Chicago Bears 20 Most Important Players: #4 Eddie Jackson

Our series profiling the 20 most important Chicago Bears players is nearing the end. We are now down to #4, safety Eddie Jackson. You can see the other players here.

Jackson was the Bears’ steal of a pick in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was projected to be a first-round pick coming out of Alabama but a broken leg scared teams off. The Bears took a chance and he became one of the top safeties in the league.

Jackson can get to the ball, whether it be a forced fumble or an interception. In his career, he has 14 interceptions, 10 forced fumbles, and 6 fumble recoveries. Additionally, he finds his way to the end zone. Between fumble recoveries and interceptions, he has six touchdowns.

Jackson did have a two-year period in which he failed to record an interception. During the time, he also had just one fumble recovery. There were whispers that he might be on the decline.

Then, last season, he had a resurgent season. He had four interceptions and two forced fumbles. Also, he was on his way to having a career-high in tackles before a Lisfranc injury in Week 12 that shut down his season.

The Bears hope that 2022 was not just a blip. They want Jackson to continue his ball-hawking ways. He and rookie Jaquan Brisker made a great duo before the injury. Brisker had over 100 tackles and Jackson was on his way to eclipsing that number as well (he finished with 82).

When the Chicago Bears had their great defense in 2018, Jackson led the way. He had 6 interceptions, running two of them into the end zone. Also, he had 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery that he also ran into the end zone. He ended up becoming an All-Pro that season.

While the Bears likely won’t have as great a defense as they had in 2018, this will be a much-improved unit. The defense has a lot more talent on it and plenty of depth.

Now, with the youth movement the team is on, Jackson is one of the seasoned veterans on the unit. The younger defensive backs will look to him for help. We saw how well Brisker played after Jackson took him under his wing. The two can only get better as they progress.

The Bears want to see more turnovers. In recent years, the number of turnovers forced dropped precipitously. After leading the league in turnovers in 2018, they finished 22nd, 25th, and 26th, respectively, in the next three seasons.

Then Matt Eberflus comes in and brings Alan Williams. Together they were in charge of the Indianapolis Colts defense which was a turnover machine. Despite a lack of talent, the Bears’ defense still finished a respectable 14th.

Now the team expects another big step forward. Jackson will have to continue his great play for that to happen. If he hadn’t gotten injured and he had a couple of more interceptions and fumble recoveries, the Bears could have finished in the top five in total turnovers.

Jackson will play a big role on the Chicago Bears’ defense both as a player and as a leader. He has been through the fire and came out of it. He has a lot of experience to share with the younger players. Furthermore, he wants to show that he still has a lot left in his tank. He experienced a great Chicago Bears defense and some bad ones. He wants to go back to the mountaintop. In the process, he wants to help win some playoff games.