2012 NFL Training Camp Preview: Chicago Bears' Secondary

The Bears’ secondary stayed relatively healthy last season. Charles Tillman was voted to his first Pro Bowl after posting yet another solid season.

Tim Jennings proved to be a consistent tackler and tough coverage man. He let a couple of interceptions slip out of his hands.

That’s something that he has to improve in order to keep his starting job.

D.J. Moore posted his second straight season with four interceptions, despite only appearing in13 games due to an ankle injury.

Corey Graham signed with Baltimore this off-season, so the Bears brought in veterans Kelvin Hayden and Jonathan Wilhite.

Major Wright and Chris Conte performed pretty well as starters in the secondary. Conte will have to learn to be even more consistent in his second season.

The Bears added Brandon Hardin in the third round out of Oregon State. Don’t be shocked if he is a starter at some point this season.

Veteran Craig Steltz was signed back for his contributions on special teams and for stopping the run. Anthony Walters will have to hold off undrafted rookies Jeremy Jones and Trevor Coston to stay on the team once again.

Here are the career stats for each cornerback on the Bears’ current roster.

Charles Tillman: (130 games, 126 starts), 731 tackles, 30 interceptions, 28 forced fumbles, nine fumble recoveries and three sacks.

Tim Jennings: (85 games, 49 starts), 294 tackles, seven interceptions, five forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

D.J. Moore: (32 games, one start), 86 tackles, eight interceptions, one forced fumble and one sack.

Kelvin Hayden: (85 games, 47 starts), 322 tackles, 11 interceptions, four forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

Jonathan Wilhite: (53 games, 15 starts), 121 tackles, four interceptions, one fumble recovery and two sacks.

Cornelius Brown: 10 games and 24 tackles.

Isiah Frey, Greg McCoy: n/a.

Here are the career stats for each safety on the Bears’ current roster.

Major Wright: (23 games, 10 starts), 81 tackles and three interceptions.

Chris Conte: (14 games, nine starts), 30 tackles and one interception.

Craig Steltz: (48 games, seven starts), 87 tackles, one interception, two forced fumbles and one sack.

Anthony Walters: four games and one tackle.

Brandon Hardin, Jeremy Jones, Trevor Coston: n/a.

 

Major Wright has to stay healthy in order for this secondary to live up to its potential. Chris Conte missed a couple games at the end of the last season as well.

Regardless, he just needs to add some muscle. Hardin is a bigger body at 6’2″, so he could replace Conte or Wright at any point if one or the other struggles.

Craig Steltz will be used sparingly as a safety in the box to stop the run.

Charles Tillman, Tim Jennings and D.J. Moore again project as the starters at cornerback. Kelvin Hayden needs to stay healthy to earn a roster spot.

Jonathan Wilhite will need to show more consistency, because during his time in New England and Denver, he was all over the place.

Cornelius Brown and rookies Isiah Frey and Greg McCoy will likely battle for one or two spots on special teams.

 

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1271292-2012-nfl-training-camp-preview-chicago-bears-secondary

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