When you talk about modern linebackers who blend old-school size with new-age athleticism, Tremaine Edmunds fits the mold.
At 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, the Bears’ defensive centerpiece moves like a safety, hits like a defensive end, and has quietly become one of the most complete linebackers in the NFL in 2025.
Still just 27 years old, it’s hard to believe he’s already in his eighth season since entering the league as a first-round pick in 2018. With that veteran experience comes expectation, which leads us to his profile in a Week 8 clash against Baltimore.
How Edmunds can disrupt the Ravens in Week 8 showdown
The Ravens’ offense has found its rhythm through physicality. When Derrick Henry gets rolling downhill, everything else in Baltimore’s scheme opens up -- play-action shots, bootlegs for Lamar Jackson, and space for the receivers to exploit mismatches.
For Chicago, that means Edmunds has to remain the stabilizing force in the middle, diagnosing quickly, filling gaps, and setting the tone physically. Henry is at his best when he’s allowed to build momentum, and the only way to slow that is with early penetration and sure tackling inside.
That’s where Edmunds’ size and sideline-to-sideline range become vital.
With 4.5 speed, Edmunds can erase angles most linebackers can’t. He flows laterally with fluidity, shoots gaps with burst, and closes with violence. When he’s on, he’s a 10-tackle-per-game defender -- a disruptor who not only racks up numbers but changes the rhythm of an offense.
Against a Baltimore unit that has struggled (currently 1-5), limiting Henry’s early-down success will be everything. Edmunds has the athletic traits and football IQ to read those developing run concepts, shed blocks, and make first contact before Henry gets into the open field. And this is without the potential of Jackson returning this week.
But his value doesn’t stop with the run game. One of Edmunds’ most underrated traits is his ability to drop in coverage.
He’s long, instinctive, and comfortable turning and running with tight ends or spying mobile quarterbacks. That versatility is exactly what Ben Johnson envisions for his defense -- a fast, physical group built around hybrid players who can disguise coverages and force offenses into mistakes.
Against Jackson, should he strap up, that coverage ability will pay off in key moments. Whether it’s mirroring Jackson on scrambles or taking away easy checkdowns to the flat, Edmunds’ presence will influence Jackson's decisions.
Bringing the lens back through six games, the Bears’ defense has quietly taken strides under Johnson, and Edmunds has been at the center of the growth as his experience and unique athletic profile make him the kind of player who can elevate everyone around him.
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If he plays to his ceiling, regardless of whether Jackson plays or not, Edmunds has the range and instincts on all three downs to make plays for 60 minutes. While not often discussed among the league's elite at the position, pushing the Bears to 5-2 will likely come down to the success of Chicago's core defense, led by No. 49.