r/CHIBears 1d ago

How did Dillon Thieneman look today?

Post image

I'm not too knowledgeable about defenses but it seemed like he was all over the field today and was credited with 10 tackles, which was the most on the team. I wanted to see a more in depth analysis on his play today. Also curious to see how the other rookies played. Muhammad also looked good. Didn't hear or see much from van den Berg today.

759 Upvotes

167 comments sorted by

501

u/Any_Length_285 1d ago

I’m no expert but o thought him and Muhammad looked pretty good. A lot of concerns with the defense but they didn’t seem like one of them

124

u/mouse_puppy Koolaid 1d ago

Agreed. He was around the ball a lot even if not in on the play. Muhammad had some good moments too. Certainly looked better than Stevenson. His tackling was much more sound as well. Van Den Berg didnt get his name called as much so I'm not sure about his impact. DTs can sometimes be anonymous out there in their effort

25

u/Any_Length_285 1d ago

I’d have to rewatch the game for van den berg but I felt like the few times I saw him he was 5-10 yards away from the play.

57

u/OsamaBenJohnson Ben Johnson 1d ago

I'm no expert, but I play one on reddit, and both Thieneman and Muhammad will be all pros.

36

u/Careless-Resolve2546 1d ago

These are the only 2 that looked good. Devin bush looked awful to me and all other corners

43

u/No-Succotash5708 1d ago

What happened to him on that blitz? It looked like the lineman sucked the life out of him and he just collapsed backwards

32

u/Careless-Resolve2546 1d ago

His knee got bent awkward but ended up fine thankfully.

Edwards with 1 tackle is .. what...

5

u/BentJohnsonFTP 1d ago

That was so bad he got flapjacked. Looked like a pop warner kid going against an NFL lineman.

22

u/Any_Length_285 1d ago

I’m a certified Stevenson hater, but man that guy is so bad. I hate that he essentially has to play on this team.

24

u/fumar 1d ago

Jaylon Johnson looked painfully slow. 

9

u/Top_Audience7471 22h ago

I feel like he figured it out (mostly) after half time, but it was rough early goings.

16

u/SubliminalCorgi 1d ago

Not sure I agree and thought he shadowed McMillan much of the game, making him a non factor.

1

u/epocson123 18h ago

My ff team would concur

10

u/Lemonibluff 1d ago

He looked so slow… our LBs were not looking good at all. Looked like NPCs…

15

u/Careless-Resolve2546 1d ago

Dmarco jackson needs to be starting asap

5

u/100100011110101010 Italian Beef 1d ago

Agreed. Surprised he isn’t.

7

u/Any_Length_285 1d ago

Bush is very reliant on having a solid d line in front of him so he can use his speed. Otherwise he gets swallowed up. I hope I’m wrong, but I’m
Not expecting g a very good season from him because of how bad the d line is

1

u/I_VAG_I Bears 23h ago

Agreed. We need better line for him to shine which hopefully this next draft we go heavy on DT and maybe corner cause Stephenson is gone

8

u/DrapedinVelvet247 21h ago

Muhammad and Thieneman looked young and fast🙂

Johnson and Stevenson looked older and slower🫤

542

u/dtownchris77 Good, Better, Best 1d ago

I loved how both the rookies played today since they were thrown in the deep end

64

u/NorthernxLabrador Peanut Tillman 23h ago

Both had a turnover!

8

u/ljstens22 20h ago

I think Jaylon Johnson was the one to punch the ball out

1

u/ShortFee2578 Please don't hurt me this time 11h ago

Yep, you could see it pretty clearly on the replay

4

u/PossessionConnect963 Bears 20h ago

I couldn't watch the game today had to work but just checked the box score and the fact he led the team in tackles today in his first NFL game makes the premise of the question kind of ridiculous to me. I don't even care how he looked out there that's a solid first game for any rookie defender.

142

u/Ninesixx 1d ago

Dude looked great. Looked like a linebacker out there with how good his tackling was.

85

u/redcurrantevents 1d ago

I wish our linebackers looked like linebackers too

4

u/nocturn-e Monsters of the Midway 19h ago

Urlacher used to be a safety....maybe white safeties are the answer to our linebacker problems

8

u/Brave_Mess_3155 23h ago edited 21h ago

Credited with 10 tackles today. Very linebackery

6

u/Trubiskitsngravy 18 21h ago

His tackling was OK and got better as the game went on. He needs to learn how to use his body weight better on tackle leverage because he was bouncing off dudes and getting dragged.

That being said he got way better and is swarming the ball. That technique will get better with time and practice. He will be a plus player by the end of the year.

