Chicago Bears: Eddie Goldman dominates Packers
Eddie Goldman has been an underrated piece of the Chicago Bears for years. He set the tone for the defense on Sunday and helped his team achieve a division title
Eddie Goldman will not make the Pro Bowl. He will not stuff the stat sheets. However, he is a valued piece of the Chicago Bears defense and there may be no player more underrated on the defense.
He has always been a player who takes up space, but has evolved more into a player who can make plays in the backfield. While it may not have shown in the stat sheet, Sunday was one of the best performances that Goldman put in all season. It came at the perfect time.
Goldman affecting the game and it not showing in the stat sheet can be illustrated by this play here. The Packers are looking to run outside with Aaron Jones. However, Goldman reads the play and is pushing the left guard into the backfield. Jones has to reroute and while he avoids Goldman for the tackle, Goldman blows the play up and forces Jones into an easy tackle for his teammates.
The same idea is shown on the play linked here. Eddie Goldman once again blows up the play in the backfield. Jones is able to reroute, but Danny Trevathan is following Goldman. As Goldman goes inside, Trevathan goes out and shuts down all access for Jones. It is nice cleanup duty for Trevathan, but Goldman makes the play.
Goldman probably could have been award half of a tackle here but was not. Still, he beats Justin McCray, going hash to hash and forcing the run to the outside. This is great lateral movement from the big man.
While Goldman brought most of his value as a run stuffer, the addition of his pass rush is what keeps him on the field more often. Goldman only has two catches and two quarterback hits all season. However, in the play here we once again see his underlying value.
Goldman takes on a double team and gets free. From there he beats Corey Linsey to the inside. He is able to force Rodgers to leave the pocket and eventually throw the football away.
The Chicago Bears have an elite defense. Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks help in providing that but players such as Eddie Goldman who fill out the back end supplement it. The performance on Goldman on Sunday cannot be understated.