Tag: Bears defensive tackle

Former Bears DT Justin Jones to sign 3-year deal with Arizona Cardinals

According to NFL Network’s Peter Schrager, Justin Jones is leaving the Bears to sign a three-year deal with the Cardinals.

One of the Chicago Bears best free agents has found a new home. According to NFL Network’s Peter Schrager, defensive tackle Justin Jones is signing a three-year deal worth $30.1 million and $19.75 million guaranteed.

It’s a hefty raise for Jones, who joined the Bears in 2022 on a two-year deal worth $12 million after coming into the league with the Los Angeles Chargers. He outperformed his contract and was the most consistent defensive lineman during that stretch. Jones tallied 7.5 sacks, 101 total tackles (22 for a loss), 24 QB hits, and four pass breakups in 34 starts. He was named a captain for half of the 2022 season following the trade of Roquan Smith.

The loss of Jones only adds to the Bears’ needs on the defensive line. They’re in the market for an edge rusher and now need an additional defensive tackle to go along with Andrew Billings, Gervon Dexter, and Zacch Pickens. There are still quality options available, and they could also look at the draft to find someone. Regardless, Jones was productive in Chicago during his two years, and his departure creates a vacancy. Fans will see him again soon enough, though. The Bears and Cardinals are scheduled to meet in 2024.

Akiem Hicks, Eddie Jackson just missed out on PFF’s Top 50 Players of 2020

Bears DT Akiem Hicks and S Eddie Jackson just missed out on making Pro Football Focus’ top 50 players of 2020.

Pro Football Focus released their Top 50 Players of 2020 list, which included outside linebacker Khalil Mack as the lone Chicago Bear. But there were two other Bears that were just outside the top 50: Defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and safety Eddie Jackson.

While Hicks missed most of the 2019 season, his impact during those five games he played was enough to garner him a spot just outside the top 50. The Bears defense was a solid unit in 2019, but they certainly missed Hicks’ present in the middle of that defensive line.

The last fully healthy season we saw from Akiem Hicks was the best of his career, and he reached a truly elite level of play. However, like Smith and Kendricks, it was a huge outlier compared to his previous career baseline. Hicks was a player who graded consistently in the mid-70s in terms of overall PFF grade and suddenly jumped up to 91.7 in 2018. And while last season was cut short due to injury, he was on track to return to those mid-70 grades before it was. Hicks is capable of the kind of play that would land him on the list, but his most likely level puts him in the close-but-not-there category of players.

There’s no denying that Jackson had the worst of his three-year career in 2019, and even his worst was solid. The addition of free safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix forced Jackson to strong safety, where he wasn’t able to make the kind of game-changing plays and takeaways that he’d managed in his first two seasons.

Much like Byard, Eddie Jackson missed the list because of his 2019 performance (his 66.8 overall grade was above average but still not great). Unlike Byard, however, Jackson had just one year of outstanding play before that drop — which now represents only a third of his career output — with the other two years ranking as above-average to good. Jackson strung together a run of phenomenal play in 2018 and won PFF’s award for the best coverage player at any position, but if you were banking on which Eddie Jackson would show up in 2020, it’s tough to lay big money on that player versus the one that has been solid rather than spectacular. 

The Bears expect big things from Hicks and Jackson heading into 2020. Hicks is coming off an elbow injury, but his presence on Chicago’s defensive line will be invaluable. Jackson will return to free safety in 2020, where he’ll get an opportunity to make those game-changing plays that should be enough to crack PFF’s top 50 in 2021.

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