The Chicago Bears defense should be a top-10 unit in 2022
The new scheme and coaching should help the Chicago Bears with takeaways
One of the things that Matt Eberflus focuses on is the same thing that Vic Fangio focuses on — takeaways. The Chicago Bears defense has struggled with takeaways over the last three years, but even still, the team has finished as a top-10 unit more often than not. With the addition of takeaways, the team would have finished even higher in Defensive DVOA.
Despite the blue bucket last year, this team struggled with taking the football away. The defense ranked 26th overall in takeaways last year and that doesn’t help a rookie quarterback in any way. The team wasn’t much better in 202 when they only came away with a ranking of 25th. In 2019, the Bears finished 22nd. It was only in 2018 that the team excelled in this area and they finished 1st in that historic defensive season.
Well, we should expect those numbers to change for the better (outside of 2018 of course) with Matt Eberflus’ and Alan Williams’ scheme plus mentality. The Colts have finished in the top 10 three out of the last four years in takeaways. Last year they were second. In 2020 the team was fifth. In 2019, the Colts finished 12th and in 2018 the team was 10th.
When you couple how well the Bears performed on defense as a whole the last four years with how well Eberflus focuses on takeaways, you have a recipe for success. There have been some roster changes but I have no doubt that this current roster is better than last year’s roster and should finish in the top 10 for takeaways and defense in general.