensive Fortifications for Bears
The Bears entered the offseason with the worst pass rush in football.
To go with this, they were next to last against the run.
Solving two problems at once became the goal for GM Ryan Poles on Day 2 of the NFL Draft as they added defensive tackles Gervon Dexter at No. 53 in Round 2 of Florida and Zacch Pickens of South Carolina at No. 64 in Round 3.
"That's one space we wanted to get better, we want to be more stout," Poles said. "But at the same time in this defense you've got to be able to run, and both those guys can do that. So made some good progress today."
They had already added Andrew Billings at the nose and he's 323 pounds, and defensive tackle Justin Jones returns as well.
"We want to take a big step there," Poles said. "Weve done that in free agency and then we've done that in the draft too."
Poles wasn't all about the front seven, as he also drafted Miami cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who could play slot or outside cornerback.
Poles liked Stevenson enough that he gave up the 136th pick to start Round 5 to move up from 61 to 56 and select the former Georgia cornerback.
"So we get a corner who can come in and compete for a spot on the outside and then you get those big guys inside to really be in the heavy rotation with (Andrew) Billings and Justin (Jones), who will be really good leaders for those guys too, be able to show them the way.
"In this league, in terms of the defensive line, you've got to have really two waves. So we've been able to start that inside. They're multipliers. They punch the pocket, they dent the pocket. That makes it a shorter edge for the outside guys. In the run game, they're tougher to move. That allows your linebackers to flow and run even better. They multiple and help everybody."
The defensive tackles had to be a particular type, and not just heavy space eaters.
"Yeah, we're looking for guys who are big, long and can run and are interchangeable, nose, three-technique," Poles said.
He referred to both as hybrids.
"You get kinda chipped up through the season, so you want guys that can fit in different spots," Poles said. "Both of these guys have the ability to do that, so it allows us to be versatile and deep for the entire season."
Dexter was a pick that met with some head-scratching elsewhere, while Pickens was critical of his own production, but Poles is convinced about both. The fact Dexter was a basketball player only until his junior year of his school probably means he's still learning.
"Yeah, so if you go all the way back to his freshman year, he was raw," Poles said. "He was a basketball player that started playing football just a couple years ago, so if you go back and watch his freshman tape, he's out there just kind of throwing people around. He doesn't really feel pressure yet and understand block recognition and all that.
"And then the next year it gets even better in terms of the feel, and then this year, it got even better. The other thing we look at, too, is the play time for these big guys. You know, when they start hitting in the 60, 70 percent, it's hard to be full throttle all the time, so you're going to see some up and down, so that’s where that whole grading the flashes kind of comes from because at this level, you’d like to get a nice little rotation with those guys so they stay fresh and explosive."
The plan for Stevenson now is to put him at outside cornerback and let him compete with Kindle Vildor. Kyler Gordon would remain at slot cornerback.
"I think his best trait is to play outside, which is cool because I think Kyler is really good inside, as well," Poles said. "The nice thing is they both have the flexibility to do both, because we all know there are injuries and guys who can do both are valuable."
It didn't bother Poles that Stevenson went to Georgia first and then left for Miami after two years. Stevenson explained part of it as failing to handle the competition for playing time well at Georgia. The fact Stevenson admitted this himself was a plus.
"I love that, and with that, that was during COVID as well, I believe, and part of it was to go back to Miami to help his family and you start to understand what his family means to him and what being back there and supporting everybody means to him," Poles said. "To me, that's a grown man trying to take care of his business. He's got priorities and I thought that was good."
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
