The Chicago Bears saw a massive boost from the return of cornerback Kyler Gordon, who played in his first game in nine months in Sunday's 31-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
Having three sacks and two forced fumbles in a game is impressive for any player. But for a cornerback to accomplish that in their season debut after barely being able to play last season due to injury is even more impressive. That is what Gordon was able to accomplish for the Bears in their dominant win over the Falcons.
“He was ready to play,” said head coach Ben Johnson. “We had a week last week that was probably different than most, just in terms of not knowing who was going to be active, who was going to be playing for us, quarterback position all the way throughout the roster.
And so, I talked with Kyler [Saturday] morning and [said], ‘Hey, I think we want to activate you. Are you ready to go?’ And he said, ‘Absolutely,’ and he sure enough was.
"So, huge spark there for us on the defense. I thought [defensive coordinator Dennis Allen] put him in some good spots, but he’s so twitchy. He’s very hard to block as a blitzer. Tight in coverage also. We’ve got to make sure that we keep him on that right track. We’ve tried to limit his role a little bit, just making sure he was in good football shape. But those snaps that he had were huge ones for us today.”
Gordon's NFL career has been hampered by various injuries so far. However, this may be the first time Gordon was able to go into a game 100 percent healthy, or at least close to it, and that is the kind of performance he had. This is a very encouraging sign for the Bears’ defense. Even though they are still dealing with other defensive injuries, this defense can perform at a high level.
Chicago is working on a short week with their next game against the reigning AFC Champion New England Patriots on Thursday Night Football. New England is coming off a 26-19 win against the New York Jets, so both teams will be going into this Week 7 game with a 4-2 record.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Ben Johnson reacts to Bears CB Kyler Gordon's career day vs. Falcons
