Windy City Gridiron
With Jack Sanborn in Dallas, the third linebacker on the Bears is up for grabs
Let’s move over to the defensive side of the ball as we look at our next training camp battle in 2025.
Jack Sanborn was one of the more popular players on the Chicago Bears roster the last couple of seasons. The Bears were comfortable with him as their SAM linebacker, utilizing him in base packages when they weren’t in nickel. Sanborn also was the team’s top sub, filling in for both Tremaine Edmunds and TJ Edwards if either of them were injured and missed time.
Jack Sanborn is now a member of the Dallas Cowboys, and the Bears did not go out and sign any other veteran to replace him as the team’s LB3. That means there’s an opportunity for someone to step into that role. Could it be the veteran Noah Sewell? Or will the rookie Ruben Hippolyte grab the opportunity and run with it?
Let’s take a look at Sewell. Sewell has become a reliable special-teams player, logging over 400 special-teams snaps in his first two seasons in the league. However, Sewell made no progress taking snaps from the top three linebackers, where he just had 32 defensive snaps total thus far in his NFL career.
Was Sewell’s lack of defensive play due to his lack of ability or just that he wasn’t as good as the guys in front of him? We will find out this year because the opportunity is wide open for him to step up and start playing more on the defensive side of the ball.
Hippolyte is an interesting guy as well. When this selection was announced, I think a lot of Bears fans looked around and said, “Who?” Many draft experts thought Hippolyte was more of a 6th or 7th-round pick or even a UDFA-level prospect, but the Bears swooped in and selected him in round four.
Many draft experts also noted that Hippolyte was a late riser in draft circles due to his blazing speed. He runs a sub-4.4 40. He’s the type of athlete that, if his football skills develop, he can become an absolute force for a defense.
Hippolyte doesn’t shed blockers well; he’s going to have to improve in that aspect and build strength as well. If his instincts are good and he can move to the ball before the offensive linemen get their pads on him, that will go a long way to assist him.
Even if Hippolyte doesn’t develop into a defender, with his speed, he should be able to develop into an outstanding special-teams player. But the Bears don’t need a special-teams player; they need a SAM. Will it be Sewell or will it be Hippolyte?
Of course, the Bears will be in their nickel package frequently. Nobody is going to argue that Sewell or Hippolyte should be on the field more often than Kyler Gordon. We know the Bears will be sitting in nickel frequently, and the subs along...
