Chicago Bears: James Vaughters earns MVP in loss to Giants
After the Chicago Bears lost to the Giants on Friday, one man stood out above the others. He deserves to be named MVP of this game.
With none of the Chicago Bears starters playing in the second preseason game on Friday night, the top player in this game was likely to be someone most never heard about before. The game was awful from a scoreboard perspective. However, it is preseason and the scoreboard might be the least important numbers of all.
There were some solid individual performances. I had the MVP of the game narrowed down to Clifton Duck and James Vaughters. I gave the edge to Vaughters, but that should not diminish what Duck was able to do on Friday. Duck not only had a 62-yard interception that took place at the one-yard line, but he also made his presence known in coverage and on special teams.
Other notables I considered were Eddy Pineiro who evened things back out with Elliott Fry. Kerrith Whyte who had a nice punt return negated by a penalty and scored the Bears only touchdown. Finally, Javon Wims who silently looked like the best player on the field most the night.
James Vaughters stood out above these players though. Vaughters is an outside linebacker. This is a position that lacks some depth for the Bears and this game might have been enough to crack the 53-man roster.
Vaughters played football at Stanford. He went undrafted, but the Green Bay Packers brought him into camp. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), Vaughters did not stick. He also saw time with the New England Patriots and San Diego Chargers. He has been playing for the Calgary Stampeders in the CFL the last two years.
On Friday, Vaughters looked aggressive. He was flying all over the field and making impactful plays. He came up with a big strip sack that he also recovered. He was also the pursuing pressure that helped make the throw Clifton Duck intercepted be thrown off balance.
Next. Chicago Bears: Takeaways from loss to Giants. dark
Vaughters is currently the sixth OLB on the Chicago Bears depth chart. The guy ahead of him is Kylie Fitts. Fitts has been unimpressive thus far this season, but if the team were to follow their pattern from 2018, it will not matter. Last year they kept six OLB. Could Vaughters be their next Sam Acho? Only time will tell, but the 26-year-old, Chicago native is making a case for himself.