Leonard Floyd had four years to prove he could be that bedrock pass rush presence the Chicago Bears didn’t have ever since Julius Peppers left. His rookie season showed such promise with seven sacks. After that though, things never quite clicked. Injuries continuously haunted him over subsequent seasons and he never seemed to find a groove.
Hopes were still high though in 2019. He’d finished 2018 strong and was finally healthy. It could finally be his year. Nope. Floyd managed just three sacks in 16 games. His worst season since being drafted 9th overall. His lagging presence allowed opponents to focus all their extra blockers towards stopping Khalil Mack.
GM Ryan Pace, his biggest supporter for so long, had seen enough. Floyd was released in the spring and the Bears signed veteran Robert Quinn to replace him. Floyd didn’t have long to sulk though. The Los Angeles Rams swooped in to secure him on a one-year deal for $10 million. They felt they’d secured an adequate replacement for the departing Dante Fowler.
Experts don’t agree.
Mike Clay of ESPN called their Floyd-led pass rush the shakiest in the NFL going into 2020.
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“Shakiest: Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles’ top-two edge rushers from 2019, Dante Fowler Jr. and Clay Matthews, are gone, leaving Bears castoff Leonard Floyd, returning veterans Samson Ebukam and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, and third-round rookie Terrell Lewis to hold down the fort. Fowler and Matthews combined for 19.5 sacks and 90 pass-rush wins on 714 pass-rush attempts last season, compared to 9.0 sacks and 48 wins on 691 tries for Floyd, Ebukam and Okoronkwo.”
Leonard Floyd should thank Mitch Trubisky
When talking about outright draft busts of the 2010s, there is no question Kevin White holds the standard. However, there is a difference between draft busts and draft disappointments. A draft disappointment is somebody who looked for a brief moment like he might be good but ultimately underachieved. People should be talking more about Floyd in that category. Yet they aren’t.
That’s because they’re too busy talking about Mitch Trubisky.
For that, the linebacker should be grateful. Before too long, he’ll be nothing more than a distant memory. A shadow lost in the bright, shining beam of the disastrous Trubisky pick. Every cloud has a silver lining they say.
