The future has arrived much sooner than Chicago Bears fans expected with rookie fourth-round pick Malik Muhammad, and he is ready for it.
Muhammad got the outside corner start in place of Tyrique Stevenson and performed well again in the Bears' 27-7 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3. He finished with five tackles and one quarterback hit, but the Bears' secondary allowed just 141 yards in the win.
It was just another example of how Muhammad has been quite the steal for the Bears in the draft. He might give defensive coordinator Dennis Allen flexibility in how he uses him in the secondary.
Malik Muhammad is showing how much he can do within Bears' secondary
Muhammad started the season playing more at nickel in place of Kyler Gordon, but has moved around the lineup over the last two weeks. A healthy blend of nickel and outside corner has shown that he can do a lot for this defense.
This season, he has racked up 11 tackles, two pass deflections, two quarterback hits, one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception in three games. He's allowed five of 12 passes to be completed his way for 78 yards and zero touchdowns, with a passer rating of 28.5.
Pro Football Focus gave Muhammad an overall grade of 56.7, ranking 65th out of 99 eligible cornerbacks. He also has a coverage grade of 54.1 (ranked 66th) and a run-defense grade of 55.4 (ranked 72nd).
Chicago has an interesting future decision to make with Muhammad over the next season or two to see where he is going to play. The Bears have to decide whether they see him as a nickel corner or an outside corner.
He played well at CB2 in Week 3 when Stevenson wasn't 100% healthy, but Stevenson ended up playing nickel. It'll be interesting to see if Muhammad stays on the outside or moves back inside.
There is also the Gordon situation, since he is still on IR and recovering from his soft-tissue injury. No one really knows, including his head coach, Ben Johnson, whether Gordon is actually going to play this season or not.
The question is about both, because Stevenson's contract ends after the season, and if Gordon doesn't play this year, the Bears might move on from him via trade or release. Muhammad is so good right now that he could be CB2 or nickel and be just fine.
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This is honestly the best-case scenario for the Bears: Muhammad emerges as a great player and is ready to take over whatever position he needs to. The Bears somehow hit a home run and set up their future for great success.
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