SOMEONE TO RELY ON
Quiet, focused Fuller not your ordinary CB, but that’s fine by Bears
There’s something about Bears cornerback Kyle Fuller that seems a little bit off.
He rarely says much. He often is seen walking by himself to practice with his helmet already on, eschewing the luxury bus rides most of his teammates take from the locker room to the back practice field at Halas Hall. And his facial expressions typically range from intense to ultra-intense.
Maybe those are all just indications of how Fuller concentrates.
‘‘He has, like, a ‘Mamba’ mentality: not easily shaken, laser-focused,’’ fellow cornerback Prince Amukamara said, referring to Kobe Bryant. ‘‘He’s just locked in every time. He’s always in the zone. When he gets beat, he shakes it off. There’s just something in his eyes where, if you look at him, he’s ready to go.’’
Fuller is having another strong season to follow up his All-Pro showing in 2018, with two interceptions, five pass breakups and 27 tackles in the Bears’ first five games. He led the league in interceptions (seven) and breakups (21) last season, and his 17 career interceptions put him fourth in the NFL since 2014.
His top play this season was a terrific interception against the Broncos in which he stepped in front of the receiver at the perfect time to save a touchdown and nearly had the athleticism to keep his balance on the return, only to have his knee barely scrape the ground. Nonetheless, it was one of the highlights of the season.
Fuller and Amukamara are an elite tandem, and that’s an incredible luxury for the defense. The Bears rarely, if ever, have to double-team a receiver with those two on the field, and that frees up safeties Eddie Jackson and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to be aggressive playmakers.
Fuller is the quiet man among the cornerbacks. (The gregarious Amukamara and the eclectic Buster Skrine always have plenty to say.) He is probably the most tight-lipped player in the locker room, even more so than his buddy Khalil Mack.
He’s not the easiest player to get to know, and when he was asked how he has performed this season, the most he gave was: ‘‘Just playing what I see.’’ About defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano, Fuller offered: ‘‘Good dude, good coach.’’
He preferred not to discuss his interceptions, either, saying those are in the past and he’s looking ahead.
For most of the Bears, the best way to understand Fuller is simply to watch him work.
‘‘He’s a great pro,’’ Pagano said. ‘‘I don’t think there’s anybody on our team ... that probably watches and studies more tape than Kyle. He comes to work every single day.
‘‘He’s not a man of many words, but he’s a smart guy and he takes a lot in. He listens a lot, takes a lot in. He asks great questions. He knows football inside and out.’’
It would be normal to interpret Fuller’s reserved personality as him being standoffish, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Amukamara, who’s always prodding teammates in an effort to build relationships, said Fuller loosened up over dinner in the city. Skrine, who joined the team this year, said he thinks Fuller treats the football field like any other workplace and is there solely to do his job.
But there are rumors, hard as they might be to believe, that Fuller occasionally chimes in with a funny line on the field or in meetings.
‘‘He cracks jokes every now and then, but I don’t know when the last time was,’’ Skrine said. ‘‘It happened at least once, I think.’’
At least they know what they’re going to get from him.
Fuller is one of the Bears’ most dependable players on the field and in the locker room. He’s the same from play to play and week to week. He’s steady. And if staying quiet and serious is part of what keeps him at this level, the Bears will take it.