The Chicago Bears' defensive struggles have been too much to overlook this season. Head coach Ben Johnson's team has still found ways to pull off wins against lesser teams, but a banged-up and underperforming secondary has left Bears fans with plenty of concerns as the second half of the campaign begins.
The Bears' need for defensive back help should've been an issue to address before last week's trade deadline. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case, and now general manager Ryan Poles' failure to acquire a certain cornerback looks even worse after Sunday.
Bears' Failure to Acquire Alontae Taylor Is Back to Bite Them
Following the annual trade deadline, NFL insider Ian Rapoport revealed that the Bears showed interest in New Orleans Saints CB Alontae Taylor, who ended up staying put in the Big Easy.
"Before the Colts stuck their mega deal for Gardner, they had discussions centered around Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor, who drew real interest on Monday and Tuesday," Rapoport wrote. "In fact, sources say the Bears were deep in talks for Taylor before a deal ended up falling through. Taylor, who is in a contract year and likely will get paid this offseason, spent time with Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen when he was head coach in New Orleans, and the fit made sense."
The Bears needed pass rush help, which led to their acquiring Joe Tryon-Shoyinka from the Cleveland Browns. Even though Tryon-Shoyinka had a solid debut for Chicago, it doesn't change the fact that Taylor's presence could've helped take the secondary to the next level.
After all, Stevenson's woes were evident again in the 24-20 win over the New York Giants. Per Pro Football Focus, he had 51.7 overall and a 53.7 coverage grade, but it's not like defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has many more options to consider at this point.
The Bears desperately need someone to step up while Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon are on injured reserve. They're currently giving up the seventh-most passing yards per game (240.3) and the fifth-most points per game (27.4), and that's despite facing some questionable competition more often than not.
Given his ties to DC Allen from their time with the Saints, Tyalor would've been a seamless fit and a solid plug-and-play option for the Bears' ailing secondary. He's a former second-round selection, and while not a superstar by any means, his ability to play both in the slot and outside would've given this team another versatile choice to deploy all over the banged-up secondary defense.
There's still plenty of time for the Bears' secondary to turn things around down the stretch. Hopefully, none of their defensive backs — especially Stevenson — give more reasons to regret not pushing harder for a Taylor trade last week.