Getty Eddie Jackson is having a great start to the 2022 season for the Chicago Bears.
The Chicago Bears haven’t added or subtracted any players via trade since they sent a 2024 seventh-round pick to the New England Patriots for wide receiver N’Keal Harry on July 12.
The NFL’s trade deadline is November 1, and while Bears general manager Ryan Poles has been relatively quiet lately, one prominent league insider dubbed Chicago a team to watch over the next few weeks. Don’t expect Poles to add any players, though.
In his October 12 column for Sports Illustrated, Breer listed three Bears who could be traded: pass rusher Robert Quinn, linebacker Roquan Smith and safety Eddie Jackson.
“The Bears are another team I’d watch, just based on it being the first year for a new group, and the way I think GM Ryan Poles, whose background is in college scouting, will value draft picks,” Breer wrote.
Eddie Jackson Could Be Unexpected Trade Target
Quinn and Smith have had trade rumors circling around them for months, but nothing has materialized. “Robert Quinn would be the most obvious name — an older guy who won’t be around long term who’s got gas left in the tank and plays a premium position,” Breer noted, adding: “Eddie Jackson would be another I think teams would call on. And because of his contract status, Roquan Smith seems to be another name to watch.”
Breer bringing up Jackson’s name is interesting. The six-year veteran has cap hits of $15 million this season, $17 million in 2023 and $18 million in 2024 (numbers via Over the Cap), but his recent play has warranted his high price tag.
Opposing quarterbacks have a 56.3 rating when throwing Jackson’s way through five games so far this season, per PFF. In 169 coverage snaps, the six-year vet has allowed just three receptions on six targets for 18 yards and a touchdown. He’s tied for second in the NFL in interceptions (3) and has flourished under new head coach Matt Eberflus and defensive coordinator Alan Williams.
“I would give credit to Eddie and the way he’s worked, the way he’s bought in,” Williams said about Jackson on October 6. “Some guys you come in and you say, ‘Hey, do this, this and this.’ And they’ll go, ‘Hey, I’m a Pro Bowl player. No. I’m gonna always do what I always did.’ And when we came in, he said: ‘Coach, tell me what I need to do, tell me how I need to do it, coach me, help me to get better.’ He’s responded.”
Eddie Jackson Is Having His Best Year Since 2018
Jackson is off to his best start since his All-Pro campaign in 2018. He has 38 total tackles (one for loss), three picks, three pass breakups and a forced fumble so far, and he’s looking more comfortable both in coverage and against the run than he has in a long time.
“Eddie’s always been talented,” Williams added. “Now the opportunities are coming and he’s making the best of them.”
Jackson is playing less in the box and much more at free safety, and it’s allowing him to sit back and monitor opposing quarterbacks more. His tackling is also noticeably better.
“He’s hitting his stride,” Eberflus said about the two-time Pro Bowl safety on October 5. “He has played really well over the first four games. Really, I just go back to what I said a couple weeks ago about his training camp. Man, he worked. He worked. He never missed a day. If he did, I don’t remember. He is in the best shape of his life. He really bought into it. He’s taking great angles, he’s tackling well. He’s obviously ball-hawking. … He’s doing everything you ask a safety to do.”
While other teams might inquire about adding Jackson, Poles would likely want hefty compensation for his star safety, particularly considering how well Jackson is playing this year. Anything is possible, of course, but trading the 28-year-old Jackson now, just as he may be hitting his prime, feels like a long shot.