The Chicago Bears haven’t had a good season in 2023.
They’re 4-8 with the 21st-ranked offense and the 27th-ranked defense.
Quarterback Justin Fields is also up-and-down this season and battled injuries.
But while the offense has looked bad, the defense has dramatically improved over the past eight weeks, according to Warren Sharp.
Chicago’s defense ranks first in interceptions, second in yards per attempt, first in run-stop success rate, and second in yards per carry since Week 6.
what is happening in Chicago
the last 8 weeks, Chicago’s pass D ranks:
#1 in interceptions (10 INTs)
#2 in YPA (allowing just 5.9 YPA)
Chicago’s run D ranks::
#1 in success rate (30%)
#2 in YPC (allowing just 3.2 YPC)
PREVIEW DETROIT @ CHICAGO:https://t.co/vqHbIm6SWE
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 9, 2023
This is what the Bears thought they would get when they hired ex-Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus as their head coach in 2022.
Instead, Chicago’s defense was one of the worst in the NFL this past season after the Bears allowed the 29th-most yards and the 32nd-most points.
But things appear to have turned around in 2023.
While the Bears still give up a lot of points, they’re creeping into a top-10 defense in yards allowed.
New additions like edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue, linebackers T.J. Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds, as well as the acquisition of pass rusher Montez Sweat have been major reasons for this seasonal turnaround in Chicago.
Ngakoue leads the team with three sacks, Sweat already has 2.5 sacks in the past two games for the Bears since the Washington Commanders traded him away midway through the season while Edwards and Edmunds are first and second on the team in combined tackles, respectively.
The hope for Chicago is they can end the 2023 season on a high note and use their bounty of 2024 draft picks from their 2023 trade with the Carolina Panthers to continue to bolster the rest of the team.
At least they’ve already got a head start on retooling the defense.
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