Ryan Pace, Bears may have found future defensive leader in 2020 NFL Draft

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The Bears may have found another defensive leader when they drafted Tulsa pass rusher, Trevis Gipson.

Ryan Pace selected Gipson in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL draft, and Gipson’s former college coach Philip Montgomery says the Bears got not only an impact player, but a great locker room presence.

“This guy’s probably the best — and I’ve been around some really good ones — but overall, maybe our best team captain that I’ve ever been around and been with,” Montgomery said via Tulsa World. “I’m just so happy for him and for both of them and their families and excited to see what the future holds.”

Montgomery used a disappointing example to illustrate Gipson’s leadership: Tulsa’s 42-41 homecoming loss to Memphis. Tulsa’s kicker missed a 29-yard field goal as time expired, and Gipson was already at the postgame podium before Montgomery had a chance to speak with him, according to Tulsa World.

“It’s not just one player’s fault just because it came at the end of the game,” Gipson said after that game, according to Tulsa World. “Everybody makes mistakes throughout the game. I feel like a lot of people zero in on that key moment at the game just because that’s when it arrives. I don’t think that’s necessarily fair because people on offense and defense make mistakes — special teams, too. It’s not just special teams or it’s not just offense or not just defense, it’s us as a team.”

“Unless we’re 100 percent making every play and no mistakes at all, then it falls somewhere on the team — not just one person.”

Sounds like the Bears could’ve used Gipson after the double-doink...

Gipson played defensive end in college, but in the Bears 3-4 defense he could slot in as a rotational OLB behind Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn.

Over his last two seasons at Tulsa he recorded 12 sacks and 24 TFL.

RELATED: 2020 NFL Power Rankings: Post draft edition

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