Shaw Local’s 2022 Bears report card: Defensive end

The Bears finished the 2022 season dead last in the NFL with 20 sacks. The Eagles, by comparison, led the league with 70.

The defense’s inability to create pressure up front put stress on the secondary and the linebackers. As a result, everyone struggled. The defense as a whole ranked last in the league, allowing 27.2 points per game, and ranked 29th in yardage, allowing 375.9 yards per game.

Bears general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus now have to figure out how to fix it. Finding pass rushers who can disrupt the quarterback is going to be arguably the biggest emphasis of the offseason.

But first, here’s a review of what went well and what didn’t during the 2022 season at the defensive end position.

Positives

There weren’t many bright spots. Particularly not when a team’s rookie safety leads it in sacks. Jaquan Brisker totaled a team-high four sacks. Third-year pro Trevis Gipson led all defensive ends with three sacks, and two of those came in one game. Gipson had seven sacks in 2021 and the hope was that he would continue on his upward trajectory. Instead, he finished the season with three sacks and four tackles for loss.

Rookie fifth-round draft pick Dominique Robinson started off hot. Coming out of Miami-Ohio, Robinson had only played the position for a few years after previously being a quarterback and a receiver during his first few years of college. He totaled 1.5 sacks in his rookie debut. Unfortunately, he never touched the quarterback again.

Given the dismal performance, the biggest positive of the season might have been flipping Robert Quinn to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick.

Negatives

After hot starts, Gipson and Robinson disappeared for the rest of the season. Robinson has to get stronger and develop a variety of moves. Free agent addition Al-Quadin Muhammad had only one sack on the season after totaling six a year ago with the Colts.

Losing Quinn did hurt, even though he had only one sack at the time. He was an emotional leader in the locker room and his presence drew attention from defenses like a gravitational force, opening up opportunities for others. The Bears had 12 of their 20 sacks during the seven games when Quinn was on the team. After trading him, they had just eight in 10 games.

As a whole, the group was ineffective. Eberflus’ 4-3 defensive scheme is at its best when it can create pressure while rushing only four defenders. For that to work, the defensive ends need to create pressure. Simply put, the Bears’ defensive ends were not effective in 2022.

Defining moments

1. Maybe the biggest moment of the season came six months before anybody played a snap. Poles traded Khalil Mack to the Chargers in exchange for a second-round pick and a sixth-round pick. It was the first major move of the Poles era and signaled that major changes were coming. Without that move, the Bears wouldn’t have a league-leading amount of cap space this offseason.

2. Quinn set the tone simply by showing up for training camp. He watched Poles initiate a rebuild by trading Mack and releasing Akiem Hicks, Danny Trevathan, Bilal Nichols and others from the defense. Nobody would’ve blamed Quinn if he stayed home and demanded a trade. Instead, he was a consummate pro who went about his work as if nothing had changed.

3. Trading Quinn was another big moment. It left teammates in shock and famously left linebacker Roquan Smith in tears at the media podium. Smith was traded just days later.

Contract status

Gipson and Muhammad each have one year remaining on their contracts. Robinson has three years remaining on his rookie deal. The Bears signed Gerri Green to a futures contract.

Grade: F

League worst in sacks deserves a failing grade.

Plan

Bring in as much talent as possible. There are several big names available in free agency. Marcus Davenport, Yannick Ngakoue and Justin Houston highlight the free agent class. Poles has been cautious with his free agent spending, but this is one position where he could be willing to loosen the purse strings.

The Bears are in a prime position to potentially take Alabama star pass rusher Will Anderson with the first overall pick if they want to. There are several other potential difference makers in this draft: Notre Dame’s Isaiah Foskey, Texas Tech’s Tyree Wilson, Georgia’s Nolan Smith and Clemson’s Myles Murphy, among others.

Ideally, the Bears address defensive end both in free agency and in the draft.