Just a couple of weeks ago, before the Chicago Bears worked through the bulk of their OTAs and minicamp, the team played around with the idea of signing a recent second-round pick.
Chicago brought in former Iowa Hawkeyes standout and 2020 Buffalo Bills pick A.J. Epenesa for a workout, but ultimately decided to pass on signing the 27-year-old. Fast forward two weeks and Epenesa now has a new home.
Howie Roseman and the Philadelphia Eagles opted to sign Epenesa to a 1-year deal worth up to $5 million shortly after the Bears passed on him.
Ryan Poles passed on the perfect low-risk pass rusher in A.J. Epenesa
Many Bears fans shared the same sentiment when they saw Chicago brought in Epenesa for a workout and ultimately passed on his services.
Why?
Why wouldn't Poles take a low-risk shot on a guy who could easily be part of the pass rush rotation in Chicago?
By now, most Bears fans know that, behind Montez Sweat, there is absolutely nobody proven. Chicago is banking on Dayo Odeyingbo getting back to full health and, hopefully, making some semblance of an impact after signing a lucrative deal last offseason.
Beyond Odeyingbo, though, the majority of this fan base is set on Austin Booker being the guy to step up. Booker has shown flashes but hasn't been given the opportunity to prove it for a full season just yet.
Other than Odeyingbo and Booker, there isn't much. The Bears have Daniel Hardy and last year's second-round pick, Shemar Turner, who is also recovering from a season-ending injury and hasn't proved a thing yet.
Epenesa, meanwhile, brings in multiple seasons with at least 6.0 sacks under his belt. In fact, he had three-straight such seasons before only compiling 2.5 last year.
Now, the one thing the Bears may have overlooked is the fact that Epenesa impacts the passing game in more than one way. Going further than looking at just sacks, pressures or quarterback hits, Epenesa has broken up 19 passes over the last four seasons.
Batting down a pass is as good as a forced incompletion by way or hurry or hit, and that's an aspect of his game that's severely underrated; not to mention, he's also picked off four passes in the last three seasons.
Throw in five forced fumbles, three recoveries and even a safety in the last four seasons, and you've got a well-rounded member of a pass rush group.
Well, the Eagles now have a well-rounded member of their pass rush group.
This is the type of signing the Bears needed to make, but Poles continued to stay stubborn in the idea that this coaching staff is going to be able to bring out the best in their current group.
But, what exactly is the level of "best" we're talking about, here?
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Bears fans are sick and tired of seeing mediocrity from the defensive end position. Epenesa would have helped improve it, point-blank, period.
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