Cubs News: Eberflus wants to add more pass rush help |
By now, you may think this is starting to become a broken record, but the Bears are looking for pass-rush help.
Everywhere you look, those are the reports coming out of Bears camp, and at some point, those reports will stop, but it may only happen once they sign a player. Ryan Poles has clarified that this team has one significant need, which continues to be pass-rushing help. Now, other members of the Bears brass are hopping on board with that as head coach Matt Eberflus has publically said that this team wants to add pass-rushing help and is looking to do so. Anytime you come off a season where you generated just 20 sacks and ranked dead last in the NFL in that category, pass-rushing help is needed, which is something the Bears knew coming into the offseason. Throughout the offseason thus far, the Bears have improved virtually every position that needed to be addressed on this roster, but the front seven still needs work. Although the linebacker room is greatly improved, the guys in the trenches are still unknown, as Trevis Gipson may be the best pass rusher the Bears have at this point. No one is taking anything away from Gipson and the improvements he made last season, but he isn't going to be a game-changer up front, which is what this team needs. While there may be a few free-agent options for the Bears at this point, there are some players that Chicago could bring in to help this team, but who are they looking at? Yannick Ngakoue continues to be the name the most linked to the Bears, and you can see why. He is the best pass rusher on the free agent market and would come into Chicago and put up double-digit sacks from day one. Frank Clark and Jadeveon Clowney are also options for this team to add, as both provide more production than anyone on this roster. Clowney is a concern due to their inconsistency and injury history, while Clark is approaching 34 years old, and it doesn't make sense for a rebuilding team to give him a multi-year deal.
While those two have been the most linked to Chicago, two more names are starting to generate more tracking and could be the ones this team ends up targeting.
Justin Houston is one of those guys with previous experience with Eberflus in Indianapolis. Like Clark, Houston is a bit older than the Bears are looking for, but he gives them the best option to sign as a short-term option.
Those are the names everyone continues to hear linked to Chicago, but there is another player that only a few talk about, and he could be the x-factor this offseason. Not only could he be an x-factor, but if he does come to Chicago, it would have to come via the trade as Colts DT Grover Stewart could be a trade option for the Bears to address their pass-rushing needs.
The 29-year-old Stewart was a fourth pick of the Colts in 2017 and had multiple years of experience with Eberflus and Alan Williams. That alone could be the key to all of this, as Stewart knows what both of them bring to the table, and he may find their system a better fit than the current one the Colts have in place.
At 6-4 and 315 pounds, Stewart is a load in the middle and the ideal DT product that many teams look for. Since coming into the league, Stewart is approaching 240 career tackles, with 25 coming as tackles for a loss. He also has 8.5 sacks, with a career-high 4.0 coming this past season. He also had a three-sack season under Eberflus, which the Bears could look at.
Despite Poles and Eberflus wanting to add pass-rushing help to this team, an addition may only happen once training camp starts. If that is the case, the Bears believe other guys on this roster can still provide them with more sack production than they had a season ago.