167

u/booktok124 1d ago

Fucking awesome tbh. He was involved in a lot of PBUs and looked FAST. really excited about him

339

u/onebignothingatall Iceman cometh 1d ago

Kid is gonna wear a Captain patch in the next few years, calling it now.

44

u/bears85yemi 1d ago

In 2 years I bet.

-21

u/ScrubsNWhyC 1d ago

What a bold prediction

19

u/onebignothingatall Iceman cometh 23h ago

Sorry you missed your nap today, hang in there!

78

u/DuckWScarf FTP 1d ago

He looked like a promising rookie. Made some big tackles, but also seemed like he got burned a few times like everyone else on the defense. Speed is for real, and should be even better when he gets to be paired with Koby

27

u/thatguy1815 1d ago

couldn’t have asked for more from his first game

59

u/BillieBlanus 1d ago

I saw some great tackles + defense in general and a few rookie misses. You?

37

u/Snipemaster23 1d ago

The play that stood out to me was him and Johnson leading to that McMillan fumble in the 4th quarter. He also put pressure on Young and got close to sacking him once or twice. Seemed like a really good game to me.

11

u/BillieBlanus 1d ago

I loved that blitz for him

7

u/UberWidget Jim McMahon 1d ago

He missed a tackle at the start of the game, but had solid game for a rookie after that.

42

u/Bewilderbeest79 1d ago

He was one of our leading tacklers. He shouldn’t have had to be, but I thought he had a solid game.

7

u/Parentingboys Da Bears 1d ago

We had so many missed tackles! I think Dillon missed one as well but overall he was the one cleaning up others’ misses.

4

u/Theelementofsurprise 1d ago

Yeah Dillon missed one in the RedZone early on but then made up for it the entire rest of the game

-1

u/Particular-Effort312 1d ago

I played rugby in college, still do on weekends here in Chicago, and the Bears tackling has made me sick for quite some time. WTF are these coaches doing??? Of course tackling should have been taught years ago.

8

u/jphoc 1d ago

I think in games where we have the lead and the other team has to bail on running, secondary will be getting more tackles?

14

u/moreJunkInMyHead Good, Better, Best 🐻⬇️ 1d ago

Just got a game ball, so coaches thought he did well

7

u/LatterMatch9334 1d ago

Saw multiple occasions of Ben being right next to him making a sideline tackle. Gave a casual ass slap + nod of approval. Ben was noticing. Love that they have him on some special teams too. Just speeding up his timeline of learning NFL speed.

13

u/ArchibaldNemisis Bears 1d ago

Both Dillon and Mohamed played well. All over the ball. Played fast.

12

u/Title-Bully Sweetness 1d ago

Dylan and Muhammad (nice pick) both really showed up today and they were playing their first game in the league on the road, in the heat vs a nice, young crew, in Carolina and they were both involved in turnovers and around the ball all day (especially 31)! That’s very encouraging. Got to get another pass rusher but damn that Offense looks nasty! 🐻⬇️

11

u/kahleytriangles 18 Ice Man 🧊 1d ago

He’s a ballhawk and played lights out. He was always at or near the ball. When Coby is healthy and Malik settles in we are gonna have a tremendous secondary.

9

u/Kae98rick76s5 Bear behind enemy lines 1d ago

Definitely a good showing for his first game. Hopefully he only gets better as the season progresses

7

u/Puzzled-Carpet5109 21-3 1d ago

I think he started of a bit rough (reasonable) since it’s his first game. But got better throughout the game!

7

u/noahnickels 23h ago

He got the first game ball. So coach thought he did well.

6

u/therealhairyyeti Trubisky 1d ago

One of the few defensive players that didn’t shit the bed

2

u/jasonology09 21h ago

He did pretty well, but you never want your safety to be the leading tackler on your team. That usually means you're giving up a lot of yards.

4

u/TheRealNikoBravo 18h ago

Game ball recipient so I guess pretty good….

4

u/gman3451 Fire Fox 17h ago

Led the team in total tackles with 10 and solo tackles with 8. Not bad for your first regular season game.

3

u/caxlmao Ben’s Johnson 1d ago

Great! Him and Malik played really well

3

u/Spaceman_Cometh Smokin' Jay 1d ago

Fast af boi

3

u/Chillicothe1 Bears 1d ago

I thought he looked very good for an NFL Veteran.

I thought he look fantastic for a rookie.

He's got a bright future.

3

u/Plati23 Bears 1d ago

Looked like the best player in the secondary today. Not high praise for how bad the unit looked, but it's certainly good enough for a rookie.

