Newly hired Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has shocked others within the organization with his defense’s success early in training camp. The intricacies of his defensive scheme have been a large talking point through the first week.
After nine seasons calling the New Orleans Saints defense, Allen made the move to Chicago to right the ship, including some monumental changes to the defensive scheme that Bears players had become used to.
As an offensive-minded head coach, Ben Johnson has been vocal about the struggles that Caleb Williams and the rest of the offense have been dealing with in practice. Even veteran players playing against the aggressive unit, like DJ Moore, have been put to the test.
Dennis Allen's defense is going to cause opposing offenses to lose sleep 👀 pic.twitter.com/6crUyNITIV
— Just Another Year Chicago: Bears (@JAYChi_Bears) July 25, 2025
Chicago has struggled to field a consistent defensive unit in recent memory, being outside the top 10 in points allowed in each of the last five seasons. During Allen’s last five years in New Orleans, his units ranked inside the top 10 each of the four years prior to 2024.
A big part of what has given Allen success is his ability to confuse his opponents. The 52-year-old has been a master at putting his players in the best positions to succeed, and it seems he’s continuing to do so with the Bears.
Kyler Gordon has been a player Allen has spoken highly of ever since he accepted the job. The former second-round pick has been playing all over the defensive side of the ball to start training camp, projecting to be a swiss-army knife for Allen to implement in many different ways.
Kyler Gordon on Dennis Allen getting creative with how he uses him: “Not a limit on anything I can do.”
— Matt Zahn (@mattzahnsports) July 29, 2025
Says he’s learning the whole defense. “It feels fun for me to know everything.”@cbschicago pic.twitter.com/zGFQ70Oaxw
With three of Chicago’s five highest-paid players being defenders (Montez Sweat, Jaylon Johnson and Tremaine Edmunds), the unit is expected to play at a high level. If Allen’s able to continue utilizing the talent at his disposal like he has to begin training camp, the Bears could be in for a big season defensively.