Former Coach Uses Iconic Horror Villain To Describe Gervon Dexter

The Chicago Bears drafted Gervon Dexter because of his measurables. Not many guys who are 6’6 and 315 lbs have his level of athleticism. This is before getting into the freakish power that allows him to take on double teams, swallowing up run plays almost at will. It is evident he hadn’t come anywhere close to his full potential at Florida. If he can unlock a few areas of his game, the sky is the limit. Yet there might be another reason the Bears gravitated to him. Dexter has an aura of intimidation about him. His intensity alone is hard to miss.

Tavaris Johnson is plenty familiar with it. He coached Dexter at Lake Wales High School. It didn’t take long to notice the young defensive lineman had a tendency to scare opponents with the way he played. Johnson spoke to the Bears’ social media team about it. He likened Dexter to Jason Voorhees, the hockey-masked killer of Friday The 13th fame. It is a guy you wouldn’t want to see in your nightmares.

Chris Jones and Linval Joseph are nice comparisons, but that one might be the best by a wide margin.

The Bears needed a guy like Gervon Dexter.

Every great defensive line in their long history had an intimidator. It was somebody that opponents didn’t dare mess with. It was Doug Atkins in the 1960s, Dan Hampton in the 1980s, and Akiem Hicks in the 2010s. There is no telling if Dexter will ever reach the heights of those names, but he has the ability to do so. He should be an immediate presence as a run defender, something the Bears desperately need after finishing 31st in rushing yards allowed last season. The big question is whether he can develop as a pass rusher.

There is no denying Gervon Dexter has the athleticism and quickness for the task. What he doesn’t have is a great burst off the snap or hand-fighting technique. The latter can be corrected with proper coaching. The former is another matter. Some players don’t have the natural ability to get off quickly. It isn’t something that is easy to learn, either. It has happened before, but it takes constant hard work. Dexter seems to have the necessary drive. Here is hoping he can live up to that horror villain reputation.