Contrary to conventional wisdom, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has built his defense from the outside in, pouring resources and attention into the secondary rather than the defensive line. This strategy has been heavily criticized as a big gamble, but after the Bears' joint practice with the Cincinnati Bengals, we may soon see this gamble pay off.

Chicago's secondary held the Bengals' offense in check

Unfortunately for Bears and Bengals fans, this joint practice on Thursday was closed to the public, but media members attended and have been reporting on what they saw since practice wrapped. While most Bengals fans were hyped by Dexter Lawrence's interception of Caleb Williams, Bears fans got some big news of their own on Friday.

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune went on the 104.3 The Score Chicago radio program on Friday morning, and he reported that Chicago's secondary "held its own" against one of the most explosive passing offenses in the league, led by quarterback Joe Burrow and three-time All-Pro wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase.

"There were completions that were made, but you didn't see Ja'Marr [Chase] or Tee [Higgins] take the top off the defense," Briggs said. "[We] saw Jaylon Johnson pretty stick in man coverage... Tyrique Stevenson had really good coverage all over Higgins, who is a six-foot-four wide receiver."

Briggs went on to add, "There were some coverage sacks, like sacks that weren't necessarily generated because the Bears won their one-on-one's on the line immediately. They were created because things were covered up downfield."

How the Bears' secondary can boost the defensive line

That last part is the biggest takeaway for Bears fans. It's nice to hear that Johnson and Stevenson had good coverage on a pair of elite wide receivers, especially when a quarterback as great as Joe Burrow was the guy throwing them the ball. But at the end of the day, sacks, not incompletions, are what end drives, and that's exactly what Chicago didn't get nearly enough of last year.

The Bears simply do not have the horsepower on their defensive line to generate immediate sacks. Montez Sweat, despite a solid year in 2025, isn't the kind of game-wrecker that keeps offensive linemen up at night. Austin Booker may blossom into a solid pass rusher in his own right, but his absolute ceiling is likely what Montez Sweat is right now. If the Bears are going to get more sacks in 2026 than they did a year ago, they're going to need those coverage sacks that Briggs talked about.

And that's the payoff that Ryan Poles is hoping to get from his gamble on the secondary. He signed Jaylon Johnson to a four-year contract extension in 2024, came to a $40 million agreement with Coby Bryant, and came away with arguably the biggest Round 1 heist in the 2026 NFL draft by selecting safety Dillon Thieneman at No. 25. Like a Lamborghini, the engine of this defense is in its rear rather than up at the front.

By providing 'sticky' coverage and shutting down passing lanes, the Bears' secondary can give the big fellas up front more time to get home. As aforementioned, neither Sweat nor Booker are the kind of monsters that can beat offensive lineman in a second, flat. They need an extra tick or tick-and-a-half to get home, and it looks like that's what they're getting from their defensive backs.

The Bottom Line

After a shockingly successful season in 2025, the Bears are most analysts' top pick as a regression candidate in 2026. Even though the mere presence of Ben Johnson should dispel these regression forecasts early in the season, they persist for now, and a big reason why is the Bears' historic turnover differential in 2025. That one statistic is almost certain to regress this year, but the Bears can more than make up for it with their new-look secondary.

A secondary that doesn't give up busted coverages or let even superstar receivers break wide open is a dangerous one, and if the Bears' defensive backs can do that and force coverage sacks against the Bengals, then they can do it to anyone. That has to be exciting for Ryan Poles, who's counting on this group to boost the entire defense and vindicate his roster building decisions.

In fairness to Poles, it's not like he's ignored the defensive line entirely. He did trade for Montez Sweat three years ago and he spent big money on defensive line acqusitions in free agency in 2025. But Sweat remains a good-not-great player, and those free agent signings have thus far been massive disappointments, and that's forced Poles to beef up the back end of the defense.

Here at last I'll add the customary grain of salt and acknowledge that this was just a practice session. However, it was slightly more than that. This was a joint practice, and NFL coaches commonly treat joint practices as if they were a real game. Rest assured that the Bengals were giving it their all on Thursday, and yet they still were stymied multiple times. For what that's worth, I'd take that as a very good sign of things to come for the Bears.

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