In the middle of Khalil Mack’s All-Pro first year with the Bears, then-outside linebackers coach Brandon Staley made an eyebrow-raising comment with an glimpse on the future.
“As a great rusher, you want to be able to be put in either side in some of our three-down stuff, being able to play him in the middle some,” Staley said. “The more he gets confident in our scheme, the more we’re going to be able to do with him.”
The point of Staley’s comment was Mack hadn’t fully realized what he could do in Vic Fangio’s defense. Without the benefit of OTAs, minicamps or training camp — Mack practiced with the Bears for the first time six days before the season opener — Fangio and Staley were reticent to move Mack around much within their scheme.