Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has some major questions on his side of the ball going into the start of the regular season and the easy place to start is on the defensive line and whether or not the Bears will improve up-front.

Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Allen said that he feels “really confident” in the group the Bears have up-front and how they will fit into the style of defense the Bears want to play this upcoming season.

Results, of course, will speak for itself. But, Allen truly believes that the defensive line is the “deepest position group” of the entire unit and is expecting much different results in 2026 compared to what the team showed last year.

The Bears simply need to be quicker on the defensive line this upcoming season

Speed as been the name of the game all offseason long for how the Bears wanted to improve this defense, and that goes for the defensive line as well looking at the different options the Bears added to the building. Allen understands his front has to get to the quarterback quicker this year, but added some much-needed context as well.

“Typically to affect the quarterback with a rush, unless you’re Myles Garrett or Von Miller back in the day, it’s really right at about 3.1 seconds is where you need to be effecting the quarterback,” Allen explained. “Prior to that, you’ve got to affect the quarterback with your coverage, meaning you’ve got to get him to have to go to his second or third read. And so, if the ball’s getting out in 2.5 seconds, statistically you’re not going to see a lot of sacks, a lot of hurries, a lot of hits. . .

Sacks, hurries and hits need to come when the quarterback has to reset, and that typically is going to be 3 to 3.2 seconds. I felt like when the quarterback had to go to a second or third read, I felt like more consistently we were able to to affect him.”

That explains why the Bears made a strong effort to re-tool the back seven to improve the coverage in the backend to force quarterbacks to get to those second and third reads more often, thus allowing more time for the pass rush to hit home. Now, you might say, why not just add faster players up-front?

Well, statistically, the Bears have options that can do that. Dayo Odeyingbo, for example, ranked 20th among qualified defensive linemen last season with a 2.87 time to pressure. Marcus Davenport, whom the team signed back to the practice squad to continue ramping him up, ranked 14th with a 2.80 time to pressure. Now, the Bears would certainly like to see Montez Sweat (3.31), Grady Jarrett (3.27), and Austin Booker (3.71) improve in that area as well.

But overall, pass coverage and pass rush go hand-in-hand and it’s something Allen has been preaching all offseason long and believes the two will improve together.

Confidence in the interior despite trading away Gervon Dexter Sr.

The Bears made one significant decision over the week on the defensive front when the front office traded away former second-round defensive tackle Gervon Dexter. Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, general manager Ryan Poles simply said that the new additions are what pushed Dexter off the roster.

It wasn’t just new talent, but also their ability to take to the coaching, which Allen said all offseason was going to be an emphasis with that group. Dexter simply wasn’t taking to it, and the other guys were. Mainly veteran Kentavius Street and rookie Jordan van den Berg, who figure to be major contributors moving forward at that position.

“Quite honestly, I think he was the most-productive tackle we had throughout the course of training camp,” Allen said of Street. “He’s got the suddenness and the explosiveness off the ball that we’re looking for to create penetration and disrupt the line of scrimmage. He’s really taken to the things that Jeremy (Garrett), Bill (Johnson), Zach (Cable), all those guys are coaching and how we want to play that position.”

As for van den Berg, the sixth-round rookie flashed throughout the preseason with his effort and explosiveness off the ball. On paper, he might have only had seven pressures and zero sacks on 89 snaps, but he was certainly more productive than that on tape.

“I think a lot of times with defensive linemen, you can have a lot of hidden production,” Allen said. “Where you’re just so disruptive that you create opportunities other players. That’s probably where he’s at right now. Hopefully we can continue to work with him and develop some of those finishing moves where not only does he have disruption, but he also has production.”

Overall, Allen and the Bears are extremely excited in the talent they have on the defensive line, despite how people outside the building view the room. Now, it’s just a matter of showing what it’s supposed to look like come Week 1 in 11 days.