3 Chicago Bears primed for career years

1. Angelo Blackson

You may not have realized this, but Angelo Blackson had a career year last season for Chicago. Blackson has been in the NFL since 2015 but has always been nothing more than a rotational player who does his job in a limited capacity.

That was his role last year until Eddie Goldman and Akiem Hicks got hurt. That is when he wound up playing a career-high in snaps. The 584 snaps he played last season was more than the 550 he played for Arizona the year prior, which was his career high.

Blackson posted a career-high in tackles and tied his career mark in sacks. So, the question now is what would stop him from doing it again?

Hicks at least played at times last season, he is completely gone. Bilal Nichols is gone as well. This leaves him with Justin Jones, and Armon Watts, who was picked up just last week. Mike Pennel is in the mix, but he is just a nose tackle.

So, Blackson has every chance to play as many snaps as he possibly can. He has every chance to hit three sacks, which is more than the 2.5 he currently holds as a career-high. It is all up to whether he can handle the increased work because he has always been a rotational player.