Chicago Bears: Is team crazy for thinking Jake Martin could be answer in 2024?

Many people feel that the Chicago Bears desperately need an edge rusher opposite of Montez Sweat. General Manager Ryan Poles feels happy with what he has. Is he crazy to think Jacob Martin could be the answer this year?

Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles has done an amazing job (on paper at least) of building this roster. This offseason, he overhauled the offense and made it look like it could turn into a scoring machine. There is still some more work to be done, however.

One of the biggest nagging questions is on defense. There is a huge question about the edge rushers. Poles traded for Montez Sweat in the middle of last season. That was one of the best moves made by any team. Sweat helped transform the defense from a unit trying to find itself to one of the best ones in the NFL.

This season, the Chicago Bears’ defense is poised to show all season that it is an elite unit. However, the question at edge rusher might derail that plan.

The Bears need an edge rusher who can complement Montez Sweat. If there is no one else who can rush the quarterback then opponents will just send as many blockers Sweat’s way to slow his path to the quarterback. If no one else can make them pay for that, then Sweat is quickly neutralized.

We saw that in the 2023 regular-season finale against the Green Bay Packers. They always had a couple of players in Sweat’s way on every play. As a result, Sweat was a non-factor and Jordan Love carved up the secondary. Even then, however, the Bears had a shot at winning. Now imagine an offense that is clicking and someone complementing Sweat.

Do the Chicago Bears go outside or stay in-house for help?

The prevailing thought is that the Chicago Bears will bring in a veteran to help at the edge. He could be a one-year bridge and hopefully Austin Booker, the talented fifth-round pick in this year’s draft, could be ready. Booker has shown an incredible upside despite being inexperienced.

Booker does not play like he is inexperienced. He looks like this is natural for him. He was incredibly effective with the Kansas Jayhawks. He led the team in both sacks and tackles for loss despite being a backup, so he got into the backfield easily. During OTAs and minicamp, he overwhelmed the backup blockers and held his own against the ones.

Even the most ardent Booker supporter has to admit that taking the next step could take some time. Booker likely remains in a reserve role in 2024 while he adjusts to the NFL play.

That leaves the question of what happens with the starting edge rusher. Some of the available pass rushers are starting to make team visits. Emmanuel Ogbah re-signed with the Miami Dolphins after meeting with them. Yannick Ngakoue also visited Miami.

Ngakoue was with the Chicago Bears last season so if Poles wants to go the new veteran route he could do it with a familiar face. Ngakoue struggled in Chicago last season but started to pick up his play when Sweat came to town. Then he fractured his ankle and his season was done.

Poles could decide to stay pat and go with who he has now on the roster. This is something he recently said was an option. He said he was happy with who he had, signaling that he could let the situation play out during camp.

Yeah, I don’t really see it as a defensive end problem. Our mindset’s always, how can we make a position group the best we /can possibly make it and as deep as we possibly can make it. So it’s like I said, just really leaning on (defensive lines coach) Travis [Smith] and (defensive coordinator) Eric [Washington] to continue to develop the players that we have in and see, especially when we get pads on, see how they do. We saw some really encouraging things during OTAs. But we all know this game is played in full pads, so we want to see that process through.

The Chicago Bears also have DaMarcus Walker, who started most of last season. He became a backup when Sweat got to Chicago. He became the starter again when Ngakoue went down. He struggled, however, even when playing alongside Sweat. Hopefully, he learned from what happened last season and has a better one in 2024.

There is also Dominique Robinson. He was the last project Poles and the Chicago Bears had. There were high hopes for him when they drafted him in the fifth round in 2022. Things started great when he recorded 1.5 sacks in his first professional game. However, he has had just half a sack in his next 27 games.

Robinson is now just trying to make the roster. He could be the odd man out if the Bears bring in someone else.

That leaves Jacob Martin. Poles signed him as a free agent. He is the epitome of a journeyman player, having played for five teams in his six seasons. He had 13.5 sacks in his first four seasons. He has not had big numbers otherwise. In his last two seasons, he totaled 4.5 sacks.

Martin could play a bigger part of the offense than people think. During practices, the coaches have had him rush the quarterback in passing situations. They moved Walker over to the inside next to Gervon Dexter. Walker has usually been a better pass rusher from the inside.

It might not matter who starts opposite of Sweat. The more important thing is who can play there in the important situations. Martin is familiar with the Chicago Bears’ defensive system. Head coach Matt Eberflus’ system is similar to the one run by Lovie Smith with the Houston Texans.

Martin played under Smith’s system in 2021 and had his best season. He had 4 sacks, 38 pressures, and 23 tackles. Returning to a familiar defensive scheme might be great for him and the Chicago Bears. The defense could use him in different situations and he could be a great pickup.

The Chicago Bears could go with a committee of pass rushers both inside and outside to give them an advantage. Martin could end up being a key cog and help the defense become the elite unit many feel it is.

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