The Chicago Bears showed how much they liked Trevis Gipson right from the start. They'd been watching him since the East-West Shrine Game and apparently were sold on him after the Senior Bowl. This is why they willingly traded a future 4th round pick to the division rival Minnesota Vikings for the rights to draft the Tulsa defensive end. Fans were certainly interested by the move, but was it really worth getting excited about a 5th round pick?
It's not like the guy set the world on fire after all. Gipson was an average player until his final season when he broke out for eight sacks and 15 tackles for a loss. Solid but not spectacular. Yet the Bears talk about him as if he's much better than what the numbers say. Is that true? Actually yes. At least Gipson's coaches say so.
His own position coach, interviewed by Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic, admitted that the kid probably would've gone much earlier in the draft had the team not played him out of his natural position for his entire college run.
“Our defensive scheme is not really beneficial to him and his skill set,” said Jermial Ashley, Gipson’s position coach at Tulsa, with a laugh. “It kinda goes to show you what type of kid and what type of person he is. We asked him to do something and he did it to the best of his ability.”
Ashley is the defensive line coach at Tulsa, and Gipson played the end spot in their 3-3-5 defense.
Trevis Gipson proved he was a good soldier and made the most of it
It speaks to who Gipson is that he willingly accepted that role and managed to find his way to the NFL anyway. Clearly he has the talent and drive to have success. Despite having the natural athleticism and measurements of an edge rusher, he often played more inside on the defensive front. Sometimes only rushing with two other guys. So his opportunities to get sacks were considerably fewer than normal. However, his coach believes this helped show just how good he actually is.
“Being a D-line coach, the biggest thing is when you stick edge guys in the middle, the one thing that everyone wants to know is, will he stick his nose in there and fight?” Ashley said. “For me, that’s the question that’s answered with the way he played. You know you can put him out there and he’s gonna go 110 miles per hour and give you everything he’s got.”
If what he says is true, then the Bears may have indeed gotten a steal. Gipson might've gone much sooner in the draft had he been employed in a scheme that catered more to his talents. Not that the Bears are complaining. They feel they have somebody who can easily outplay his draft position if given a little time.
