Bears DT Gervon Dexter Sr. has plenty of motivation behind him to finally have his breakout season at a critical time
Chicago Bears former second-round pick Gervon Dexter Sr. is set to enter into a contract year in 2026 and is one of the key players the team is hoping can turn the corner to improve the overall defensive pass rush.
Much has been made about the Chicago Bears and the team’s disappointing pass rush this offseason, and one could even say it’s been the team’s biggest storyline that has clouded the defense over the last few months. And the players involved have been hearing the outside noise.
“Obviously you hear it,” Bears defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. told reporters Tuesday after the team’s first mandatory minicamp practice. “I feel like we’ve got the guys, though. We’ve got the guys in the room to do it.”
After making hardly any real addition to the defensive front in free agency or the draft, the Bears are counting on the returning starting four to find improvements. That includes Dexter, who has even more motivation than that going into the 2026 season.
Chicago Bears are making an emphasis on improving the overall get off on the defensive line
Head coach Ben Johnson, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, and defensive line coach Jeremy Garrett were all in agreement that the team’s subpar get off average, which ranked last in the NFL last season, was mainly to blame for the struggling pass rush.
Dexter isn’t exempt from that after having an average get off time of 1.13, which ranked 93rd among 102 qualified pass rushers last season.
“Going back and looking at it, I felt like I needed to improve the start of the down,” Dexter admitted. “Whether that’s get-off, whether that’s starting all the way from the stance, that’s what I noticed.”
Chicago’s coaching staff has been doing a better job this offseason preaching technique and fundamentals with the defensive front after focusing more on teaching the scheme at this point in the calendar last year. The scheme itself is something that Dexter struggled to fit in with at times under Allen compared to Matt Eberflus’ system.
Gervon Dexter Sr. hasn’t been the best scheme fit for what the Bears are looking to accomplish
When the Bears drafted Dexter with the 53rd overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the 6-foot-6 defensive tackle was the prototypical 3-tech for Eberflus’ more conservative scheme. Dexter wasn’t known for having an explosive get off coming out of college. His defining trait was his physical size that allowed him to read and shed blocks. It was the ideal fit for Eberflus’ defense with Dexter recording 7.5 sacks and three pass deflections in his first two years.
Under Allen’s scheme, the defense has a more attacking mindset. You don’t have time to react in this system. When the ball is snapped, you gotta go and get there fast as possible.
“You’ve got to be in an attacking stance to attack,” Dexter explained. “In our D-line, we don’t like to say ‘read.’ You can’t be in no read stance if you want to attack. So it’s about getting in that attack stance and getting out of it.”
That was an adjustment for the majority of the returning defensive linemen that Allen inherited. Even still, Dexter posted a career-high six sacks and 43 pressures. That’s while having one of the league’s slowest get off averages, so there’s plenty of meat left on the bone for what he can produce in this system.
Big contract year coming up
In the same day that Ben Johnson praised right tackle Darnell Wright for being an offensive pillar worthy of his upcoming long-term extension, not much was said about the team’s second selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. In fact, little has been said about Dexter and how the team views him as a long-term asset entering a contract year.
Dexter understands this is a big year coming up with a lot of big conversations on the horizon, even if he didn’t outright admit it speaking with the media. A few weeks back, Dexter changed agents in preparation for his upcoming second NFL contract, whether that’s with Chicago or other teams if the Bears let him hit the open market next spring.
For now, Dexter can only control what he can control. And that’s improving the little things to better fit this current scheme and ultimately help the team stack more wins.
“I’m looking at it as it’s another year for me to grow as a player, to get better,” Dexter said. “I’m here to help this team win.”