Pernell McPhee could be key to Chicago Bears success in 2017

For the Chicago Bears to be successful in 2017, linebacker Pernell McPhee may have to play a big role for the team.

Maybe it’s because of the hype around defensive players like Akiem Hicks and Leonard Floyd who actually have been on the field, or maybe it’s because of the constant conversation about who the Bears’ quarterbacks, or maybe it’s just because Chicago was too busy enjoying a beautiful Labor Day.

Whatever the reason is, the activation of Pernell McPhee isn’t getting enough attention.

The excitement for the Chicago Bears going into the 2017 season is, questionable, at best. Everyone knows this team isn’t especially good, but there’s no consensus on what exactly that means.

There’s no doubt that last year’s paltry 3-win Bears team was at least, in part, a result of being a young roster decimated by injuries. Most would probably agree that there are clear bright spots -namely with the front seven, running back(s), and (interior) offensive line – going into the 2017 season.

But even with general agreements on those obvious reasons to expect improvement, Bears fans are all over the place on how good, or bad, this team really is.

For example, here’s Robert Mays, a writer at The Ringer and a Bears fan, projecting the Bears in the bottom eight of the league. And here’s Kevin Fishbain, a Bears reporter for The Athletic proclaiming quite positively that the Bears will be better than .500.

With overall agreement at least on what the Bears’ strengths are, as well as where there are the question marks or weaknesses (quarterback, receivers, secondary), the fate of the Bears will likely either depend on whether there is improvement across the board, or if one unit truly sets itself apart as a game-changing force that can be depended on week in and week out.

There can be arguments made for or against either of those improvements taking place or not, but the latter became a lot more probable on Monday.

That is the gargantuan smile of outside linebacker Pernell McPhee; and if he stays on the field for the Bears this year, the front seven has the potential to go from a unit with promise to a dominant force.

McPhee, who was signed by the Bears from the Ravens in 2015, has been a strong presence on the edge for Chicago when he’s seen the field, but knee injuries have limited his playing time the past two years, missing nine games entirely.

The 7-year veteran had been on the PUP list since the beginning of training camp after having arthroscopic surgery on his knee in the offseason. Now off the PUP list, with hopes to possibly play in Week 1 against the Super Bowl runner-up Falcons, McPhee’s addition to the Bears’ defense could be greater than his already obvious individual talent.

Pernell McPhee is good. The tape shows it. According to Pro Football Focus, it’s true.  But there’s no point to embellish anything; this isn’t a case of the defense simply getting their single best player back. No, instead the return of Pernell McPhee isn’t so exciting for Chicago because of what he alone can do, but what his presence does for everyone around him.

If you were to randomly poll people on who the two best players on the Bears’ defense are, I’d bet the two most common names would be second-year edge rusher Leonard Floyd and defensive end Akiem Hicks.

Those very well may be the correct answers, but the fact that those two names are so popular right now almost too quickly breezes over Willie Young, with his team-leading 24 sacks in the past three seasons, or Jerrell Freeman, who has quietly been rated the best linebacker in football.

The re-addition of McPhee first and foremost further bolsters a unit already filled with talent. It also more directly fills the recent hole left by the Bears placing outside linebacker Lammar Houston on season-ending IR with plans to work out an injury settlement, ending his days with the team.

Houston was signed to a five-year contract the year before McPhee, with the front office having similar ambitions for him: to be a power rusher off the edge.  Hampered by two ACL surgeries, Houston never lived up to the billing in Chicago.  For the front seven to truly become an elite unit, it’s crucial McPhee does.

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And here’s how McPhee joining the linemen and linebackers can equal a sum greater than its already impressive parts:

McPhee brings power off the edge, with the ability to rush inside as well. Floyd and Young are a formidable tandem rushing together on the outside, but both rely primarily on their speed, especially Floyd.

To diversify the pass rush, any team needs a mix of speed and strength. The 280-pound McPhee can supply the brawn. As individuals, Floyd and McPhee have excelled, but putting their two styles of attack together could make one of the most dynamic pass rush duos in the league.

As shown in his time with the 49ers before coming to Chicago, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has made his name on developing punishing front sevens. Fangio regularly utilizes creative movements with stunts and twists into his rushing attacks that, combined with the athleticism and talent of his players, are confusing and difficult to block.

A player like McPhee can unlock even more opportunities for the defensive coordinator. Not only does McPhee bring raw power, but he’s able to bounce inside and outside and play on and off the line of scrimmage. In Fangio’s base 3-4 set, this can be especially valuable to mix McPhee in, potentially at the last minute, between the holes in the defensive line.

Here’s a highlight of Akiem Hicks sacking Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota two weeks ago. Hicks is the highlight, but notice that defensive tackle Eddie Goldman rips by not one but two blockers to get to the quarterback right after Hicks.

Plays like this are the legitimate expectation of those two, and the Bears believe they’ll form a strong front of the 3-4. But if McPhee can shift in from the edge to rush up the interior gaps in the line along side them? Well, it’s flexibility and the combination of weapons like that which can unlock this defense.

Next: Three Bears Who Should Not Have Been Cut

The Bears’ season could go many different ways in 2017. If the team is going to improve, let alone actually impress across the league, it will either have to take steps forward all over the roster, or one group will have to become truly elite to the point that it can elevate the entire team. With the return of Pernell McPhee, the defensive front seven could very well make that jump.