Drafted as a top ten pick back in 2016 by the Chicago Bears, Leonard Floyd is finally starting to live up to his draft status.
Once envisioned as being the Chicago Bears future star pass rusher, Leonard Floyd was relegated to be Khalil Mack’s sidekick just before the 2018 regular season began. Now, Floyd is heating up just when the Bears need him to.
During his first two seasons in the NFL, Leonard Floyd missed multiple games due to various injuries.
In 2016, he missed time due to concussions, while his season ended early in 2017 due to a right knee injury. In 2018, he began the season with a broken hand, wearing a cast which affected the start of his 2018 season.
All of a sudden, many began to question whether or not Floyd would really be able to live up to the expectations set for him as a top-ten draft pick. Through the first ten weeks of the season, Floyd had just 22 tackles, one sack, and one tackle for loss.
However, over the last five games, Floyd has 18 combined tackles, six tackles for loss, and five quarterback hits. His best performance came against the Green Bay Packers in week 15, where he totaled six solo tackles and three quarterback hits.
As the Bears get ready to gear up for a playoff run, they understand that it will take more than just Khalil Mack to rush opposing quarterbacks. They’ll need Leonard Floyd too.
While there are still two games left in the Bears regular season, Floyd is proving that he is definitely worthy of being an impact player on the Bears defense. On a defense where Khalil Mack gets all the attention, Floyd is quietly posting solid stats and showing that he can make plays when the Bears need them the most.
One of the main reasons that Floyd has started to play better is because he essentially switched positions with Leonard Floyd. At the start of the season, Floyd was lined up on the right side of the Bears defensive line, but now he is lined up on the left side of the defensive line, a spot where he commonly rushed from in college.
Going forward, the Bears need to see consistency from Floyd. He’ll need to demonstrate that he can finish the regular season strong and carry over his strong performance into the playoffs. While he did begin to breakout late, Floyd has finally shown that he is putting it all together and becoming what the Bears envisioned him to become when they drafted him back in 2016.