For the Chicago Bears, a major question that surrounds the team in 2021 is what the defense will look like.
For the third time in four seasons, head coach Matt Nagy is set to have a different defensive coordinator. In 2018, Nagy stuck with Vic Fangio. 2019 and 2020 provided the opportunity for Nagy to work with veteran Chuck Pagano. Now, heading into 2021, Nagy has another defensive coordinator, with Sean Desai taking over the reigns.
The state of the Bears defense will certainly be talked about all offseason. What Fangio did in 2018 was maximize the talent available. Under Pagano the last two seasons, the general feeling around Chicago’s defense is that there has been regression in terms of performance and statistically.
Sean Desai will be taking a fresh approach to the Chicago Bears defense in 2021.
As mentioned previously, many feel like Chicago’s defense has regressed over the last two seasons. While some of this has been due to injuries to key players like Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks, other key players like safety Eddie Jackson have also regressed, raising questions about what the real issue in Chicago was. Was the issue the scheme or the inability of coaches to put players in a position to succeed?
In Desai’s introductory press conference on Monday afternoon, there were a lot of positive takeaways. From the very start, Desai sounded confident in what Chicago’s defense could achieve throughout the 2021 season.
Much of the talent may be remaining the same, however, Desai made it clear that he was going to establish an identity and vision for the defense. With the NFL clearly a pass-first league, the goal for defensive coordinators now is stopping an opponents ariel attack before gameplanning to stop the running game.
There are two categories that Chicago has regressed in statistically between 2019 and 2020: Sacks and takeaways. Desai already has a plan in place for what to do when it comes to getting the Bears back to relevance in both categories.
Despite an aging defense, the window for the Bears defense to be a top unit in the NFL isn’t necessarily closed, especially with many starters from the last three seasons at key positions set to return for next season.
Being a former Fangio disciple, Desai will use a variety of ways to get after the quarterback. Whether it is applying pressure with just four players to disrupt the quarterback or employing a number of exotic coverages to confuse opposing offenses’, Desai is ready to get the Bears defense back on top, one of the many factors that will be crucial if Chicago is going to compete seriously in 2021.
