Chicago Bears Training Camp: 5 players who must step up

Kindle Vildor needs to step up and prove he can be the third corner

If someone were to force me to make a wager on who the starting two corners will be for the Chicago Bears this season, I would choose Jaylon Johnson and then Desmond Trufant. Although most teams run a base 3-4 or 4-3 defensive scheme, that base defense is not actually most commonly used in the NFL any longer. The true “base” personnel formation for teams is Nickel. This formation is used more than 50% of the time and includes one less linebacker and an extra corner.

This is why most teams now need three competent corners or the defense may struggle to stop the opposing team from throwing the ball all over them. Right now, I would think the third-best corner on the team is Artie Burns, however, I think it would be best if Kindle Vildor fought his way into the nickel corner role.

Burns is coming off a knee injury that kept him sidelined in all of 2020 and from starting the season as the Chicago Bears CB2 ahead of Jaylon Johnson. It will be important for Burns to work his way back physically and build his confidence back up. Kindle Vildor was drafted in the fifth round last season and he has some decent size at 5’10” and 191 pounds. He was hit or miss last season, showing flashes at times. However, this year he needs to be more consistent.

Training camp is where Vildor will need to step up and prove he deserves to start over the likes of Artie Burns, Duke Shelley and rookie Thomas Graham, Jr. If he doesn’t do enough in training camp, he will continue to be a backup this season.