Chicago Bears Hot Take: Sean Desai is at fault for the Bears defensive struggles
Sean Desai didn’t get off to the best start as the Bears’ defensive coordinator on Sunday, and he was heavily criticized on Twitter for he is defense’s poor play
Is Sean Desai is to blame for the Bears’ defensive struggles in week 1?
I’m not necessarily saying that Desai did the best job of preparing his defense for week one. What I am arguing against is the idea that Desai is the main reason for the Bears’ defensive struggles against the Rams.
The truth is the Bears defense just may not be as good as people expected
What fans need to realize is this isn’t 2018 anymore. The Bears’ defense that wreaked havoc on opposing defenses is no longer present and is now a flawed unit. The Bears have leaned heavily on their defense to carry them to wins for the last three years, but just because it worked in past years doesn’t mean it will this year. Khalil Mack and Roquan Smith are great, but their star power alone doesn’t compensate for the weaknesses across the rest of the defense.
The main concerns lie in the secondary
The Bears cornerback group lacks experience and may also lack talent too. After letting longtime corner Kyle Fuller walk this offseason, the Bears are counting on second-year player Jaylon Johnson to play as the CB1 after only 13 games.
Johnson has the talent to play the position, but the Bears don’t really have a backup plan if it doesn’t work. Given Johnson’s injury history dating back to college, this is a risky approach. Additionally, the next two corners on the depth chart, Kindle Vildor and Duke Shelley are day three draft picks with limited in-game experience.
As mentioned earlier, the highest-paid member of the secondary, Eddie Jackson has been a liability on defense dating back to last year, and it’s unclear if he will ever get back to being the guy he was in 2018. There are just a lot of unknowns to this unit, and that’s why I’m not sure how much you can blame the coaching for their mistakes.
Bottom Line
I’m not saying Sean Desai will or won’t be a good defensive coordinator; it’s too early to tell. What I am saying is that managing the Bears defense may be a more difficult task than some realize.