Powering his way to MVP status
Move over, Javier Baez. Another professional athlete in Chicago looks worthy of making a run at being his league’s most valuable player.
Not only has Khalil Mack established that the Bears need the pass rusher every bit as much as the Cubs rely on Baez, but so far no other player in the NFL has meant any more to his team than Mack.
Not Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the one who got away from Bears general manager Ryan Pace, a special passer suddenly sharing sentences with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady in the NFL record book. Not Buccaneers quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, the Ivy Leaguer with the SEC arm, a guy coming to Soldier Field on Sunday with something unique to NFL quarterbacks (no, not the beard): three straight 400-yard passing games to start the season. Not Drew Brees or Aaron Rodgers or Todd Gurley or anyone more than Mack, who singlehandedly shifted the balance of power in two divisions.
Without Mack, the Bears likely would be at the bottom of the NFC North, winless, hapless and in the midst of a quarterback controversy. With Mack, they sit 2-1 and in first place in the division for the first time in five years, a team thinking playoffs and patiently developing quarterback Mitch Trubisky as a dominant defence buys everyone more time.
In contrast, look at the Raiders, and it’s OK to cover your eyes and peek through your fingers. At 0-3, they have three sacks and one forced fumble as a team. Mack has four sacks and three forced fumbles. Raiders pass rushers have 23 quarterback pressures collectively and Mack has 18.
Mack’s former team is in shambles under Jon Gruden, who has bemoaned his team’s lack of a pass rusher after he let a once-in-a-generation sack man on a Hall of Fame path leave the building over money. The $100-million coach somehow couldn’t justify guaranteeing Mack $90 million, and Raiders fans will be asking themselves why long after the team leaves for Las Vegas in 2020.
Meanwhile, Mack remains the surest bet in the NFL to get to the quarterback.
Not since Giants outside linebacker Lawrence Taylor won the award in 1986 has a defensive player been named the NFL Most Valuable Player
— but Mack will make a strong case if the trend continues. This is more than a provincial argument.
Longtime, respected NFL journalist Peter King listed Mack as an early season MVP candidate in his weekly column on NBCSports.com. NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger tweeted that Mack “is the defensive MVP of the NFL (and) gives the @ChicagoBears a chance to win every Sunday.” The odds from BetOnline for Mack winning the NFL MVP went from 250-1 in Week 1 to 50-1 on Wednesday.
Not coincidentally, the Bears rank fifth in the league in total defence at 289 yards per game, eighth in scoring defence at 18.3 points and lead the NFL in sacks with 14 through three games that Mack directly influenced with sheer force.
Against the Packers, with Mack on the field eight days after the trade, he scored a touchdown on an interception, and his strip-sack of quarterback DeShone Kizer prevented a field-goal attempt — significant plays in a 24-23 loss.
Against the Seahawks, Mack sacked Russell Wilson and forced a fumble but as importantly was on the field for four of the defence’s six sacks.
Against the Cardinals, Mack made
the play of the game by forcing quarterback Sam Bradford to cough up a fourth-quarter fumble that led to the Bears’ game-winning field-goal drive. That came after Mack’s first sack knocked the Cardinals out of field-goal range on third down.
Just wait until Mack gets his football legs. Watch the video. He explodes out of a stance, maintains a low base that helps him blast through however many blockers dare to impede his path and lets his instincts and athleticism do the rest. He is one of those guys good enough to use his name as a verb. Congratulations, Mr. Quarterback, you’ve just been Macked.
Offensive co-ordinators must prepare for Mack every Sunday, and now apparently so do FCC officials.
“I’m as thrilled as a (expletive),” Mack told reporters in Arizona, profanity that made its way onto the postgame airwaves on NBC Sports Chicago.
Mack’s teammates feel even happier. His presence makes every pass rusher a bigger threat to sack the quarterback and gives every defensive back a better chance to intercept passes. His ability to draw more than one pass blocker allows defensive co-ordinator Vic Fangio to rush four and avoid taking unnecessary risks, which is why the Bears have the league’s second-lowest blitz rate at 10.7 per cent, according to ESPN.