3 Bears who aren’t in offseason spotlight, but could play pivotal roles in 2024 season

3 Bears who aren’t in offseason spotlight, but could play pivotal roles in 2024 season originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

We’ve spent a lot of time talking about a lot of Bears players this offseason. Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze have generated buzz as GM Ryan Poles completely revamped the team’s wide receiver unit. Jaylon Johnson made headlines when he signed an extension to stick in Chicago for the immediate future, and Montez Sweat remains at the forefront of any conversation about the defense. We’ve even dedicated time to rookie punter Tory Taylor and how he can be a weapon on special teams. Of course there have been Caleb Williams stories. Many, many Caleb Williams stories.

The success of the team won’t depend on a handful of players, however. The buzziest guys often make the splashiest plays, but as nose tackle Andrew Billings proved last year, sometimes it’s the fellas who do the dirty work that make the biggest impact when it counts.

Along those lines, here’s a list of Bears players who may have an outsized effect on the team compared to the attention they receive outside of Halas Hall.

T.J. EDWARDS – LINEBACKER

There’s no doubt that Sweat should be considered the Bears defense’s 2023 MVP after he arrived and single-handedly boosted the team’s pass rush. But the unit probably doesn’t make the full leap that it did over the course of the year if not for Edwards’ play, which got better week after week. Edwards plays the all-important weakside linebacker position in head coach Matt Eberflus’ scheme, which requires him to fly to the ball to rack up tackles and create takeaways.

He did just that.

Edwards led the team with a whopping 155 tackles, which was good for seventh-most in the NFL. He also intercepted three passes, recovered two fumbles and forced another. It won’t show up in the stat sheet, but Tremaine Edmunds also wouldn’t have had this pick-six if not for the enormous hit that Edwards laid on Cedric Tillman.

If Edwards…

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Author : NBC Sports Chicago

Publish date : 2024-06-25 20:09:12

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