Chicago Bears Preseason Game #2: Stock Watch Defense

Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports

OLB Sam Acho – This guy just keeps making plays. Acho had his 2nd sack of the preseason, forced a fumble which was recovered by the Bears, had a tackle for loss on a run play, and put pressure on the Colts QB forcing a 3rd down incompletion. Acho earned positive grades from PFF in both run and pass defense and the 2nd best overall grade on the Bears defense (+2.7). He seems to be a lock for one of the top reserve OLBs.

OLB David Bass – I listed Bass on my Bubble Watch post before the game Saturday, but he may have solidified his roster spot with an impressive performance on Saturday night. Bass had a sack on a stunt up the middle, 3 solo tackles near the line of scrimmage, and read the QB perfectly on a short pass that he almost intercepted deep in Colts territory but dropped the ball. He seems like one of the few Bears who would benefit from the switch to a 3-4 and flashed some play-making potential vs the Colts.

ILB Mason Foster – Was all over the place in the 2nd half. Foster excelled in both coverage and run defense on Saturday. He just missed an INT, didn’t give up any easy catches in the flat, had a nice hit and stop on Colts bowling-ball RB Josh Robinson, and teamed with Sam Acho a few players later to stop Robinson for a loss. It was a solid all around performance that earned Foster the best overall grade from Pro Football Focus (+3.5) and may have put Foster in the conversation for a starting ILB role.

DE Will Sutton – Like most analysts, I thought Sutton was a bad fit for the Bears new 3-4 scheme, but for the 2nd week in a row Sutton was one of the best players on the Bears D. His strength in college was generating a pass rush which he’s done, but he’s also been stout against the run. Sutton had a sack on Saturday night, but I was more impressed with his run defense. There were multiple plays on Saturday where he held his ground at the line of scrimmage and then disengaged to make the tackle (3) or at least clog running lanes. Sutton is making a strong bid for a backup DE job.

Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

S Demontre Hurst – Is making the transition from slot corner to free safety and looked pretty good out there on Saturday. He made a nice break to defend a slant pass and almost picked off a deep route. Hurst did allow one catch, but was right on his man and came close to breaking it up. I was impressed with Hurst’s aggresiveness as a corner last season and I think he could push Brock Vereen for the backup free safety job. Hurst also had the best punt coverage grade on the special teams unit according to PFF.

S Adrian Amos – He may have been out of position when the Bears gave up a 45-yard bomb to TY Hilton, but there is no way to know what scheme the Bears were running. Besides that play, there were no glaring mistakes by Amos in his first NFL start. He did lay a big hit on WR Andre Johnson and made another tackle after a short pass. He didn’t make a huge impact, but didn’t make many mistakes either which for a Bears safety should be considered a success.

CB Terrance Mitchell – Of all the Bears young corners, no one has stood out as much as Terrance Mitchell. He had a big hit in game 1, then one of the best INTs I’ve seen this preseason. Mitchell high-pointed a deep pass to Donte Moncrief and just took the ball away from him. It was an impressive play and should earn Mitchell some extra snaps in game 3. He’s making a strong push for the dime CB position.