3 Chicago Bears who must step up with the injury to Yannick Ngakoue

The Chicago Bears placed Yannick Ngakoue on the injured reserve with an ankle injury. That may have ended his time with the team, considering he is a free agent at the end of this season. So, while this is devastating news for the team and the player, the silver lining is that it does allow the team to get longer looks at players who are involved with the future plans. 

3. The Chicago Bears will lean on DeMarcus Walker more

The player that the Chicago Bears will lean on the most is DeMarcus Walker. They had already been leaning towards Walker starting over Yannick Ngakoue since the Montez Sweat trade pushed Walker out of his job. 

Still, Walker has rushed against the left tackle for 55% of his snaps this season. That includes a 72% rush rate against left tackles since Sweat was added. He was only at 45% before the Sweat addition because he was starting on the other side. 

In the last two weeks, Walker has out-snapped Ngakoue despite still being a role player. He has also been more productive overall since the acquisition of Sweat. He has played about 58% of the snaps in the last two games, while Ngakoue was at 52%. So, while this is a loss, it does not kill the Bears.

However, they have to be careful about the snaps for Walker. Even with his dip in snaps over the last five weeks, he still has passed his career high in snaps played. The Bears have been getting the best out of him in a more limited role, so while Walker will start against left tackles and rush primarily against them, his role will stay similar. He has been doing that in the first place. The Bears need more from the depth.