Chicago Bears vs. Arizona Cardinals: Five players to watch

Eddie Jackson, Safety

Eddie Jackson was taken in the fourth round by Ryan Pace. At the time, it was easy to just toss the selection into the heap of mid round safety talent that never pan out for the Chicago Bears. I mean think about it: Al Afalava, Brandon Hardin, Chris Conte, Major Wright and Craig Steltz have never amounted into good NFL safeties.

However, Jackson looks like he could be the real deal. He is a natural playmaker. Fellow saftey Adrian Amos has been solid, for a fifth round pick, but he lacks play making ability. Despite being a starter the past two years, he is yet to record an interception, which says a lot.

Coming out of Alabama, Jackson was viewed as a player with great range, but was also an inconsistent tackler according to Mike Mayock. In the second quarter of the first preseason game, he masterfully broke up a pass play. It showed the tremendous instincts and ball-hawking ability that he plays with. In the third quarter, he made a beautiful tackle. He came up from his safety spot and stopped the running back in his tracks.

Next: What we learned from Bears' first preseason game

Quintin Demps was signed in the offseason and was slotted in as the starter next to Amos. However, with Jackson making plays in camp, all that changes. It’s certainly possible that Jackson starts next to Demps in the first regular season game against the Atlanta Falcons.

He certainly has a chance to further improve those odds against the Cardinals, on Saturday.