Bear Digest

Surprise High PFF Bears Grade Awarded to Roster Challenger

Pro Football Focus' grades for the Bears' 27-3 win over Cincinnati came out and among them was a surprise on the defensive side, but could it be one that signals a roster challenge?

Gene Chamberlain

Trayveon Williams of the Bengals is tackled in the second quarter Saturday during a 27-3 Bears preseason win.
Trayveon Williams of the Bengals is tackled in the second quarter Saturday during a 27-3 Bears preseason win. / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
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One surprise player stood atop the defensive grades when Pro Football Focus released its marks for Saturday's Bears 27-3 win over Cincinnati.

It's not a player many have pictured having a shot at making the roster, but stranger things have happened.

Backup free safety Tarvarius Moore rolled in with a high PFF grade of 82.2 and the mark wasn't for a small sampling of plays. He had 31 reps, among the most in the game for the Bears.

Could Moore actually be involved in a roster battle? He had a quiet start to camp and preseason. His first PFF grade was 59.0 against Buffalo so this was a huge step forward.

Moore is a former 49ers player who was drafted in the third round, then started 13 games and played in 61 over four seasons before injuries helped derail his career. His targets for making the roster look to be beating out Elijah Hicks and/or  Simone Biles' husband, Jonathan Owens.

The next closest defensive player and highest grade among all defensive starters was defensive tackle Gervon Dexter at 76.7. Dexter didn't make a big mark with splash plays but apparently executed his assignments better.

Some of the other defensive scores went as one might expect with Amen Ogbongbemiga scoring second best at 79.0 after his interception, a QB hit and tying for team high in tackles (6). Kyler Gordon (71.9) was all over the field in his return from injuries. Daniel Hardy (73.5) had good marks with his two sacks and DeMarcus Walker was solid at 69.9 even without splash plays. They saw Austin Booker as less impactful than in the Buffalo game but still holding his own at 67.2.

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On the offensive side, PFF's Ben Cooper agreed with BearsOnSI grades by saying Tyson Bagent had stepped forward and strengthened his grip on backup quarterback, as he was given the team's highest overall PFF mark at 93.3.

"It was the perfect complement to Caleb Williams' promising first-half drive, helping the Bears pull away for the win," Cooper wrote about Bagent's effort.


He was just ahead of pass receiver/return man Dante Pettis (90.9). Pettis caught three of Bagent's passes, including two TDs.

Williams had a 64.1 grade, down from his 73.5 against the Bills but probably to be expected after he had a slow start with three straight three-and-outs.

Much-maligned guard Nate Davis pulled down a respectable PFF mark of 65.1 but well short of the best starter's offensive line grade that right tackle Darnell Wright had. Davis had a key block on Williams' TD run.

The surprise offensive line grade belonged to guard Bill Murray, who has been touted several times by coaches for his efforts. He had a 76.7 and was in for 21 reps, just short of the total the starters had.

The worst offensive grade among starters was a 52.4 by Keenan Allen, but running back/receiver Velus Jones also struggled by PFF standards with a 53.3.

PFF says its grades are done the way NFL coaches grade film, although there is a good deal of subjectivity involved in this endeavor.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.