Chicago Bears edge rusher Khalil Mack took the NFC North by storm last season when he began the year like a one-man wrecking crew on national television against the Green Bay Packers.
And if it wasn’t for a mid-season ankle injury, who knows how many sacks he would’ve totaled.
But even a hobbled Mack is a ferocious Mack. He finished 2018 with 12.5 sacks in 14 games and is locked and loaded for an even bigger season this fall.
The good folks over at ESPN recently took their best swing at some season predictions for all 32 teams, and it was Jeff Dickerson’s task to predict whether Mack will finish this season with more (or less) than 9.5 sacks.
Seems like an easy call considering Mack has four straight seasons with at least 10.5 or more sacks.
Dickerson took the over.
“Mack will always earn the most attention from opposing offenses, but he’s borderline unstoppable,” Dickerson wrote. “Plus, Mack has the luxury of having an entire offseason and training camp with the Bears. Last season, Mack literally showed up Week 1 and still dominated. Mack’s second year in a Bears’ uniform is expected to be even better.”
While this may be a lofty prediction, I wouldn’t be shocked if Mack leads the NFL in sacks in 2019 and pushes the reserved-for-greatness territory of 20 sacks.
Good luck, NFC North quarterbacks. Good luck.
