It's early in his career but Chicago Bears rookie Bilal Nichols could be another mid-round draft pick that pays off for general manager Ryan Pace. The Bears took Nichols in the fifth-round of the 2018 NFL Draft and after he was inactive in Week 1, the defensive tackle has put together two good showings for the Bears in the past two weeks.

Nichols has earned his time on the playing field and so far he's making the most of it in the Bears defensive line rotation.

In Week 3, Nichols had arguably the play of the game when he dropped Arizona running back Chase Edmonds for a loss on a key third down late in the game. He followed that up with a performance on Sunday that saw him register four tackles, two for a loss and a sack against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Perhaps his biggest play of the game didn't come on the sack, instead, it came when he read a short pass to rookie running back Ronald Jones and shed off his blocker to make the stop for a one-yard loss.

"I caught a groove early and just tried to maintain it," said Nichols following Sunday's game. "Doing my job, my responsibility and at the end of the day just play ball."

When Nichols recognized what the play was, the rookie's eyes lit up and he was able to get off of his block and make the stop to force a third down for Tampa Bay in the second quarter.

"Yeah, most definitely my eyes lit up," said Nichols."I was just focused on making sure I had a great tackle and bring him down to the ground."

A play later, outside linebacker Khalil Mack recorded his fourth strip sack of the season as he got pressure on Fitzpatrick and Chicago's defense forced another three-and-out from the Buccaneers. It's safe to say that Nichols had a big impact on that drive and he was able to do so because of film work during the week.

Nichols said he saw some tendencies from the Buccaneers on film that hinted what the play may have been.

"Yeah, actually that one screen play, that's just all film," said Nichols. "I noticed some tendencies that they did on that particular screen play and when I was out there I saw the same tendencies and I was able to react fast and make a play. It's an awesome feeling when you do what you're supposed to when it comes to film and you don't cheat yourself. You give yourself those opportunities to make."

With two impressive showings early in this season, Nichols is starting to prove he can play in this league and feels like he's earning the respect of his teammates on defense.

"I feel like my teammates have gained trust in me," said Nichols. "I'm at a point now where I'm trying to make sure I keep getting better and better and keep proving myself."

If Nichols continues to play this well moving forward, the rookie will have a key role on this defense and see an increase in reps. He could become a key contributor late in the season for a defense that looks like it could be one of the best in the NFL.