Chicago Bears 2015 Position Preview: Cornerback
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With free agency and the NFL draft completed, the core of the Chicago Bears 2015 roster is in place. There may be an undrafted player who makes the team via mini-camp, like RB Senorise Perry and CB Al Louis-Jean did last year, or a free agent signing of a cap casualty late in the preseason, but for the most part the roster is in place. Over the next few weeks I will be breaking down the Bears depth chart at every position.
The Bears found a long-term starting CB in Kyle Fuller with last year’s 1st round draft pick, but there are question marks about the rest of the Bears CB depth. 2-time Pro Bowler Tim Jennings is still around, but coming off a disappointing season. The Bears signed free agent Alan Ball from Jacksonville, who has the size DC Vic Fangio prefers in his corners, but has been just mediocre in his career so far. Veteran special teams ace Sherick McManus has been raising eyebrows during OTAs, but hasn’t shown he can play corner at the NFL level. The Bears do have some talented young corners in Al Louis-Jean, Demontre Hurst, Jacoby Glenn, and Bryce Callahan, but none of them have proven they are talented enough to be consistent NFL corners.
Position Previews: QB | RB | WR | OT | OG | C | TE | DT | DE | OLB | CB
2015 Bears CB Depth Chart:
Projected Starters
Kyle Fuller
Had an up-and-down rookie season with flashes of greatness early in the year, multiple injuries in the middle, and signs of incompetence late in the year when he hit the proverbial rookie wall. Fuller ended the season with a -18.5 grade from Pro Football Focus which I don’t think is a good representation of his play last season.
Fuller played most of the season with injuries (hand, hip) and showed respectable toughness playing through both injuries. He was also stuck facing the #1 WRs of opposing teams (Dez Bryant, Megatron, Jordy Nelson, Julio Jones) which are tough matchups for veteran corners. Fuller struggled at times, but for the most part held his own as a rookie with little help from the Bears awful safety core. Even opposing WRs gave Fuller more credit than the media (and PFF) did, with both Calvin Johnson and Dez Bryant giving Fuller props for making their day difficult.
The fact that Fuller could hold his own against the best WRs in the NFL while playing with a broken hand and a hip injury is pretty impressive. Fuller also led all rookie corners with 4 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. I think he has the potential to be a Pro Bowl NFL corner and expect to see significant strides in his second season.
Alan Ball
I’m a little biased as Ball played for my alma matter and favorite college team (Illinois), but on paper Ball is a better fit on the outside in Fangio’s scheme than Tim Jennings. Ball can’t match Jennings’ production over the course of their careers. His best season was 2013 when he finished with 2 interceptions, 47 tackles, and a 7.5 grade from PFF which was good for 22nd among all NFL corners. Despite the disparity in production between the two corners, Ball is 6’2 while Jennings is listed generously at 5’8. Fangio’s scheme require outside corners to play physical at the line of scrimmage, pressing receivers before dropping back into zone coverage. Ball’s elite size makes him a solid fit for this scheme and he has graded out positively the last two seasons so isn’t a slouch. He lacks Jennings ball skills, but his size is just a better fit how Fangio wants his outside corners to defend.