With the Chicago Bears’ 90-man roster full — although, it can change at any time — we thought we’d take a look at just how much their roster has changed since about this time last season.
Continuing with defense, the Bears return their core group that have been among the top in the NFL over the last two seasons. They’ve also upgraded several positions this offseason, including pass rush and secondary. While there are some depth concerns at a couple of positions, this Bears roster is stacking up nicely where it could possibly rival the dominant 2018 group.
The expectation for Chicago’s special teams is that it’ll look identical with kicker Eddy Pineiro, punter Pat O’Donnell and long snapper Patrick Scales.
Let’s take a look, position by position, at how the Bears defense and special teams in 2020 compares to 2019.
Defensive Line
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Akiem Hicks | Akiem Hicks |
| Eddie Goldman | Eddie Goldman |
| Bilal Nichols | Bilal Nichols |
| Roy Robertson-Harris | Roy Robertson-Harris |
| Nick Williams | Brent Urban |
| Jonathan Bullard | Abdullah Anderson |
| Abdullah Anderson | John Jenkins |
| Jonathan Harris | Trevon McSwain |
| Jalen Dalton | Lee Autry |
| Daryle Banfield |
The Bears defensive line was arguably the deepest position group on their roster last season, which served them well when Akiem Hicks and Bilal Nichols struggled with their respective injuries. Nick Williams and Roy Robertson-Harris rose to the occasion during their different absences, alongside one of Chicago’s most under-appreciated players in nose tackle Eddie Goldman. Their depth was certainly tested last season, and they handled the loss of Hicks the best they could’ve been expected to.
Heading into 2020, the Bears are returning the core of their defensive line, anchored by Hicks, Goldman, Nichols and Robertson-Harris. While they lost Williams to the Detroit Lions in free agency — a testament to his breakout season as a seven-year veteran — they did add some depth with former Bear John Jenkins and Brent Urban, who returns after signing with Chicago midway through last season.
Advantage: 2019
Outside Linebackers
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Khalil Mack | Khalil Mack |
| Leonard Floyd | Robert Quinn |
| Aaron Lynch | Trevis Gipson |
| Isaiah Irving | Barkevious Mingo |
| Kylie Fitts | Isaiah Irving |
| James Vaughters | Ledarius Mack |
| Mathieu Betts | Devante Bond |
| Chuck Harris | LaCale London |
The Bears pass rush wasn’t at its best in 2019, where even Khalil Mack had an off year in the boxscore. Still, Mack continued to be worth the money and draft capital as one of Chicago’s most dominant defenders. Former first-round pick Leonard Floyd, while he thrived in coverage and stopping the run, continued to regress in getting after the quarterback. His sack total has declined every year since he entered the league in 2016, including a career-low three sacks in 2019. And that was opposite Mack, who opens up some one-on-one opportunities.
Heading into 2020, Chicago made some moves at outside linebacker, parting ways with Floyd, who they couldn’t justify paying $13.2 million. The Bears upgraded their pass rush with the additions of free-agent acquisitions Robert Quinn and Barkevious Mingo along with rookie fifth-rounder Trevis Gipson and undrafted free agent Ledarius Mack. Now that Mack has someone like Quinn opposite him to take advantage of those one-on-one opportunities, we’ll see exactly what this pass rush is capable of.
Advantage: 2020
Inside Linebackers
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Danny Trevathan | Danny Trevathan |
| Roquan Smith | Roquan Smith |
| Nick Kwiatkoski | Joel Iyiegbuniwe |
| Kevin Pierre-Louis | Josh Woods |
| Joel Iyiegbuniwe | Keandre Jones |
| Josh Woods | Rashad Smith |
| Jameer Thurman |
The Bears had a dominant tag-team at inside linebacker in Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith, who both were playing their best football before suffering injury at different points during the 2019 season. Trevathan suffered a gruesome elbow injury in Week 10, which ultimately forced him to miss the remainder of the season. Smith, who got off to a slow start, was coming into his own in his sophomore season before suffering a torn pectoral muscle in Week 14 against the Dallas Cowboys. Ultimately, it was the depth at inside linebacker — specifically the play of Nick Kwiatkoski and Kevin Pierre-Louis — that contributed to Chicago’s continued defensive success.
