When the Bears hired Dennis Allen as defensive coordinator early in 2025, the only player he mentioned by name was nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon. Allen’s creativity ran wild with all the ways he could use such a savvy, multi-talented piece, and it looked like a perfect match.
But Gordon had been just as excited, and likewise was just as disappointed by the delay as he dealt with various injuries.
“It sucks because, in my career, I still haven’t shown my true potential,” Gordon told the Sun-Times. “I talk about it with my friends all the time: There’s a lot of stuff for me to show, and in this defense with D.A. over the next couple years, I’ll have a chance to do that.”
He missed 14 games with three injuries last season and had a calf injury in the recent offseason that kept him out of spring practices, training camp and the first five games.
Throughout, the Bears’ public coldness toward him exacerbated a frustrating ordeal for both sides. Coach Ben Johnson quickly moved to the next topic whenever Gordon’s name came up, and general manager Ryan Poles said going into the season he didn’t know whether he’d ever play for the Bears again.
That turned the temperature up on Gordon within the fan base. It became popular — and wildly off-base — to call him the new Nate Davis, the offensive lineman who signed a big contract with the Bears but appeared to lose his passion and has been out of the league since the team cut him midseason two years ago.
They’re not the same at all. Being away was miserable for Gordon, who called it “a daily mental battle.” The process was made harder, he said, because of “really having the environment around you be not what you’d think it would be.”
When asked whether he was saying the Bears were unsupportive, Gordon simply repeated the line and laughed. It was notable that after a historic performance in his return last month, he posted an old video clip of Poles clapping on Instagram.
Gordon was unbelievable that day against the Falcons. He got three sacks, stopped star running back Bijan Robinson for a loss and forced two fumbles in just 17 snaps. He is believed to be the first defensive back in NFL history with three sacks and two forced fumbles in a game.
With Gordon finally fully healthy, everyone saw what he and Allen dreamed of, and Gordon reminded everyone he’s one of the league’s premier nickels. He can cover anyone from slot receivers to tight ends, he’s a playmaker against the run, he can shift outside when needed and he’s the best blitzer there is.
In four games, Gordon has four sacks, 13 tackles and a pass breakup, and quarterbacks have a collective 86.6 passer rating when throwing his way. He said his goal is 10 sacks this season, which would set the record for a defensive back.
The contentiousness has subsided, too, as his play has drawn compliments from Poles, Johnson and Allen over the last few weeks.
If Gordon can stay on the field, his partnership with Allen will be the most dangerous part of this defense other than the ever-present possibility of defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons busting into the backfield. And Allen’s style is much more in line with Gordon’s mentality than former coach Matt Eberflus’ was.
“We’re constantly threatening people or attacking people and making the offense make a quick decision, rather than being conservative and having people attack us and seeing what happens,” Gordon said. “I like his mindset as far as being on the attack and on the hunt and let them fear us.”
His uncanny blitzing ability fits that philosophy perfectly, and his versatility makes him a deceptive weapon for Allen.
The Bears had been one of the league’s most blitz-happy teams under Allen, though that’s not his preference to help their struggling pass rush. That’s already declined since trading for Simmons.
That only makes Gordon more unpredictable for opposing offenses. Allen can create uncertainty by presenting him as a blitzer, then drop him back into coverage. Or, he can be opportunistic about turning him loose.
Gordon has been an acrobatic athlete for the Bears since they drafted him in the second round in 2022 and earned the nickname Spiderman because of that and his ability to save a play at the last moment.
But it’s the mental side that makes him elite. Gordon he processes and stores information like a computer. His rookie season, for example, was a bumpy ride as he got burned by veteran quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers, but rather than be derailed by those failures, Gordon simply took them as data to help him improve.
When he talks about his approach to blitzing, it’s almost all intellect.
“Awareness is such a big thing,” Gordon said. “That’s why I appreciate my God-given ability to learn and retain it all when I go out there. I’ve studied so much and I’m so aware of all the possibilities that could happen and what I’m going to do.”
Gordon’s return, followed by Simmons’ arrival, was crucial to the defense’s improvement. Even if he still feels some resentment, the ironic part is the best way for him to stick it to the Bears is to be exactly what they want: a game-changer at the center of their defense.
If he keeps playing like this, he’ll reestablish himself as an essential piece. He’s in the first season of a three-year contract extension that Poles offered him thinking he’d be a cornerstone, and if he stays on this course, the unpleasantness of the past year or so will fade into a footnote.
