Darrell Taylor Had a Career-High 9.5 Sacks in 2022

The Bears have been trying to secure another pass rusher for their rotation for some time. The latest episode of “Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Chicago Bears” confirmed they offered a 2025 third-round pick to the New England Patriots for four-time Pro Bowl veteran Matthew Judon but lost out to the Atlanta Falcons after they insisted on Judon signing a new contract with the team for the 2024 season.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer also reported on August 16 that the Bears had been in talks with former starter Yannick Ngakoue about potentially re-signing him for 2024.

Ultimately, though, the Bears landed on a younger option in the 27-year-old Taylor, who had more success as a pass rusher than Judon or Ngakoue in 2023.

Taylor did not play as a rookie for the Seahawks in 2020, spending the majority of the season on the reserve/non-football injury list as he recovered from a leg injury that he had sustained in his final year at Tennessee. Once he returned in 2021, though, he made a quick impact for Seattle with four sacks and 12 total tackles in his first five games.

Taylor finished with 6.5 sacks in his first full season in 2021 and then upped the ante in 2022, recording a career-high 9.5 sacks and four forced fumbles in 16 games despite primarily operating as an off-the-bench player for their rotation. He added another 5.5 sacks in 2023 in a similar role for the Seahawks, a sign he could soon turn a corner.

How Taylor will factor into the Bears’ rotation in 2024 remains unclear, especially after Booker showed immense promise in the preseason. Still, he is comfortable coming off the bench and has at least five sacks in each of his three healthy seasons.

Sounds like a win for Chicago.

Will Dominique Robinson Miss the Cut After Trade?

The Bears now have four pass rushers who are clear-cut choices to make the initial 53-man roster between Sweat, Booker, Walker and Taylor. Could the trade for Taylor also spell doom for 2022 fifth-round pick Dominique Robinson’s roster chances?

Robinson is coming off an ugly 2023 season in which he struggled to make an impact during his limited opportunities at defensive end for the Bears. In 155 pass-rushing snaps, he recorded just 12 tackles, five pressures and a half-sack. He also looked inept as a run defender, earning a miserable 35.3 overall grade from Pro Football Focus.

To Robinson’s credit, he has looked better in his third NFL training camp. General manager Ryan Poles even shouted out his development when he joined the preseason TV broadcast for an interview during the Bears’ matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals. Still, with the preseason in the rearview, Robinson might not even be their fifth option.

Daniel Hardy — a 2022 seventh-round pick for the Los Angeles Rams — finished as one of the most active defenders in the preseason, recording more sacks (3.5) and pressures (14) than any other player. He could still face an uphill battle trying to make the Bears’ 53-man roster with four others higher than him on the depth chart, but his strong play over the past month should, at the very least, put him above Robinson in his pursuit.