The Chicago Bears defense doesn’t always look dominant on the surface. It can get pushed around against the run at times and still finish games with modest sack totals. Monday night was almost a textbook version of that: Philadelphia ran for 75 yards on Chicago in the first half alone. But one number keeps climbing regardless, and it explains why this unit is becoming a real difference-maker. Bears defense takeaways are up to 39 since Dennis Allen took over as coordinator at the start of last season — 33 across all of 2025 plus six more through Chicago’s first three games this year, both easily the most in the NFL over that stretch — after three more turnovers fueled a 27-7 rout of the Eagles.
Hurts, Dalton and the Turnover Sequence Most Recaps Missed
Here’s the part that didn’t make most recaps: rookie safety Dillon Thieneman’s first career interception, snagged in the end zone on third-and-goal, didn’t come off Jalen Hurts. It came off backup Andy Dalton, who was in the game while Hurts was being evaluated for a concussion he’d take shortly after. Hurts returned and threw the other pick himself, a fourth-down throw to T.J. Edwards that Hurts himself admitted he simply telegraphed. Add a fumble recovery by Xavier Woods off a strip by Austin Booker in the red zone, and Chicago won the turnover battle 3-0 against a team that had every reason to be careful with the football.
There’s a personal edge buried in that Edwards interception, too. He spent four seasons with the Eagles before coming to Chicago and joked afterward that he couldn’t follow some of Philadelphia’s play calls because none were leftover from his own years there.
Why Bears Defense Takeaways Keep Happening Isn’t an Accident
Dennis Allen’s staff has built an actual ritual around this. Defensive backs coach Al Harris picks a takeaway number before every game and challenges the room to hit it — the same approach that led the NFL with 33 takeaways all of last season, and six in three games this season. That makes this season’s defensive takeaway numbers pace already ahead of last seasons, sitting behind only the Raiders and Panthers in combined interceptions and fumble recoveries through three weeks. It isn’t about the flashiest pass rush. It’s a defense that plays with discipline in coverage and enough disruption up front that the ball ends up on the ground or in someone’s hands more often than it should.
The Historical Company the Eagles Just Kept
The context on the other side makes Monday’s number even sharper. Philadelphia’s seven points were its fewest since 2021, and the Eagles haven’t been held under a touchdown’s worth of points since 2017. Hurts now has 15 interceptions on Monday Night Football — the most of any quarterback since 2020 — and Chicago’s defense is directly responsible for two of his worst primetime moments this season alone.
What It Means Going Forward
A defense that consistently takes the ball away gives the offense shorter fields and covers for whatever else is unsettled — and with Chicago still navigating its quarterback room, that safety net matters more than usual. The Bears are 8-0 since hiring Allen whenever they force three or more takeaways in a game, a streak that’s now the best mark of its kind in the league. The Bears’ defense may not be the most talented unit on paper. But right now, Bears defense takeaways are one of the clearest, most repeatable reasons this team keeps finding ways to win.
Bears Defense Takeaways Reveal the NFL’s Quietest Juggernaut