Khalil Mack and Leonard Floyd were supposed to become a genuine 1-2 punch for the Chicago Bears defense. Mack was a superstar and former Defensive Player of the Year. Floyd was a former 1st round pick who’d flashed plenty of upside his first two years. Playing across from Mack presented a giant opportunity for him. He’d see nothing but single blocks all year. A perfect recipe for sacks in bunches.

Yet weeks passed and Floyd remained quiet on the stat sheet. He went eight entire games without dropping a quarterback once. People started to wonder if he’d lost his edge. As it turns out, there may have been a deeper reasoning to the struggles. Some might think it was his hand being in a cast or his still recovering from knee surgery.

The truth might not be that complicated. In fact, it was an injury to his partner in crime Mack that opened the door to the Bears finally solving the problem and this revelation led to their breaking performance as a pair against the Lions. What was it?

The Bears casually had Khalil Mack and Leonard Floyd switch spots

Something had to change after Mack injured his ankle in Miami. They needed to maximize their pass rush as much as possible. So they flipped Floyd over to the left outside linebacker spot for the majority of the snaps. This was his natural position over the past two years and it was hoped he could jump-start his season from there. It didn’t work against the Patriots, but things began to thaw the next couple of weeks.

He had six pressures against the New York Jets from that spot and another two in Buffalo. It was clear he was getting closer to that first sack, but with Mack about to return against Detroit, it was curious if the Bears might move him back to the right side. They did not. Floyd logged 40 snaps from the left side. He sacked Matthew Stafford once and hit him two other times.

The fear then was could Mack adjust to playing at the right outside linebacker spot. Like Floyd he was used to playing on the left. However, the difference with him is he’s a far stronger and more complete pass rusher. He’s fully capable of making the switch and still producing. Taylor Decker found that out the hard way.

The best part is the Bears still found a few opportunities to put Mack on the left side. Seven in this case. He made them count, grabbing the second sack from that side. Everything about the position switches worked out. Mack and Floyd combined for seven pressures and three sacks. This is what the team has looked for all year. It’s how things should remain the rest of it.