Editing Episode 613 (section)

=== The Bears Defence ===
'''Missed Tackles''': 24.2% missed tackle rate in week one, second in the NFL behind Denver (26.1%). Nine of fifteen missed tackles were on receivers after the catch. TJ Edwards missed four — the most in a single game in his Bears career. Tyreek Stevenson missed three. Rookie Malik Muhammad missed three. Cox was not panicking but noted that missing tackles in man coverage compounds more severely than in zone, because there are fewer nearby defenders to clean up.

'''Pass Rush''': Bears were eighth worst in pass rush win rate. Pressure arrived late in plays, after quarterbacks had gone through one or two reads — valid pressure but not disruptive pressure. Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, Dio Odengbo ("motivated Dio Odengbo" was a Bears fan offseason meme that Odengbo himself has leaned into with a smile), Daniel Hardy. Neville Gallimore, Grady Jarrett (34, injured last year), Contavious Street (starting because the Bears traded Jervon Dexter for peanuts rather than extend him), and sixth-rounder Jordan Vandenberg — described by Arif as generating the kind of one-and-a-half-sack game in 2027 that will make people lose their minds. Former Viking James Lynch also in the rotation at both edge and defensive tackle.

'''Linebackers''': TJ Edwards and Devin Bush. Bush had at least one viral rep where a guard simply folded him backwards and he collapsed onto himself; PFF grades suggest he may have been the worst blitzing linebacker in the NFL in week one. Edwards is fine but missed four tackles. Cox assessed the linebacker room as the one supposedly reliable position group that did not look reliable.

'''Secondary''': Jalen Johnson (best training camp of his career, overly aggressive in week one, jumping routes, expected to correct), Tyreek Stevenson (the top concern against Justin Jefferson), Malik Muhammad II (best coverage performance week one of the three corners, also missed tackles), Dylan Thienemann at safety (first-round pick, Arif had noted him being mocked to the Vikings all offseason; Cox was high on him in the draft, assessed him as a safe floor pick with an unknown ceiling, gave up a touchdown on a play against Darren Waller that was flagged for OPI), Xavier Woods/Cam Lewis battling for the other safety spot. Kyler Gordon remains injured. Full health: a pretty good group. Current state: untested.

'''Special Teams''': Torrey Taylor, the fourth-round punter recruited as a weapon, forced a muffed punt via his banana ball spin technique, but the overall weapon promise remains undelivered. Cairo Santos hit two kickoffs short of the landing zone while apparently attempting a knuckleball technique. Bo Gardner from Georgia is the rookie long snapper. Cairo Santos described as reliable in the Hell League for not missing extra points.