Bears' defense reaches new level: Plug-and-play
Bears coach Matt Eberflus never is going to let you see him sweat. But when he said he had no worries about going into the Bears’ game last week against the Jaguars with backups Elijah Hicks and Jaylon Jones replacing safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson — both out with injuries — he meant it.
‘‘I said it prior to the game: Those guys were going to step up and do a really good job, and they did,’’ Eberflus said. ‘‘It’s because they’ve been in our system. They know the position. They know how we operate. They know the fundamentals of our system. And to plug-and-play those guys, it wasn’t that big of a step for them.’’
A Bears defense that is living up to its goal of being one of the top five in the NFL has reached the plug-and-play level. Supporting players such as defensive end Darrell Taylor and linebacker Jack Sanborn or backups such as Hicks, Jones and cornerback Josh Blackwell don’t just hold their own, they make plays.
Against the Jaguars, Jones led the Bears with 10 tackles and Hicks broke up a pass in the end zone and had a fumble recovery. And when starting slot cornerback Kyler Gordon left with a hamstring injury in the third quarter, Blackwell came in and had an interception that helped clinch the victory.
‘‘You never want to see your guys leave the game, but when the opportunity presents itself, you’ve gotta make the most of your opportunity,’’ Blackwell said. ‘‘It’s the name of the game. I’m appreciative that I got the opportunity, that they trusted me to go in, and I made the most of it.’’
As Blackwell noted, ‘‘We’ve done that before.’’ He, Jones and Hicks were starters in 2022 against the Packers, when the Bears held Aaron Rodgers to 182 passing yards and an 85.7 passer rating despite a 28-19 loss.
Hicks (nine), Jones (five) and Blackwell (one) have started 15 games in their two-plus seasons. Backup cornerback Terell Smith also has played well in spot duty but has missed the last three games with a hip injury.
‘‘I think it says a lot about our depth,’’ Blackwell said. ‘‘That’s what’s so special about guys like us. We’ve got a whole bunch of guys that could be starters at other places, so I think it’s special when you have a group of guys that can come together and know their role and make the most of it.’’
It’s not known whether Hicks, Jones and Blackwell will be needed when the degree of difficulty ramps up Sunday against the Commanders, who lead the NFL in scoring (31.1 points per game) and are fourth in yards (384.1 per game).
Eberflus said Monday he was hopeful that Brisker (concussion), Stevenson (calf) and Gordon might play against the Commanders.
Brisker remains in the NFL’s concussion protocol but is progressing.
‘‘He’s still got a couple of steps to go, but it looks good,’’ Eberflus said.
He said Gordon is ‘‘working through his hamstring.’’ And Stevenson was on the practice field during the Bears’ walkthrough Monday.
The Bears don’t want to play without Brisker, Gordon and Stevenson for too long, especially against top-10 offenses. But Eberflus is confident in his backups and gave nods to defensive passing-game coordinator Jon Hoke, whom he called ‘‘the best corner coach in the league’’; safeties coach Andre Curtis, who he said is ‘‘the best safeties coach in the league’’; and nickel cornerbacks coach David Overstreet.
‘‘They prepare us well in practice,’’ Blackwell said. ‘‘We know when our number’s called, you do what you know how to do.’’
Players such as Blackwell are conditioned to ‘‘practice like you’re the starter.’’ These guys play like it.
‘‘We know we can play,’’ Blackwell said. ‘‘We definitely think we’re starters. We’re starters behind the starters.’’