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Bears Who Have Surprised

Some surprising names and some not so surprising have stepped up to help the Bears defense control play at practices without Roquan Smith available according to defensive coordinator Alan Williams.

Coaches have different standards and production values than players or even fans.

With the Bears practicing minus their top defensive playmaker, Roquan Smith, there are still players who have stepped up to help keep the Tampa-2 scheme intact. They're doing things to complement the productive starters.

"If you spend your entire time thinking about what you don't have instead of what you do have and problem-solving in terms of what you do have, you'll be behind the 8-ball and that's not what we're going to do," Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams said. "And we're not going to make excuses on reasons why we can't, we're going to find reasons why we can."

Some of the names Williams names says have stepped up to complement the regular starters and their accomplishments might be surprising. Some might not.

One is an old stand-by who always seems to deliver when the Bears defense needs help, while others are newcomers who have made it easier for middle linebacker Nicholas Morrow or defensive end Robert Quinn.

1. The Playmaker

Take a count from the start of camp for who has the most takeaways generated and it might surprise someone to find that strong side linebacker backup Joe Thomas is the winner.

"We keep track of how many guys have intercepted the ball, how many balls you've knocked out, how many scoop-and-scores, and he's leading the group," Williams said.

Thomas is the 6-foot-1, 233-pound former Packers and Cowboys linebacker who has valuable experience at age 31 playing a 3-4 and 4-3, but had been around the league a while. He would be on the bench or special teams if Smith was back because then Matthew Adams would be the third linebacker instead of second.

"Thomas, he's still doing a great job, actually he's turning the football over at a high rate so when you can do that, that equals wins," Williams said.

2. The Former Colt LB

They brought in Matthew Adams as a free agent from Indianapolis and he was to be the strong side, but his experience playing all positions in Matt Eberflus' 4-3 with the Colts let him step in as the weak side when Smith wasn't going to practice.

"I heard Nick (Morrow) I guess mention the other day in his conference, he said the reason why Matt's here is because he understands the defense, because he plays with high tempo, because he's physical," Williams said.

3. DHC

DeAndre Houston-Carson never fails to produce. The Bears special teams ace started getting more of a defensive role under coach Matt Nagy two years ago and helped make the big upset win over Tampa Bay and Tom Brady possible. The new staff has found a good use for him besides leading special teams.

"When the 'backers are out, what we do is we put in a safety in terms of down at the 'backer spot and we play 'big nickel' for lack of a better word," Williams said. "De'Andre Houston-Carson, DHC, he's done a good job. He's been available assignment-wise, and he's made some plays in there. I'm happy with that."

4. One Cornerback in Particular

Jaylon Jones is one of the undrafted free agents who has impressed most on either side of the ball.

He's a 5-foot-11, 200-pound former Mississippi cornerback and SEC All-Freshman team member who had his career in college derailed a bit by a season-ending injury, and had another injury in 2020.

"Sometimes it's not, 'hey, are you making a play?' " Williams said. "Sometimes it's coming in there, 'Are you just doing your job? Are you a cog in the defense? And are you not giving up big plays? Or not giving up plays that you should have been in the right place?' Really, the corner position—not just one person, but the corner position—those guys coming in, J-Jones coming and playing that spot when he's been outside, those are two guys (Jones and DHC) that have stood out."

5. Justin Jones

The three technique doesn't get to finish his forays into the backfield as a pass rusher but he's had the kind of penetration necessary to create havoc.

"The quick twitch," Williams said. "He's a pro. He knows how to play football. Some guys are—and, don't take this the wrong way—some guys go out there and, they're just, hey, they're doing exactly what the coaches told them to. They're reading their keys. They're getting lined up. They're executing.

"Justin takes it a little bit further and he can do that along with, hey, what is he expecting from the offense in terms of situational football? In this situation, when the back is offset, when the back is to me, when they're in this formation, this is the expectation of the play. He takes it a step further with, he's gone from 101 to 202 and even a higher level in terms of how he plays football."

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