6 pending free agents in Super Bowl LVI the Chicago Bears should target in 2022

The Chicago Bears could target Bengals S, Jessie Bates,  III

I made mention of the possibility that the Chicago Bears could allow Eddie Jackson more time playing the nickel cornerback spot in 2022. It was a position that he mentioned he enjoyed playing under Sean Desai last year. This allows Ryan Pace and Matt Eberflus more creative ability in rebuilding the defensive backs this season.

One name that could be on their radar is Jessie Bates, III. Bates is only 24 years old and I’m not confident the Bengals will let him get away. They drafted him in the second round and he’s been productive most of his career.

In his first three years, he saw over 100 combined tackles in each season. If he didn’t miss time this year, then he would have cracked 100 combined tackles again. Also in his first three years, Bates finished with three interceptions each year. If we look at his advanced stats, he saw success in three of his four years. This year Bates has struggled, allowing 80% of the balls thrown his way to be completed.

Going back to his first three years, the most completed passes Bates allowed were 63.3% of the time. Two of those three years’ quarterbacks saw a QB rating of 77.7 and 70.7. The other season quarterbacks saw a 100.1 QB rating and this year it was the worst at 122.0. The outlier was this year, but maybe with how poorly he played, it could allow Bates to hit the open market.