Heading into 2020, the Bears return their two starting inside linebackers in Trevathan and Smith, which is huge for this defense. But the concern is depth at inside linebacker. The Bears are in trouble if something happens to Trevathan or Smith, as they lack the depth from a season ago with Kwiatkoski and Pierre-Louis, who both signed elsewhere in free agency. Chicago also returns Joel Iyiegbuinwe and Josh Woods and signed Keandre Jones and Rashad Smith in undrafted free agency to serve as depth.
Advantage: 2019
Cornerbacks
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Kyle Fuller | Kyle Fuller |
| Prince Amukamara | Jaylon Johnson |
| Buster Skrine | Buster Skrine |
| Kevin Toliver II | Kevin Toliver II |
| Duke Shelley | Artie Burns |
| John Franklin III | Tre Roberson |
| Stephen Denmark | Kindle Vildor |
| Clifton Duck | Duke Shelley |
| Michael Joseph | Stephen Denmark |
| Michael Joseph | |
| Xavier Crawford |
Chicago returned its starting cornerbacks from what was an impressive 2018 season in Kyle Fuller and Prince Amukamara in 2019. While production ultimately dipped as a whole — in terms of takeaways — Fuller led the Bears with three interceptions, earning him his second straight Pro Bowl nod. Buster Skrine, a free-agent acquisition last offseason, had a solid first season in Chicago. Amukamara had his share of struggles, but he remained solid at right cornerback. Ultimately, the Bears parted ways with Amukamara to free up salary cap space, and they faced a daunting task of finding his replacement.
Heading into 2020, the Bears added a ton of depth at cornerback — players that could compete for the starting cornerback job opposite Fuller. While second-round rookie Jaylon Johnson figures to be the favorite to land that starting spot, he will have to compete against third-year corner Kevin Toliver and newcomers Artie Burns and Tre Roberson. General manager Ryan Pace has said that you can’t have too many cornerbacks, which certainly explains why the cornerback group rivals the tight ends group in size.
Advantage: 2020
Safeties
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Eddie Jackson | Eddie Jackson |
| Ha Ha Clinton-Dix | Tashaun Gipson |
| Deon Bush | Deon Bush |
| Sherrick McManis | Jordan Lucas |
| DeAndre Houston-Carson | Sherrick McManis |
| Jonathon Mincy | DeAndre Houston-Carson |
| Doyin Jibowu | Kentrell Brice |
The Bears reunited former Alabama teammates Eddie Jackson and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in Chicago, where the duo had a solid season in 2019. With Jackson coming off an All-Pro and Pro-Bowl season, the Bears moved him to strong safety in order to accommodate Clinton-Dix, which resulted in a dip in Jackson’s production. Still, Jackson managed to snag two interceptions en route to his second straight Pro Bowl appearance. Clinton-Dix, who signed a one-year prove-it deal, proved that he deserved a long-term contract — only that wasn’t going to come in Chicago.
Heading into 2020, the Bears upgraded at the safety position with the free-agent signing of Tashaun Gipson, who has a reputation for being a ballhawk and figures to be the presumptive starter opposite Jackson. Chicago maintains a good portion of their depth pieces with Deon Bush, DeAndre Houston-Carson and Sherrick McManis, along with newcomers Jordan Lucas and Kentrell Brice. And perhaps most importantly, they locked down one of the backbones of their defense in Jackson, who figures to return to free safety this season, for the long-term.
Advantage: 2020
Special Teams
PIC
| 2019 | 2020 |
| Pat O’Donnell | Pat O’Donnell |
| Patrick Scales | Patrick Scales |
| Eddy Pineiro | Eddy Pineiro |
| Elliott Fry | Ramiz Ahmed |
Remember when Chicago’s biggest concern last offseason was who would win the starting kicker job? Eddy Pineiro ultimately won the starting job over Elliott Fry after a back-and-forth battle in training camp and preseason. While Pineiro had a rough patch in the middle of the season — including an atrocious outing against the Los Angeles Chargers — he had a solid rookie season.
Heading into 2020, not much has changed other than the Bears adding another kicker in Ramiz Ahmed, who will serve as competition for Pineiro. Ultimately, the expectation is that Chicago’s special teams will look identical to last year’s group at kicker with Pineiro, punter with Pat O’Donnell and long snapper with Patrick Scales.
