Chicago Bears safety Eddie Jackson was rewarded with a four-year, $58.4 million contract extension this offseason. He became the NFL’s highest-paid safety, and there’s a reason why.
In just three seasons, Jackson has established himself as one of the cornerstones of this dominant Bears defense. He has 184 tackles, 10 interceptions, 26 pass breakups, four forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries and two sacks during that span. Jackson has also returned three of his interceptions and two of his fumble recoveries for touchdowns.
Simply put, he’s a playmaker. And opposing offenses are aware of that.
NFL.com’s Nick Shook examined the top 10 defensive backs in coverage, and Bears safety Eddie Jackson landed on the list at No. 5.
Here’s how Jackson stacks up in the key metrics the NFL used to create this list:
- Passer rating allowed: 49.9
- Catch rate allowed below expectation: -20.9
- Tight window pct: 16.3
- Target rate: 8.1
- Average separation yards: 2.9
Here’s what Shook had to say about Jackson:
Jackson doesn’t get targeted all that much (43 times in 2019) and his ballhawk rate (9.3 percent) doesn’t jump off the screen, but quarterbacks are consistently frustrated by his coverage. Look no further than Jackson’s passer rating allowed of just 49.9 and his catch rate allowed below expectation of -20.9 percent. That’s by far the best mark of any player on this list, and while a lower total of targets has something to do with it, it’s still very impressive. The only number that is surprisingly low is Jackson’s interception total (one), as he’s demonstrated a nose for the ball in years past. His overall coverage resume is tough to argue with, though.
As Shook pointed out in his analysis, Jackson’s interception total was indeed low in 2019. But that had more to do with Chicago moving him to strong safety, where he wasn’t able to be the ballhawk that he’s established himself as in his first two seasons with the Bears.
With the departure of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in free agency, the Bears are moving Jackson back to free safety, where he’ll be able to play centerfield and make more of those game-changing plays and rack up interceptions.
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