Brad Biggs believes the Bears are very high on Austin Booker.
"If Austin Booker can pick up where he left off at the end of last season, that's one way for the bears to be better rushing the passer. We saw him playing at a pretty high level for a little less than half a season. If Booker is healthy and can make a jump from Year 2 to Year 3, like he did from his rookie season to 2025, they'll have an interesting player. Is that a lock to happen? of course not. but I believe the Bears are optimistic about his career arc"
46 comments
Guy needs to train with Maxx. Physique is right, needs 1st step motor and hand techniques.
Still need someone else (or two?)
i feel like booker is a very solid player but with this interior d line being what it is i don’t know what we have in him
I’m pretty high on Booker. I personally believe he has a high ceiling and can develop into a monster. I think the Bears would be better off addressing the IDL, Safety, and Center earlier in the draft if this report is true.
If Booker doesn’t turn out this year, then just take best Edge available next year.
Booker gets bigger and better every year. I still think we need to draft an edge rusher.
I’d prefer if “may be” wasn’t a key thinking by the team.
Not sure anybody saw the ESPN Cleveland clip today where the insider on the phone was asked about Garrett and the very first thing he said was “Obviously Chicago”… I know the Bears have had interest. Would you be interested in possible parting with 2 1s plus?
Classic Biggs. He might be good. He might be meh. He gets paid for this analysis so good for him.
Lots of ifs and question marks on defense but there’s a very small scenario where this could be a really solid defense if Jaylon and Kyler stay healthy. 2 of the draft picks are hits on defense. Booker takes a step into being a 8-10 sack guy. And all the FA defensive additions do slightly better than the guys they replaced.
Excited to see what he can do in a full season. I still say we hedge our bets and draft a DE in the first round.
He’s an okay rotational piece, but he isn’t THE answer.
He gets bullied in the run due to his size but if he can bulk up and keep his health and motor then I think he’s going to be a good pass rusher AND a decent run defender.
But that’s a lot of ifs. Still think we need to sign a prototypical pass rusher to develop along side of Booker. If either pan out, great. If both pan out then we’re fucking cookin with gas.
We need interior. Booker will only improve with help on the inside. If we go for a better edge, they’ll still need help ok the interior.
I’ve always been a fan of Booker. Dude has the fight in him. I’m rooting for this.
I’ve been saying that, dude could end up crosby tier level if he develops right
How is it a need if we already have it?
Still want DE/DT as a priority. They’re best used playing 50-60% of snaps to keep them fresh, not playing seemingly 80%+ every game like what we’ve been doing.
It’s possible Shamar Turner can contribute as well. Need these young pups to help this defense.
Even if Booker became an all-pro, the Bears would still not have enough DL.
I’d tend to agree with Biggs. The Bears need to go heavy on DT, LB, S next month! Throw in EMW, Jacob Rodriguez, Big Citrus & change, we may be cooking! FTP.
I’m not banking on late round draft picks to be solutions
Is Ryan Poles ever going to take the defensive line seriously? Lol probably not.
Ben should look at this defense like he was scheming against it and then beef up the spots he would attack
Okay, let’s say Booker is as good as Sweat next year. Huge leap from the 2nd half of last year.
Most star edge rushers play at most 70% of snaps. Without injury that leaves roughly 60% of the game with either Sweat or Booker out. Modern NFL teams basically have 3 starters at Edge.
Dayo is likely to miss the season, and the team dosen’t have another guy who’s had a single sack at edge in the last 4 seasons currently on the roster.
If the answer is trusting BOTH Booker and Turner to take a big leap that’s a bad plan.
And that dosen’t get into depth. God forbid Sweat misses a few games.
Pre season MVP
He was a development project super underweight when we drafted him. Then he got hurt last year but came back and looked solid as hell. Year 3 he can definitely take the next step. Still… the best teams in football have a rotation of 4 or 5 great defensive ends so you constantly have explorative fresh legs on the field. I still think we address the pass rush in the draft
I don’t think edge is as bad as everyone says it is. I think IDL is very bad and needs to be worked on more so then edge.
Watching people just fully buy into a fabricated hype machine in real time is weird.
Did anybody really watch the games? Booker was an absolute travesty in run defense. It is a problem to the point it is insane to try to get him more than 50%ish of snaps
There is obvious reason for optimism here. But it starts with his run game. He must improve.
Austin Booker was way better than people seem to realize, and a lot of the pass-rush metrics went from putrid to borderline-adequate once he was in there.
No safeties in the first round , if ur safeties are getting lots of stats it’s because ur defense sucks , 3rd round or later and this draft is loaded with safeties
I’m tired of hearing about Booker tbh
Booker would be excellent if paired with a run-container that we take in the draft
25 is a good spot to grab BPA and not fuck around
Eye test Booker is a better pure pass rusher than sweat right now. He needs reps and health. Montez has no speed and only won on bull rushes and coverage/effort sacks. You can generate pressure with a blitz. You HAVE to be able to stop the run with your tackles tho, so it’s not crazy to me if they don’t go after an edge at 25.
He did quietly put together an impressive final month of the season. He was super active in both games against GB, and played really well against SF when everyone else on defense played like shit.
I like that he’s not an all or nothing guy, either. Even if he doesn’t get sacks, he’ll still end up with 3-6 tackles a game, which indicates his willingness to play the run. His problem is durability. We have too many guys on this roster that are unreliable, health-wise, and he is one of them. If he can stay on the field, I think he has the potential to be more than just a rotational piece.
I’m not sure i see what they see in booker. He seems like a good rotational pass rusher but idk
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sure. he is indeed a compelling #2 edge guy, if playing opposite a solid #1 and supplemented by a strong interior.
anyone banking on them markedly improving with him as their top d lineman is smoking crack.
I like Booker. We’re getting good value for where we drafted him, and I think he’s going to be even better next year. He was always a bit of an experiment/developmental player, so the expectations weren’t exactly huge. If this report is to be believed, we should address other team needs (IDL, S, LT) first and see where Booker is at by the end of next season. If the pass rush still isn’t good enough, we can just target EDGE in next year’s draft. I don’t necessarily love this year’s EDGE class anyways, so maybe it wouldn’t be a terrible idea.
I think if woods or DT are there at 20-22 we trade up using a second from this year…
To me, it’s de. It’s going to be a rare trade up to get one this offseason.
Maybe Im wrong but I dont ever see Booker being even a Montez Sweat level edge rusher. I think he can be a solid starter, but I dont think hes a reason you avoid drafting an edge rusher early.
I always get eviscerated here for wanting to stick with Booker and I still stand by that. I think we need IDL more than an edge. Plus, if we improve the interior, it should help the outside guys to play a little better too. Mark my words!
I’d still look at edges as I don’t know if I’d give Sweat another contract when the time comes.
Booker is a freak athlete, you can’t teach that. Hope he continues to progress, he looked less raw this season when he played which is a good sign. He could be really, really good.
Our biggest problem was the interior. Watch the tape. So many game were billings just takes plays off or was pushed 5 yards off the ball before even reacting.