Three days after he intercepted two passes against the Falcons, Bears rookie cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. He had five tackles and four pass breakups, too.
Stevenson is the first Bears defender to win the award in more than five years — safety Eddie Jackson did it last in Week 12 of 2018. He was the last Bears rookie to win the award, too, in 2017.
Receiver DJ Moore won the offensive award in Week 5.
“I like Tyrique for a couple of reasons,” coach Matt Eberflus said Wednesday. “No. 1 he’s an aggressive player, and he tackles well. That’s an important aspect, and he’s long. He’s lean, he’s long, he’s got good lean mass so he can really tackle well. He can tackle big backs. You can see that. He knocks them back. That’s the No. 1 thing I like about him.
“And then the length in the pass game. When you’re covering deep routes and side pocket throws, that length matters. Having arms of 32 or 33 [inches] are different than having 28s. So it’s important that we acquire guys like that, and he’s one of them. But I love his attitude, and I love his demeanor that he brings to the game every week.”
Stevenson will have a more daunting matchup Sunday — against Packers quarterback Jordan Love, who was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday.
