The Chicago Bears, for the second year in a row, made a significant trade on the day of the NFL's trade deadline as they acquired defensive end Montez Sweat from the Washington Commanders. Tuesday's trade gives Chicago a top-tier pass rusher, and in return, the team sends a 2024 second-round draft selection to Washington. With one of the best defensive linemen in the league added to a struggling Bears' defense, Matt Eberflus may finally have the needed piece to turn his defense around.
Sweat Provides Chicago's Defense with Much-Needed Proven Pass-Rush Depth
Chicago's defensive unit has had a rollercoaster ride of a season in 2023 as they have struggled to find consistency, especially when defending against the pass. Although the Bears' rushing defense is top-ten in the league, the unit is also one of the worst in pass defense. Through eight games this season, Chicago has allowed three quarterbacks to pass for over three hundred yards this year and would have allowed a fourth against Justin Herbert and the Chargers if not for a late-game fumble recovery.
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There are multiple reasons for Chicago's issues with their pass defense, as most of the games this season have been played without the season-opening starting secondary. Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Eddie Jackson, and Jaquan Brisker all have missed games this year due to injuries and have only played four quarters together. Additionally, the Bear's defense is one of the league's worst units in generating pass rush pressure on opposing quarterbacks, as the team has only ten sacks.
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With Eberflus's Cover-2 defensive scheme, for the defense to work at its fullest potential, pass-rush pressure must come from the defensive line. Through the first eight games of the 2023 season, only six and a half sacks have come from Chicago's defensive line. Despite having Pro Bowl defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, who has averaged over eight sacks over the past five years, the Bears' defensive line has failed to consistently put pressure on the opposing quarterback.
After Ngakoue, Chicago lacks credible talent on the defensive line, which has resulted in opposing quarterbacks having more time in the pocket and finding open targets downfield. Against the Chargers this past Sunday, the Bears did not sack Herbert, which led to Los Angeles' quarterback extending several plays and converting on several third downs. Ngakoue has struggled because opposing offenses have made it a point to stop him, as there is no one else on Chicago's defensive line that poses a threat.
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The trade to acquire Sweat now gives Eberflus' defensive line two credible and proven pass-rushing defensive ends, which will force opposing offenses to have issues on who to focus more on when involving blocking assignments. Washington's former defensive end has averaged seven sacks per season during his five-year career. Additionally, Sweat has had a terrific start to 2023, as he has recorded six and a half sacks through eight games.
Last season, Chicago's defense struggled immensely because of a lack of a pass rush presence, as rookie Dominique Robinson and Al-Quadin Muhammad combined for less than three sacks, despite being the team's most-used defensive ends. The same issue occurred this season as free agent defensive end Demarcus Walker, who, despite having seven sacks with Tennessee last year, has only recorded one sack through eight games.
With the lack of a supporting cast, Ngakoue has faced more blocking, and no one on the defensive line has stepped up to take advantage of the lesser pass protection. Sweat's presence now gives the Bears multiple high-end pass-rushers that can collapse the pocket, force quarterbacks to hurry their throws, and potentially generate more turnovers, whether be interceptions or fumbles.
Sweat and Ngakoue Gives Chicago's Defense Multiple Proven Pass Rushers For The First Time Since 2021
Barring injuries, the Bears defense will have Sweat and Ngakoue as their starting defensive ends for the remainder of the year. It will mark the first time since 2021 that Chicago will have two pass-rushers who have had nine or more sacks at some point in their careers. In that season, the Bears had both All-Pro defensive end Robert Quinn and All-Pro linebacker Khalil Mack, who both recorded six sacks through the first half of the year.
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Quinn, in 2021, would break the Bears' team record for most sacks in a season with 18.5, as 12.5 of those came after Mack was lost to a foot injury in Week 7. Before the Week 7 injury, Chicago's defense was regarded as one of the best defenses in the league due to the consistent pass-rush pressure created by the two All-Pro Defensive players.
It could be interesting to see what pass-rushing production can be achieved with both Sweat and Ngakoue on the starting defensive line. If both can continue to create pressure on opposing offenses, Chicago's defense could dramatically improve and potentially allow for their secondary, once fully healthy, to generate more takeaways and fourth downs.
General manager Ryan Poles did the correct thing on Tuesday morning, and that was to acquire a premiere pass-rushing defensive end, one that was needed for the past two seasons in Chicago. Although Sweat is a free agent at the end of the season, Poles can either franchise tag or sign the defensive end to a contract-extension and avoid a costlier negotiation if talks took place during free agency. Sweat partner with Ngakoue has a chance to make the Bears' defense very intriguing in the second half of the 2023 season.
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