Under Pressure: Chicago Bears trail in defensive improvements

I apologize in advance to readers who want a clear, quick argument in their Chicago Bears coverage. This is not that. It is, instead, an exploration of a quirk of data that I did not know existed until a few hours before writing this.

I often begin researching articles with a simple data pull in order to understand the range of outcomes I’m dealing with–the equivalent of finding the “you are here” arrow on a map or directory. Most of the time, all this does is reassure me that I have a basic understanding of the issue’s general parameters. Sometimes, though, I find something that itches my brain.

This time, I stumbled into some psychological poison oak. Overview I began with the observation that the Bears and the Bengals both had 35 sacks last season but that they took very different approaches to their defense in the offseason. I knew that, and I intended to use it as a starting point to question Chicago’s approach to the last couple of months (question, not criticize).

However, it turns out that five teams had exactly 35 sacks last season, and that tied them for the 7th-worst rate in the league. Listed in their original draft order, they are the Kansas City Chiefs (9th), the Cincinnati Bengals (10th), the Dallas Cowboys (12th), the Chicago Bears (25th), and the New England Patriots (31st). That is a very wide-ranging list in terms of on-field results and even other defensive metrics, for all that sacks are one of the most important factors impacting EPA.