Bears feel DE Yannick Ngakoue is a good fit for their defensive scheme
CHICAGO (CBS) – The Bears beefed up their roster by adding a pair of veterans, including tight end Marcedes Lewis.
And as CBS 2's Jori Parys reported, the team finally added an edge rusher, something fans, and even Bears defenders, had been hoping for basically since last year ended.
The Bears filled a big need on the defensive line, signing pass rusher Yannick Ngakoue, who is excited to be in Chicago and felt the organization was a great fit, even if becoming a Bear didn't fully come as a surprise.
"I feel like it was meant for me to be here," Ngakoue said. "I actually have a Bear tatted on my hand. I feel like that's a sign to me I was always meant to be a Chicago Bear."
New Bears DE Yannick Ngakoue says he felt like Chicago was a “great fit” and would be an easy transition having “been part of the system before.”
— Jori Parys (@JoriParys) August 4, 2023
Added he felt like it was meant for him to be here because he has a bear tattoo on his hand. @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/QdMQ2XiYXc
Head coach Matt Eberflus said he thinks Ngakoue fits "really well" within the Bears defensive scheme.
"We had some intel on him," Eberflus said. "What kind of teammate he is, what kind of person he is, what kind of worker he is, and he checked all the boxes there for us, and he's gonna be a good addition."
Even though Ngakoue hasn't hit the practice field just yet, players are excited about the new addition. Safety Eddie Jackson said he and safety Jaquan Brisker exchanged text messages when they heard the news.
"Just to have that type of pressure up front man, it helps us a lot on the back end," Jackson said. "And we get to capitalize on that as well."
Jackson added it's getting "scarier and scarier" seeing the amount of talent being added to the Bears defense this offseason.
"It's up," Jackson said. "Like this thing is headed in the right direction."
Ngakoue brings the experience of playing on five different teams to the Bears defensive line, most recently finishing with nine-and-a-half sacks last year with the Indianapolis Colts.
He's had at least eight sacks in each of his seven NFL seasons.
The Bears had a league-worst 20 sacks as a team all last season.