Signing Grady Jarrett was something the Chicago Bears didn’t need to think about for long. Mere hours after the two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle was released by the Atlanta Falcons, he signed a three-year deal with Chicago. He felt the love right away. The intent was obvious for the Bears. Interior pass rushers are hard to find in the NFL. Even at 31 years old, Jarrett has shown he can still be that disruptor in the middle that opposing offensive lines must account for. Throw in Montez Sweat, Gervon Dexter, Andrew Billings, and Dayo Odeyingbo, and this could be the best group Jarrett has played with.
However, his value goes beyond that. One thing that was evident for years in Atlanta was Jarrett’s leadership. He was a team captain every year and a tremendous influence on his teammates. Everybody loved him. There could be no doubt he’d be such a great sounding board for young guys like Dexter and Austin Booker. It appears the defensive tackle isn’t wasting time. Video surfaced on Instagram of him and the rest of his new teammates working down at the University of Miami. It doesn’t take long to see he still has that wicked first step.
Grady Jarrett should serve as a great example for Dexter.
The young defensive tackle made great strides last season, finishing with five sacks. His power, length, and motor were on display constantly. The primary thing holding him back from a true breakthrough has been his first step. Many believe it’s still too slow to maximize his pass rush potential. That is where Grady Jarrett can help. His explosion off the snap is one of the reasons he’s been among the best in the NFL for a decade. If Dexter can apply even a sliver of that same quickness to his own game, he could become devastating. Either way, it is great to see Jarrett hasn’t wasted any time building chemistry with his new teammates. Everybody seems dialed into making this season a good one.
@Skeeter — I agree 100% with your take on Austin Booker. Not only has he a non-stop motor — he consistently maintains a playmaker’s “body positioning.” Booker may again, actually display a chance at: ▪︎ a batted pass ▪︎ a sack ▪︎ a forced fumble, and ▪︎ the tackle downfield — all on the same play! The only other NFL player that I can recall doing that as a Bear, is Khalil Mack (but LB Brian Urlacher “running down” Michael Vick was pretty special, too). If the coaches could only get Gervon Dexter Sr. to play as opportunisticly, we’d really… Read more »
Jarrett won’t be a full time starter, he’ll be rotating with Andrew Billings, as I see it, our D-line right now at the moment is 7 deep, I say 7 because I really feel this will be Bookers breakout year, he knows what to expect and dude has a high motor, success is in his future.
And to think we’ll be adding more talent to the D-Line via the draft potentially turns this defense around in just 1 off season, I think the scheme change and this talent is gonna make this the year we turn that corner, I’m pumped…!
Will Jarrett and Thuney be deservingly team captains during their first year being Chicago Bears? The sooner they help the team and younger players, the greater their legitimacy in becoming so. The Bears cannot afford envy, petty jealousy, and hurt feelings during the season.
This dude will make our entire defense better. I’m excited to watch them play this year. Bring back Monsters of the Midway 3.0. 🍻
Note to Lambert’s avid readers:
Grady Jarrett is prrcisely what an actual.NFL team captain looks like.
“Team first” beats the hell out of “me first” every single time.
Welcome, Grady Jarrett!