Tyrique Stevenson proved to be up to the challenge vs. Raiders in Week 7
The Chicago Bears secondary knew they would have their hands full going into Week 7 against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders passing attack has been led by All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams and free agent acquisition Jakobi Meyers in 2023. Coming into Week 7's matchup against the Bears, the duo had combined for 69 […]
The Chicago Bears secondary knew they would have their hands full going into Week 7 against the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Raiders passing attack has been led by All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams and free agent acquisition Jakobi Meyers in 2023. Coming into Week 7's matchup against the Bears, the duo had combined for 69 receptions 806 yards and seven touchdowns.
However, Adams had recently expressed frustrations with the offensive game plan after having just nine combined targets in Weeks 5-6. Adams wanted to become the focal point of the Raiders offense again and had his ideal target to play against, Bears rookie cornerback Tyrique Stevenson.
Stevenson, the Bears second-round selection back in April, has been targeted frequently by top pass catchers during his rookie season as opposing offenses look to take advantage of his inexperience in the NFL. Stevenson has done an exceptional job rolling with the punches and learning from his mistakes, and Week 7 was no different.
The Raiders offense came out of the gate with purpose on Sunday, firing five straight pass attempts to their disgruntled wide receiver on their opening drive. Of those five passes, three were targeted at the Bears rookie.
The first one went for an 11-yard gain on a quick pass. The second turned into a 15-yard play after Adams beat Stevenson off the line running a slant route. However, the third time, Stevenson regained his composure and broke up the pass on third down to halt the drive.
"You win some and you lose some going against the veteran receiver," Stevenson said in the locker room after the game. "I could have done a better job with my feet, could have played the ball better."
"Coach believes in us on third down to play man and I just knew the ball was coming," he added. "Just, you know, hearing from the media and everything that was going on with [Adams] wanting the ball, I just knew the ball was coming. So, I just knew I had to do my job the best way that I can."
After the first drive and getting the stop on third down, Stevenson realized he's up to the challenge of defending Adams but understood his critical job during the game was far from over.
"It just added to my confidence, you know, gave me that confidence that I can go out there and play," Stevenson said. "When I go out to cover a veteran like Davante, it just added to my confidence and I feel like it added to the team confidence."
Adams finished the game with 12 targets and seven receptions but was held to just 57 yards before exiting the game early once the score was out of reach. It was the third consecutive game Adams has been held to less than 60 yards this season.
Another member of the Bears secondary praised Stevenson's efforts in limiting such a game wreaking player in order to help secure the 30-12 victory.
"I mean [Stevenson's] a rookie going up against a Hall of Fame potential guy," fellow cornerback Jaylon Johnson said. "At the end of the day, you knew he was going to get his catches and we knew they were going to force him the ball with everything going on. But at the end of the day, it's about limiting his production. I think [Stevenson] did that and we did that as a unit."
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus shared in on the praise for the rookie defensive back after the win while speaking to the reporters during his postgame press conference.
"Tyrique is a young corner, so he's going to continue to grow," Eberflus said. "This matchup was obviously a big matchup. He wasn't matched up on [Adams] the whole time, but he was for some [plays]."
"He's going to play against a lot of really good receivers this year," he added. "And the important part of a rookie is just to keep learning, you know, take that put it in your file and learn for the next time you play that particular player because it's all about the one on ones and all about the matchups out there."
The big matchups will continue to come Stevenson's way throughout the rest of the season but it's nice to have such a great game to build off of going forward. Next week, Stevenson and the Bears secondary will be tasked with limiting Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen, who has surpassed 75 yards in 4 of 6 games.
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