Of all the issues the Chicago Bears had last season, the pass defense was not among them. They were mid-pack in yardage allowed, with two cornerbacks (Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon) Pro Football Focus graded among the top-15 in the league.
But there was a path to passing game profit for Bears' opponents last year, and they went after it with a vengeance. Tyrique Stevenson, according to PFF, was the fourth-most targeted cornerback in the league last season on all types of routes. Narrowing to when he was lined up on the outside, as he most often was (708 snaps), Stevenson was targeted at the second-highest rate in the league (19.74 percent).
According to PFF, even though his coverage grades in those situations were pretty good, Stevenson was also targeted at the seventh-highest rate in the league on "late downs" (presumably meaning meaning third and fourth down) and in the red zone last year.
Stevenson's hold on the starting job opposite Johnson has been most-threatened by Nahshon Wright this preseason. So the heat is on the third-year man to up his game this year, or the Bears will be in the market to more firmly displace him on the depth chart next offseason.
Bears feel need to replace Tyrique Stevenson in early 2026 mock draft
Let's walk down the path where Stevenson continues to be the weakest link in the Bears' secondary. So they would then be looking to replace him opposite Johnson in 2026 free agency, or perhaps more likely in the 2026 draft.
With the start of the college football season nearing, ESPN's Field Yates is out with an early first-round mock draft for 2026.
With the 17th overall pick, Yates has the Bears taking Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy.
"If not for an ACL tear suffered in January, McCoy would be much higher. He has returned to the practice field in some capacity, but it's unclear when he will be cleared to play in games. He is a terrific perimeter cover corner, though, with ideal speed, length and ball disruption skills for the NFL. McCoy had an incredible debut season at Tennessee in 2024 after spending one year at Oregon State, picking off four passes and breaking up eight more. The Bears need more perimeter corners opposite Jaylon Johnson, so this makes sense."
As Yates noted, the step up from Pac-12 to SEC competition was not too much for McCoy last season. In 13 games he had four interceptions and nine pass breakups, with some top-notch PFF grades (87.0 overall; 89.6 coverage grade).
Of course, the fly in the current ointment with McCoy is the torn ACL he suffered in January while training back home in Texas. At SEC Media Days in July, Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel was a little too vague for full comfort, even if missing the first two games of the season against Syracuse (Aug. 30) and East Tennessee State (Sept. 6) would be expected even in the best of circumstances.
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For NFL teams, and assuming he declares for next April's draft, McCoy is ideally recovered from his torn ACL early enough to put some fresh evaluable tape out there this season. He definitely has the traits and skill set the Bears should be seeking in their long-term starter opposite Johnson, unless of course Stevenson shows he's up to the task this season.