With the Chicago Bears losing six games in a row and the season now lost, it’s time to see what they have in their backups. Cornerback Kindle Vildor is one of them.
Well, the Chicago Bears and their fans certainly went through the ups and downs of the 2020 season. In the first six weeks, the team had a 5-1 record. The last six games haven’t been good, however. In fact, they’ve been downright depressing. The Bears lost each game and now have a 5-7 record. After having hopes of a division title and long playoff run, thoughts now are about who gets fired and when.
This team could and should look very different next season. The Bears need to cut salaries so they could have more salary cap space. Also, they have a chance to cut underachieving players. It’s time to see what they have on the roster as far as the backups. Have them play and see if they deserve a shot to start next season, stay as backups, or move on to other teams.
One of those backups who deserve a closer look is cornerback Kindle Vildor. Vildor was the Bears’ fifth-round pick in this year’s draft. Picking him was a surprise move by general manager Ryan Pace. His front office already drafted Jaylon Johnson in the second round and with other, more pressing needs elsewhere, drafting another corner wasn’t seen as necessary.
Buster Skrine is the slot corner. He’s had a bad season this year. If the Bears cut him next offseason they save $5 million. They’re currently about $6.9 million over next season’s salary cap so that’s a nice chunk of money saved.
There are other cuts, of course, but let’s just look at this one.
Skrine is not the future
Skrine is having a horrible 2020. Opposing quarterbacks completed 78.1 percent of their passes against him. They also have an incredible 125.7 passer rating when targeting him. Furthermore, he gave up five touchdowns, among the most by cornerbacks.
Skrine is not part of the future of the Chicago Bears. he’s a weak spot for the cornerbacks unit. Kyle Fuller is having another good season and Johnson looks like he’ll be a stalwart for years to come. With those two playing well, opposing quarterbacks continue to pick on Skrine. Against the Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers targeted Fuller and Johnson a combined nine times (Fuller four times and Johnson five). He targeted Skrine 10 times. Rodgers converted three first downs when targeting Skrine.
With Skrine’s struggles and now dealing with a concussion, it’s time to see Vildor play and see if he’s a viable option for 2021. We know that Skrine isn’t an option for the Bears beyond this season.
Vildor mostly played on special teams this season, playing 75 snaps there. At cornerback, he’s only been in on one snap, after Skrine hurt his leg. Hopefully, he plays a lot more on defense, starting this week.
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Vildor played at a small school, Georgia Southern. There are concerns about him playing against inferior competition. However, he made his mark in college against one of the top teams in college football. In 2018, he matched up against Tee Higgins and the Clemson Tigers. Vildor had a great game. He didn’t allow any completions in the game and recorded an interception.
After the 2019 season, Vildor played in the Senior Bowl and did well. He had a good week of practice and had an interception in the game as well. He’s an aggressive player and uses near-perfect tackling mechanics.
If Vildor plays well, he’ll give the Chicago Bears an incredible trio of cornerbacks. First, however, the coaches have to put him on the field so he could prove himself.
