2018 Depth Chart
CORNERBACK
1. Kyle Fuller
Usage: 16 games, 96.3 percent of defensive snaps
2019 status: $13.5 million cap hit
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Fuller led the NFL with seven interceptions and was one of the best cornerbacks in the league in 2018, rewarding the Bears for matching the Packers’ four-year, $56 million offer sheet. His durability and work ethic stood out, too — this is a guy who watched film at dinners with teammates, after all.
Fuller isn’t cheap moving forward — his 2019 cap hit is only exceeded by Khalil Mack and Allen Robinson — but he’s proven to be worth that figure over the last two years.
2. Prince Amukamara
Usage: 15 games, 86.5 percent of defensive snaps
2019 status: $9.5 million cap hit
Amukamara ended his three-year interception drought with a pick-six in Week 2, and had two other interceptions with six pass break-ups in one of the better seasons of his eight-year career. His contract is structured to allow the Bears an easy out after 2019, with $9 million in cap savings and only $1 million in dead cap, per Spotrac, though that's a little ways off. He’ll be back this year as a stable, productive, physical presence opposite Fuller.
NFL
3. Bryce Callahan
Usage: 13 games, 64.2 percent of defensive snaps
2019 status: Unrestricted free agent
That Callahan missed the season’s final three and a half games and still played nearly two-thirds of the Bears’ defensive snaps speaks to how important a nickel corner is for a team’s defense. Callahan, too, had a productive, box score-stuffing season: Two interceptions, five pass break-ups, two sacks and 13 total pressures. This all while playing solid coverage before a foot injury ended his season in Week 14.
Callahan, though, has had injury issues in the past, which could give the Bears some pause about retaining him on a multi-year contract. The Baltimore Ravens signed slot corner Tavon Young to a three-year, $25.8 million contract with $13 million guaranteed, per OverTheCap.com, which could be a decent barometer for what it’ll take to sign Callahan.
The Bears do have the cap room to sign Callahan to a similar deal. Doing so would likely mean they likely couldn’t also retain safety Adrian Amos (more on him later), but it’s hard to have a truly complete defense without solid play from a slot corner. That’s exactly what Callahan provides, provided he’s healthy.
4. Sherrick McManis
Usage: 15 games, 22.4 percent of defensive snaps, 59.1 percent of special teams snaps
2019 status: $1,987,500 cap hit
McManis acquitted himself well in place of Callahan, which represented his first significant snaps on defense since 2015. Still, he could be better served as a core special teamer and solid backup rather than a full-time starter, though if the Bears move on from Callahan he’d be in line to compete for a starting gig in 2019 with a cheaper veteran and/or draft pick.
5. Kevin Toliver II
Usage: 15 games, 12.8 percent of defensive snaps, 26.4 percent of special teams snaps
2019 status: $575,000 cap hit
The Bears saw enough in Toliver during training camp to keep him around for the regular season, but he’ll likely face competition to keep his backup job. He has good length and is a former five-star recruit, so there’s some potential to be molded there.
6. Marcus Williams
Usage: 3 games, 1.1 percent of defensive snaps, 4 percent of special teams snaps
2019 status: Unrestricted free agent
Williams was signed after Callahan’s injury as a backup to McManis. He didn’t play much, though is only a few years removed from having six interceptions for the New York Jets in 2015.
7. Jonathon Mincy
Usage: Practice squad
2019 status: Reserve/future contract
The former CFL player hung around the Bears’ practice squad last year after making the jump from the CFL's Montreal Alouettes. The former Auburn Tiger could compete for a job as a slot corner if Callahan departs.
8. Michael Joseph
Usage: Practice squad
2019 status: Reserve/future contract
Joseph is a neat story: He’s an Oswego alum who barely played in high school, yet kept plugging away at Division-III Dubuque and was able to stick on the Bears’ practice squad last year. He’ll be back to compete to turn heads of a new defensive coaching staff in 2019.
9. John Franklin III
Usage: Practice squad
2019 status: Reserve/future contract
Speaking of neat stories, Franklin — the “Last Chance U” alum — only began playing cornerback last spring. He was waived on cut-down day and didn’t return to the practice squad until Sept. 26…then was released later that day. He was brought back to the practice squad on Nov. 24 and the Bears thought enough of him to keep him around on a reserve/future deal. He’s fast and athletic, but whether he can learn how to play cornerback quick enough will determine how long his football career continues.
Level of need (1-11, with 11 being the highest): 9
If the Bears do retain Callahan, this need will significantly lessen. But Ryan Pace needs to make sure the Bears have slot corner locked down, perhaps more than he does the safety position opposite Eddie Jackson. Bringing in some competition at outside corner behind Fuller and Amukamara — perhaps through the draft — would be beneficial, too.
SAFETY
1. Eddie Jackson
Usage: 14 games, 86 percent of defensive snaps
2019 status: $811,449 cap hit
Jackson was one of the best safeties in the NFL in 2018, combining his rangy ballhawking skills with a deep knowledge of Vic Fangio’s scheme to pick off six passes and score three touchdowns. He grew as a leader, too, the kind of guy the Bears can envision on the back end of their defense for years to come.
If Jackson’s All-Pro trajectory continues in 2019, he’ll be due for a hefty payday in 2020. He’s the kind of player the Bears won’t want to risk losing to free agency.
2. Adrian Amos
Usage: 16 games, 97.7 percent of defensive snaps
2019 status: Unrestricted free agent
Given the Bears need to earmark a sizable chunk of cash for a Jackson contract extension, Amos may not fit in the team’s long-term plans. It’s not necessarily good business to have a lot of money tied up at safety — the average salary for a safety in 2018 was a little over $2.8 million, lower than any position on defense besides defensive tackle, per Spotrac.
Still, it’s not always a bad thing — the Baltimore Ravens had an excellent defense in 2018 with nearly $23 million committed to their starting safeties, while the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl with the second-most cap space allocated to safeties. The Bears could value Amos’ durability and steady improvement over the last two years, though Amos could take those traits and see what he can get on the open market.
2019’s free agent class of safeties is deep, led by LaMarcus Joyner, Earl Thomas and Tyrann Mathieu (and, depending on what shakes out with the franchise tag in New York, Landon Collins) while including solid players like HaHa Clinton-Dix, Adrian Phillips, Anthony Harris and Amos. Perhaps the flooded market will decrease Amos’ price to a point the Bears are comfortable paying. If it doesn’t, though, the Bears may look to make Callahan the priority to re-sign.
3. Deon Bush
Usage: 15 games, 14.5 percent of defensive snaps, 58.4 percent of special teams snaps
2019 status: $851,556 cap hit
If Amos departs in free agency, Bush would be the next man up, though he’d have to compete to win a starting job in 2019. The former fourth-round pick out of Miami played 45 percent of the Bears’ defensive snaps in 2016, but wasn’t on the field much over the last two years outside of special teams. He held his own after Jackson sprained his ankle in Week 15.
4. DeAndre Houston-Carson
Usage: 13 games, 4.4 percent of defensive snaps, 61.2 percent of special teams snaps
2019 status: Restricted free agent
The Bears could look to bring back Houston-Carson on a cheaper deal than the roughly $2 million it would take to retain him with an original-round tender as a restricted free agent. He’s been a solid special teams contributor for the last few years but has only played 70 snaps on defense since debuting in 2016.
Level of need (1-11, with 11 being the highest): 8
Letting Amos walk would open up a hole Pace could aim to fill with both a veteran free agent and a draft pick, along with the incumbent in Bush. Unless Amos does return, look for the safety spot opposite Jackson to produce a competitive battle during OTAs and training camp.