Kyler Gordon ready to take giant leap in 2023
Bears cornerback Kyler Gordon (6) had three interceptions as a rookie in 2023, including this one against the Bills on Dec. 24 at Soldier Field.
Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images
Bears cornerback Kyler Gordon learned some painful lessons during an up-and-down season as a rookie starter in 2022. It was a rite of passage for the second-round draft pick.
He’s not a rookie anymore.
“I feel extremely comfortable,” Gordon said after Wednesday’s OTA at Halas Hall. “I feel like I know my place, where I’m supposed to be and stuff like that. So coming into this second year, I don’t have any of the ‘Where am I?’ like I did the first year. I feel like I know where I’m at, what’s going on and where I fit.”
The Bears are counting on Gordon to build off a promising rookie season and use those hard lessons to take a big step forward in 2023. Even defensive coordinator Alan Williams said Gordon just not being a rookie already is a bonus, because the 6-0, 200-pound Gordon is in better shape to utilize his natural talent.
“It’s just relaxing,” Williams said. “Last year, everything was in a frenzy because he wants to please; he wants to be so good. Now … he’s playing within himself. He’s got his feet underneath him. He’s communicating more than he did. He communicated before, but now it’s more.”
Gordon started 14 games last season, playing mostly at nickelback. He missed three games with injuries. He had three interceptions, including two in his last three games, against the Eagles and Bills in Weeks 15-16. That was a sign of progress, that the game was slowing down for him. But Gordon also had to slow himself down and just relax.
It’s only OTAs, but so far, so good.
“We call it the RPMs,” Williams said. “His RPMs are not always in the red all the time. So he is mentally alert, but is physically relaxed in how he’s playing now. That doesn’t mean he’s not going fast and he’s not hustling and running to the ball. It just means his RPMs aren’t super high.”
The Bears are using Gordon as a nickelback in offseason practices, but still plan to give him work on the outside “to keep his feet wet there,” Williams said. Clearly, his best value to the Bears is at nickel. And if second-round draft pick Tyrique Stevenson becomes a productive option at outside corner, Gordon figures to stay at nickel.
“You can certainly see his confidence growing in that position,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “The nickel position is a hard position. Things happen fast in there. You have to fit the run, so there’s a lot of things you have to do there, and we’re fortunate to have him in there.”
The nickel cornerback position is more prominent than ever, and Gordon fits the role.
“He’s a good blitzer, because he’s physical,” Bears cornerbacks coach Jon Hoke said. “He understands the timing, understands how to beat a block. In zone coverage, he understands how to route-match based on what he’s got. He understands the concepts that he’s being attacked with.”
Versatility is a nice asset, but the more Gordon plays nickel, it’s probably the better.
“I’m not going to lie — I do miss [outside] corner. I love corner,” Gordon said. “But it definitely is nice to focus on nickel and take in as much as I can there and perfect that spot.”
The Eberflus defense is all about scheme-fit, and Gordon’s experience at nickel will be a good test of that. It could turn out that nickel suits him as well as he suits it.
“In this defense, it’s really about being in the run,” Gordon said. “I like to blitz. Them giving me the ability to do that, that’s what I love about being in the nickel and being in the run fit.
“Hopefully I go back to corner and go back and forth like I did. I just get to be closer [to the line of scrimmage], which is more opportunities for me to make plays. I love being there.”