Chicago Bears Matchup Highlight: Khalil Mack vs Andrew Whitworth

The Chicago Bears Sunday night game against the Los Angelas Rams will come down to many great matchups, none more significant than Andrew Whitworth taking on Khalil Mack

Everybody talks up the big games between Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and how they competed against each other, but the fact is, they competed against each other’s defenses. We never saw Tom Brady take on Peyton Manning in anything.

However, on Sunday it is fair to say that the best pass rusher in the NFL and the best tackle in the NFL will be facing off one-on-one against each other in a national spotlight.

Granted, Andrew Whitworth is 37 years old; he may not be entirely at the peak of his powers. However, he had multiple All-Pro awards and was honored to the team just last season.

Still, Whitworth has shown a few kinks in his armor this season. Every player, even Khalil Mack has. He has allowed five sacks this season and had two holding calls to his name.

Here are the five sacks that he has allowed.

Danielle Hunter

Hunter is not far behind Mack on the list of most impactful pass rushers in the NFL. His 11.5 sacks exceed the nine of Mack this season. The play is linked here. For the most part, Hunter is just able to use his size and athleticism to beat Whitworth around the edge. Hunter did a great job of fighting his hands away and getting around the edge to make the play.

Bradley Chubb

The rookie top-five pick has ten sacks this season, and a three-sack game against the Rams highlighted that. Two were charged to Whitworth. One was in cleanup duty but was lined up on Whitworth. The other that was likely charged to Whitworth came on the play linked here.

It is worth noting that Von Miller helped in pushing Jared Goff into Bradley Chubb. However, Chubb set up that wall opposite of Miller by pushing Whitworth back into Goff. He is able to get his hands under his shoulder pads and then use a stab to get separation and make the play on Goff.

The third sack was on Whitworth but came in the form of a stunt. The play is linked here. Adam Gostis, 99, does a great job of locking onto the left guard. From there, Bradley Chubb loops around those two and leaves Whitworth in a spot where he is helpless. Austin Blythe does Whitworth no favors here, but Bilal Nichols has to be taking notes, as this is an area where he can help free up Mack.

Frank Clark

The Chicago Bears know about Frank Clark. He was able to get the better of Whitworth as well linked here. For his size, Clark has a great jump off of the football. It shows on this play here. Watch his right foot take that first step. He wins the rep right there.

From there, he uses his additional flexibility and athleticism to beat the 37-year-old technician home. Frank Clark has ten sacks this season and won similarly to Hunter. Yes, beating Whitworth with insane athleticism and bend is not necessarily a game plan, but the Bears have a player with similar traits to Clark and Hunter.

Justin Houston

Lastly, we see another former All-Pro and a player who once was in the same category as Mack before injury took over. Still, Justin Houston got healthy for the Rams game on Monday Night football and showed that when he can get on the field, that he is still the same impact player.

The play is linked here. Unlike Clark and Hunter, he is unable to use an unreal get off to beat Whitworth. However, he instead goes the route of Chubb and gets his hands inside of him to convert speed to power.

However, while Chubb was able to get an initial push and some help from Miller, Houston uses a great rip move to sift through and finish off the sack with a strip fumble. He finished similarly to Clark and Hunter in that regard.

Conclusion

It is not going to take some regular Joe off of the street to beat Andrew Whitworth. It is going to take technical skill, athleticism and the ability to finish. Fortunately for the Chicago Bears, they have a player who fits the profile as the only athletes to have any success against Whitworth.