Chicago Bears head coach says this rookie is "lighting it up”

Footballs flying into the secondary undefended was a major issue for the Chicago Bears in the 2021 season.

With the 2022 NFL Draft, new general manager Ryan Poles honed in on the defensive secondary. The Bears drafted cornerback Kyler Gordon with his first selection in the second round and safety Jaquan Brisker with his next.

Bears head coach Matt Eberflus in his press conference Tuesday said Gordon had made a great impression with him and his staff during OTA’s this week.

“Kyler has been lighting it up the past two days, I’ll just tell you that,” he said. “The guys got tremendous ball skills. He’s been playing the defense the right way and we’re very impressed with him.”

Gordon still has more to learn with the defense, Eberflus said, but the Bears are excited with where the Washington Husky product is at currently. Eberflus emphasized his “ball-hawking skills.”

This is good news for the Bears defense, which is having a complete overhaul this season going from the 3-4 to 4-3. If the rookies can learn quickly, the Bears’ defense might be ahead of schedule in getting ready for their 2022 season.

Gordon excelled during his time in Washington, never allowing a single touchdown. The Bears’ struggles last season in the secondary were seen especially when defending the endzone.

The Bears gave up 31 passing touchdowns last season, tied with four teams for 26th in most passing touchdowns given up last season. The only two teams worse in that statistic last season were then defensive coordinator Eberflus’ Indianapolis Colts, 32, and The Washington Football Team, with 34 passing touchdowns given up.

Hopefully, Gordon can shore up the passing defense in the red zone this season.

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