While there were high hopes that cornerback Kyler Gordon could be an impact player as a rookie in 2022, there was no illusion that it wouldn’t come without trials.
Gordon figured to get tested throughout the season, and have his ups and downs. But so far, there have been many more downs than ups — so much so that coach Matt Eberflus doesn’t push back against the notion that Gordon has had a rough first month. In fact, his litany of things Gordon needs to do better is almost as long as armchair critics.
“He’s learning,” Eberflus said. “He’s learning as he goes and he’s getting better. For a rookie, it’s small increments — just getting better, putting those experiences away and saying, ‘Hey, I learned from that. I can get better here at my angles, my tackling, at my coverage, at my coverage, at my line of scrimmage — crack, replace’ — all the things a corner does and he’s learning that and he’s getting better at those things.”
There aren’t many NFL coaches who embrace rookies as much as Eberflus does. All you have to do is show a little bit of promise and Eberflus is almost always sold. And it’s not the obvious first-round, top-10 picks, either. The Bears’ two rookie starters on defense are second-round picks — Gordon (No. 39 overall) and safety Jaquan Brisker (No. 48).
Rookie defensive end Dominique Robinson, part of a regular rotation so far, is a fifth-round pick who was considered a longer-term project as a former quarterback and wide receiver at Miami (Ohio). With Robert Quinn, Al-Quadin Muhammad and Trevis Gipson on the roster, Eberflus didn’t have to even look at Robinson, but gave him an early shot that other coaches might not have.
So there’s no way he’s going to panic over Gordon’s difficult introduction. On the contrary, he sees the issues Gordon is having — from coverage mistakes to getting off blocks to positioning and discipline — as part of the process.
“This is really typical,” Eberflus said. “It’s a lot of experiences to go through as a rookie, and you have to put him in there in order to have those experiences. He has the talent. He has the want to. He has the desire. He’s tough and he has everything you need to succeed.”
Gordon needs only look at teammate Kindle Vildor to see the value of lessons learned. Vildor, a 2020 fifth-round draft pick, was all but thrown in the discard bin after failing his starter’s audition last season. After surviving new general manager Ryan Poles’ roster teardown, Vildor is a starter in the nickel package. He’s far from a finished product, but he’s noticeably better than he was.
“At the cornerback position, especially at a young age, there’s going to be a lot of ups and downs, because it’s a huge jump from college to the NFL,” Vildor said. “You can’t get too low on yourself or too high on yourself if you make a play. You just have to continue to work.”
And Vildor admitted, that’s easier said than done.
“It’s going to be rough,” Vildor said. “He’s got to get to the next week and look at the stuff you’re doing and try to correct yourself, and just try to get better.”
As Vildor knows, it can get worse before it gets better. It just might for Gordon against Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen and the Vikings. But that’s the benefit of a rebuilding year. It’s easier to live with rookie mistakes. Learning the hard way is OK, as long as you learn.
