Dillon Thieneman, Bears secondary have a high bar to shoot for in 2026 after a former Chicago unit earned the top nod from PFF
The Chicago Bears reinforced secondary has some big shoes to fill compared to how the unit performed last season and now an even higher bar to aim for after this latest Pro Football Focus ranking.
The Chicago Bears completely reinforced the secondary this offseason going into the second season under defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, headlined by the selection of first-round safety Dillon Thieneman and also the signing of safety Coby Bryant.
Thieneman and Bryant have big shoes to fill replacing Kevin Byard III and Jaquan Brisker. Overall, the entire secondary does compared to last year’s unit that lead the entire league in takeaways.
With the addition of Thieneman and Bryant, plus the expected return of Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon, the Bears are expected to have one of the top secondaries in football. Forget living up to the 2025-26 success, this unit could even rival another former Chicago secondary that just earned mighty high praise.
Chicago Bearsβ 2018 secondary named best ever by Pro Football Focus
Pro Football Focus recently put out their list of top graded positional groups in PFF history. Surprisingly, the Bearsβ 2018 secondary earned the top spot, beating out the Seattle Seahawks’ infamous 2013 Legion of Boom.
“This position group is undoubtedly the biggest shock of all. To unseat the Legion of Boom Seahawks is a remarkable feat, but digging deeper into the 2018 Bears helps explain why,” PFF’s Bradley Locker wrote. “The group led the NFL in defensive EPA per play that season, as all seven secondary members to play 200 or more snaps earned at least a 75.8 overall grade. The unit was paced by Eddie Jacksonβs 94.7 PFF coverage grade, which tied the best mark for a safety in PFF history.”
Eddie Jackson was an absolute beast that season, earning first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors. The same goes for cornerback Kyle Fuller.
If Thieneman, Bryant, Johnson, and the rest 2026 Bears’ secondary really want a high bar to shoot for, they should strive to be like the 2018 unit. However, it’s worth mentioning that unit was fortunate to play alongside Khalil Mack, Akiem Hicks, Leonard Floyd, and Eddie Goldman rushing the quarterback, which made their job much easier.
Allen is taking an opposite approach with his unit, hoping the improved secondary will force quarterbacks to hold onto the ball longer, allowing a disappointing pass rush to turn the corner and hit home more consistently.
That 2018 team went on to win 12 games in the regular season and win the NFC North title. The 2026 Bears are looking to have similar success and having a reinforced secondary leading the defense will go a long way toward winning consecutive division titles.