Ryan Poles prefers not to spend big in free agency but knew he had to this year. The Chicago Bears had too many holes on the roster to avoid it. Perhaps his most surprising addition was Nate Davis. Paying $10 million per year for a guard is a lot of money. Poles is a former offensive lineman himself. He must’ve seen something he really wanted to have in Chicago. At first glance, Davis is a great run blocker. His mixture of quickness, size, and nastiness consistently generates movement on the ground.
Yet what makes the signing better for the Bears is the timing. Poles might be getting some heat if this had occurred a year earlier. The biggest problem facing the line wasn’t its run blocking last year. It was the pass protection. Keeping Justin Fields upright is the top priority. Davis spent the first three seasons in Tennessee as an unremarkable pass protector. That changed in 2022. Something finally seemed to click for him, and it showed in the numbers.
Snaps per pressure allowed:
2019 – Every 17.85 snaps
2020 – Every 19.03 snaps
2021 – Every 15.25 snaps
2022 – Every 27.50 snaps*
I love the way #Bears new OL Nate Davis (RG, #64 here) responds to stunts, blitzes, and twists — Chicago was particularly bad at passing off games in the pass rush, so adding a heads-up lineman attacks a key issue????
Check out this play by #Bears guard Nate Davis. First, he picks up the stunt and stops Haason Reddick's rush. Then, Davis goes to block Reddick as the defensive lineman is trying to change direction. Really good effort by Davis on this rep. pic.twitter.com/5AvGsTmC4c
Nate Davis should fix one of their biggest issues.
The Bears’ offensive line could not handle stunts and blitzes last year. More creative defensive coordinators routinely outfoxed them with well-disguised pressure packages. There were too many instances of guys failing to pick up a looping defensive end or a late blitzer. Davis demonstrated last season that he has become quite adept at solving this problem. He was rarely caught off guard by anything defenses tried to throw at him. His awareness and patience will be more welcome than any of his physical attributes.
Part of “winning” free agency isn’t about spending the most money. It’s about spending money in the right places without going over budget. That is what the Bears did with Nate Davis. They got a capable starter going into the best years of his career at a highly affordable price. Poles deserves credit for that. Davis doesn’t have to be a superstar. He only has to be what he was in 2022. Anything beyond that is gravy for this team. It will be even better if he can help Darnell Wright get settled at right tackle as well.
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