Chicago Bears: Five players primed to break out in 2019

Leonard Floyd showed massive promise in college and in his rookie season but has failed to stay healthy long enough to put together an elite season.

Coming out of the University of Georgia, Leonard Floyd was praised for his quickness, athleticism, and ability to get the quarterback. In his rookie year, Floyd had a monster season, recording seven sacks despite playing in only twelve games. In the two seasons following his rookie year, Floyd only recorded a total of 8.5 sacks.

One of Floyd’s negatives on his scouting report coming into the NFL was his frail, skinny size. Many executives worried that his lanky stature would prevent him from getting around offensive linemen at the professional level and that he would be an injury-prone player. Floyd’s size does not seem to be an issue as it pertains to being an effective pass rusher, but his nagging injuries have been the story of his young career.

This past season, Floyd played all sixteen games for the first time in his career. The negative to this: the edge rusher recorded his lowest sack total of his career. The full season does not accurately depict the year that Floyd has, as although he partook in every game, he had nagging injuries for the majority of the year. With the second half of the season pretty much completely healthy for Floyd, along with a healthy training camp, the young outside linebacker should be set up nicely for a breakout year.

In addition to health considerations, perhaps playing under a more aggressive defensive coordinator in Chuck Pagano will help Floyd focus on what he does best: get after the quarterback. The defensive genius of Vic Fangio is undeniable by any Bears fan, but the former defensive play-caller may have dropped Floyd back into coverage a bit too often, something he does not excel at.