Ryan Poles did right making Kyler Gordon the highest-paid nickel corner in the NFL

When Ryan Poles became the Chicago Bears' general manager in 2022, he didn’t have a first-round draft pick to help rebuild a team that had just finished 6-11 the year before. 

Previous general manager Ryan Pace sent that 2022 first-round draft pick and three additional picks to the Giants to move up and select quarterback Justin Fields 11th overall. So, Poles’ first pick was No. 39 in the second round. 

Poles used that pick to draft Washington cornerback Kyler Gordon. Nearly three years after that selection, Gordon and the Bears have reportedly agreed to a three-year, $40 million extension with $31.25 million guaranteed – making Gordon the highest-paid nickel corner in the NFL.

The Bears’ general manager made the right move to secure Gordon long-term. Now, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen will reap the benefits of having a talented player nicknamed  “Spider-Man” to help patrol the secondary. 

During the NFL Owners Meetings, Poles mentioned the importance of getting a deal done with Gordon.

"In our exit meetings at the end of last season, I told all the guys in terms of future, if it was contracts, coming back, anything like that, the important thing is I've got to get with our new coaching staff and kind of see how the different players fit based on the scheme," Poles said. "We've been able to have those conversations, and I know Kyler is a guy that we want to be a part of this moving forward. So the timing of that, I'm not sure how that all is going work out, but that is a priority."

Gordon, 25, finished his third season in the league with 75 total tackles, eight stuffs (a stop on a rushing attempt at or behind the line of scrimmage), five passes defensed, three fumble recoveries and a forced fumble in a career-high 15 games played. 

Looking beyond the traditional box score stats, Gordon is listed as one of the best nickel corners in the NFL. Field Vision has a data-based ranking system called Havoc Rating, which “is an expression of a player’s value relative to others in their position group, accounting for the scheme that they play in. …”

According to Cody Alexander, the Head of Football Ops at Field Vision, Gordon ranked third in Havoc Rating among nickel cornerbacks who have played 500+ snaps and 40%+ in the slot. He’s only behind the Giants’ Dru Phillips and the Ravens’ Marlon Humphrey. 

Gordon also ranked 19th in coverage grades among cornerbacks, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF), and finished 20th in overall defensive grade. Only twice last season did Gordon allow pass catchers to exceed 50 receiving yards in a game, and he gave up just one touchdown. Gordon’s 34 receptions allowed also was the 12th-fewest among slot cornerbacks with at least 150 coverage snaps. 

During the Ed Block Courage Award banquet in March, Gordon told reporters that he and Allen have already discussed how he could be utilized in the defense. 

“I like the way he’s talking already,” Gordon said. “So we’ve had a lot of good talk. I’ve watched his previous defenses and stuff like that, so I already kind of trying to figure out where and how I would look in a defense like that. I think there’s going to be a lot of special things that me and him could do together and as a whole entire defense, so just excited to see how he puts everything together, so …”

Allen not only has a nickel cornerback who excels in defending the pass but someone who is equally impactful in stopping the run and applying pressure on quarterbacks.

According to PFF, Gordon finished 32nd with his 76.5 run defensive grade. His 12.1 missed-tackled percentage ranked 72nd among cornerbacks last season. As a pass rusher, Gordon tied for the second-most total pressures with nine and had the 10-highest win percentage (8.5) among cornerbacks with at least 11 pass rush snaps.

Poles made Gordon his first-ever draft selection for a reason, and now the defense will get to work alongside one of the best nickel corners in the game until he is up for that next contract extension.