Chicago Bears 2022 player preview: Justin Jones

	Game	Game	Fumb		Tack	Tack	Tack	Tack	Tack
Year	G	GS	FR	Sk	Comb	Solo	Ast	TFL	QBHits
2021	11	11	2	3.0	37	19	18	5	5
Care	51	35	2	4.5	118	63	55	12	13

Advanced Stat to Know: In 2020, Jones was one of three defensive linemen in the NFL to play over 500 snaps without having a missed tackle. (PFF)

Best Game of 2021

Jones had his best outing Week 13 against the New York Giants, notching one sack and five tackles, one going for a loss.

This was despite playing only 39 snaps — the second-fewest for Jones that season.

Biggest Question

Can Justin Jones be that gamechanger the Chicago Bears need at the position?

The secret sauce that makes Coach Eberflus’ defense work is the 3-tech. It is difficult for this defense to play to its potential without one playing at a high level.

Chicago settled on Jones after not being able to sign Ogunjobi. It’s valid to question if the team views him as being capable of the level of play they were hoping to get out of Ogunjobi.

Last season, Ogunjobi’s average depth per tackle was 1.9 yards. Jones’ tackles came a half yard further downfield on average (2.5). However, Jones did better two seasons ago when his average tackle depth matched Ogunjobi’s from 2021.

This is the upside GM Ryan Poles is banking on. It’s more than just accumulating tackles for Jones, he must be able to make impactful plays near (and behind) the line of scrimmage.

If Jones gives up too much ground and gets pushed backward the rest of the defense will suffer. He must play closer to his 2020 standard in terms of where his tackles are coming from on the field in order to make the impact the Bears need from him.

Coach Eberflus shared praise for Jones during voluntary OTAs in early June.

Obviously I love the athletic ability, I love the man, I love his attitude. He’s working super hard, and again, the evaluation will continue to go all the way through training camp, like we said. When we put the pads on, then we get our true evaluation. But where he is right now, we are extremely excited about that.”

Chicago Bears Head Coach Matt Eberflus

Eberflus has a track record of getting non-elite players to perform well. That’s what good coaching does. There is a chance that Jones’ best days are ahead of him.

2022 Outlook

Jones is going to be heavily utilized throughout the season. Expect to see the defensive lineman on the field a ton. Whether he plays at a high level or an average one, the Bears don’t have many other options at the position to handle the bulk of the snaps.

Even though Jones wasn’t the team’s first choice, there are legitimate reasons to get excited about his potential in this defense.

Who knows? Maybe he will surprise most and become the disruptive 3-tech the team has been searching for all along.

Time will tell.

It’s just unfair to put those lofty expectations on Jones today.

Prediction: 45 Total Tackles, 7 TFL, 4 Sacks, 6 QB Hits.