Over the last two preseasons, the Chicago Bears fan base has seen the potential dominance of defensive end Austin Booker, but the regular season has left something to be desired.
While Booker had a solid 2025 season with 4.5 sacks, he still missed nearly half the games with an injury, which leaves some fans to question whether they can keep holding on to hope that Booker can break loose and be the solid number two pass rusher the team needs. Chicago Tribune's Brad Biggs shared more about how the team feels about Booker and his future with the franchise.
“If Austin Booker can pick up where he left off at the end of last season, that’s one way for the Bears to be better rushing the passer. We saw him playing at a pretty high level for a little less than half a season. If Booker is healthy and can make a jump from Year 2 to Year 3, like he did from his rookie season to 2025, they’ll have an interesting player. Is that a lock to happen? Of course not. But I believe the Bears are optimistic about his career arc.”
Bears still believe in Austin Booker
In 27 games throughout his first two NFL seasons, the former fifth-round pick has racked up 56 tackles, 16 quarterback hits, eight tackles for loss, six sacks, three pass deflections, and one forced fumble. Year 2 was a major upgrade for Booker compared to Year 1, as he put significantly better numbers in fewer games in 2025 than in 2024.
After one year, Chicago's big free agent signing from last offseason, Dayo Odeyingbo, was about as massive a disappointment as it gets for the team, with just one sack in eight games before suffering his season-ending injury. Bears fans appear to be already out on him and are gripping onto hope that Booker can be the guy.
Well, Bears fans would prefer someone like Maxx Crosby to be on the team, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards at the moment. With only $1 million to work with, Chicago will need to do some major work to get the cap space in a much better position.
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Everything falls on Booker's shoulders, as he may face competition soon enough, with an edge rusher expected to be selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. A strong third year in the NFL could convince the Bears to fully invest in their young edge rusher.