When the Bears’ go-to explanation for Khalil Mack’s down year in sacks is that he’s constantly getting double- and triple-teamed, someone should be cashing in on all that diverted attention.
And the most logical someone is fellow outside linebacker and former first-round pick Leonard Floyd, one of the most gifted athletes in this defense. But that hasn’t happened.
He has three sacks in 690 defensive snaps this season, ranking third on the team behind Mack (6.5) and defensive tackle Nick Williams (six). Ninety-seven NFL players have more sacks this season, and Floyd hasn’t had one in a month.
Nonetheless, as the Bears sit 19th in the NFL in sacks, coach Matt Nagy insists they’re getting everything they need from him.
“I really like where he’s at,” Nagy said. “I love production, I love numbers, I love all the fantasy stuff, but... He’s done a lot of great things and I’m proud of him for it.”
Reaching a verdict on Floyd’s season — and his four-year run with the Bears overall — is complicated. He’s a good player, and almost any team would be happy to have him on the roster. But there are enormous expectations when a player is drafted No. 9 overall.
The Bears hoped they were hitting on a generational sack master, but Floyd’s career high of seven came in his rookie season. By contrast, the Chargers took Joey Bosa third that year and he has averaged more than nine sacks per season.
Floyd was the third pass rusher chosen in 2016, but he ranks seventh in his draft class with 18.5 career sacks. Two fifth-rounders are ahead of him.
That surely wasn’t what general manager Ryan Pace envisioned, but it’s too harsh to call Floyd a bust. The Bears liked him enough to trigger their $13.2 million option on him for 2020, which is currently the 22nd-highest salary-cap hit for that season.
Most pass rushers are fixated on sacks, but Floyd isn’t caught up in that. And quality performances don’t always result in sacks.
“I just go out and play football as hard as I can for the team to win,” he said. “Whatever plays I make, I make them... There’s been a couple of plays this year where I get there, [but the] ball’s out. I get there again, [but the] ball’s out again. There’s been a lot of close chances.”
It takes a lot just to get close, but it doesn’t make much difference in the game if he doesn’t get his hands on the quarterback. If teams can go all-out to block Mack without fear that someone else will make them pay, it emboldens their passing attack.
The Bears were third in sacks last season, and had correlated success in pass defense by leading the league in opponent passer rating (72.9) and interceptions (27). Opponents have a significantly higher passer rating this season at 86.4, and the Bears are 18th in interceptions.
They’re still a good defense, but it’s not like last season. Maybe Akiem Hicks’ return next week will change that.
It’d be such a perfect time to have Floyd go on a sack binge, but everyone’s waiting on a breakthrough that hasn’t come at 27. So far he’s good, not great.
Nagy and defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano steered the conversation to Floyd’s effort and grit, and Floyd has demonstrated both. He suffered a rib injury early against the Lions last week, and trainers told Pagano he’d be out the rest of the game.
Floyd returned before halftime.
“I was gutting it out,” he said. “It was hurting pretty [bad], but just gotta fight through it.”
It was a praiseworthy effort.
But the Bears need more than trying hard and getting close. They’re want an overwhelming pass rush, and they just aren’t scaring anyone lately with five sacks in their last four games. They need Floyd to be great, not good.
