LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Gervon Dexter literally looks like a new player this year, thanks to his reshaped body. After a few weeks of camp, Dexter also looks like a new three-technique tackle.
Dexter has been spotted in the backfield more often this training camp than he was at the same time last year. He’s picked up the slack with Montez Sweat and Andrew Billings sidelined over the past handful of practices and he’s been a noticeable disruptor in both the run and pass games.
When Dexter dedicated himself to losing body fat and replacing it with lean mass over the offseason, the hope was it would help him develop into an explosive three-tech tackle. It was unclear just how much his slimmed down frame would help, though. Every year players come to camp “in the best shape” of their lives, and it doesn’t always translate to the field. In Dexter’s case it’s helped his conditioning and his overall athleticism.
It’s also helped that Dexter has a much better understanding of the defense in year two than he did in year one. He also has a much better grip on what the Bears want him to do. In college, Dexter worked as a two-gap tackle who needed to read and react to an offensive play. With the Bears he’s a one-gap tackle who simply needs to create havoc at the snap. It’s a major mindset shift that Dexter grappled with last year, but now he says that’s all behind him.
“I know what to expect, I know the playbook, I know what it's supposed to look like, I know where I'm supposed to be when I finish the play.”
One of the biggest adjustments when moving from a two-gapper to a one-gapper is the “get off,” and that was one of Dexter’s pain points last season. When the ball was snapped, it took a bit longer for Dexter to “get off” the ball, or make his move into a lineman and into the backfield. This camp, coaches see improvement in that area.
“I talk to a lot of people and ask, ‘What are you keying here during the offseason?’” Dexter said. “Now I’m keying some of the right things, so I see something move and I’m going.”
Chicago Bears
One of Dexter’s best assets is his size. Even when he doesn’t get to the QB, his height and length can help him impact the play.
“I can't see the quarterback at times when Dex is rushing in front of me,” said linebacker T.J. Edwards.
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Dexter has used that size to bat down passes at the line of scrimmage.
“He's been doing that in camp every single day,” Edwards said. “It feels like he's batting a couple passes down and that's huge. That's where turnovers come.”
Batting down passes has come naturally to Dexter this summer, given his height and his arm length but it is still something he had to learn with the Bears.
“In college for me, if I didn't get a sack then the play was over… Now it has come in my head that, OK, if I'm not there, I need to get my hands up. Or if I'm going to split a rush guy and I'm at the point where I'm right in front of the quarterback, I have to get my hands up.”
In a defense loaded with talent, Dexter is a bit of an unknown on the defensive line. Yet he plays one of the most important positions on the field, a position that head coach Matt Eberflus has called the “engine” of the defense. That’s because Dexter should get a good amount of one-on-one opportunities in pass rush, and if he wins those pass rushes he’ll have a straight line to the QB.
If he can be just solid– not elite, just solid– the Bears defense will have a much better shot of reaching their lofty aspirations. He knows that, and he feels ready for the opportunity. His teammates have faith he’ll get the job done, too.
“He's just been confident in what he's doing,” said Edwards. “You can really feel it. He wants to make his presence known.”