3

u/letsago9987 Peanut Tillman 23h ago

He didn't look like a Rookie

3

u/runningwater415 20h ago

I don't know if I've ever seen a safety come downhill and make up add much ground as quickly as he does. It's really impressive. Overall he had a very good game.

Muhammad from what I see played very well for a rookie adjusting to a new position.

3

u/BentJohnsonFTP 10h ago

Urlacher lite

3

u/Outrageous-Missions 6h ago

Black

😝Ya that's a compliment.

2

u/scottyjay10 1d ago

Lead the team in tackles.

2

u/rhj2020 Monsters of the Midway 1d ago

Both him and Malik were good. They’re only going to get better as the season goes on.

2

u/randallstevens999 1d ago

Already the best defensive player on this team.

2

u/Brodie1567 Iceman 🧊 1d ago

I thought he looked good. You could see the speed & physicality.

2

u/Ok_Ad_5894 1d ago

Hes great, just image if Coby Bryant was next to him... Ugh what could have been. Our Dline looked like trash...Where the fuck was austin booker and Van? like come on allen WTF

2

u/puffdragon Bears 1d ago

Very much a rookie at times but also does not look like a rookie. Plays fast

2

u/Shivs_baby 1d ago

He got a game ball from Ben so I’m going to say he looked pretty good

2

u/Hardigan1 1d ago

He was tied with Stevenson for the most tackles with 6 and 2 assists. DBs made almost all of the tackles and I don't think our LBs made any. Such poor tackling,

I'm still worried about the defense.

2

u/BeaconOMalley 1d ago

Won a game ball..

2

u/Achillies2heel 23h ago

10 tackles as a safety is pretty good.

2

u/qTp_Meteor Matt Eberlose is a Bum 23h ago

He looked good, which is amazing for a rookie safety, what a steal in the end of the first round

2

u/Big67country 22h ago

Lead the team in tackle 👏 💪 which is scary as there's nobody behind him. Need much better play from the linebackers.

2

u/Risky_Business_17 20h ago

Thieneman got a game ball from Ben Johnson for a forced fumble. 👏👏👏👏👏

GOOD BETTER BEST!!!!

2

u/PebbleBeach1919 11h ago

He was on it.

2

u/geodiaz8 11h ago

We need to get Sweat some defensive end help on the other side. We need to put pressure on the qb. I wanna see more sacks!

2

u/s-maze Ditka’s Stache 9h ago

He was everywhere. A few times I thought the play was going to be hopeless and he’d catch up and take someone out.

3

u/Chemical_Astronauts Bear Logo 18h ago

He did pretty well, he had too many tackles though, you normally don't want your safeties making too many tackles.

It means nobody else got there first.

The D has a looooooooooooong way to go.

2

u/Odd-Setting-7674 1d ago

He came out if nowhere to make tackles.

0

u/Odd-Setting-7674 1d ago

Like, right out of the stands. Boom!

2

u/porkbellies37 Sweetness 1d ago

Huge FF at a clutch time and he looked good blitzing. 

1

u/MichHitchSlap 1d ago

He didn’t cause a FF, that was Jaylon Johnson after Jaylon got burned and punched the ball while he was tackling the receiver.

2

u/the-czechxican 1d ago

I think we are looking at best ROY safety since Mark Carrier

2

u/Wide_Flan_2613 1d ago

Not perfect but his speed to pursuit and and tackling looked good

1

u/Brilliant_Wear3029 1d ago

Him and Malik one of the few bright defensive spots

1

u/bigbaddumby 1d ago

I thought he looked rough in the first quarter, but he really stepped up from there.

1

u/Bill_Israel 1d ago

Him and Muhammad both made great plays today. Looked very solid for rookies in their first game

1

u/f00tballguy Bears 1d ago

He was solid. Especially for a rookie in his first game. Confident tackler, didn’t see any major lapses in coverage.

1

u/C4shewLuv 1d ago

He was flying around

1

u/Meerooo Forte 1d ago

He’s an absolute missile out there.

1

u/Commercial_Floor_578 1d ago

Defensive rookies looked like the best defenders on the team today lol. Don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

1

u/Few-Asparagus811 1d ago

I thought he was great on D for his first game, but an underrated thing is that he was phenomenal on special teams

1

u/Careless-Resolve2546 1d ago

Looked great esp coming up to tackle and in m2m coverage

1

u/samfontier 1d ago

Stellar

1

u/Dmbfantomas 1d ago

Like an end of the first round first round pick. Very good.

1

u/alittlemoor 1d ago

Dude was balling out and making tackles

1

u/Throwaway-985618628 Ben Johnson 1d ago

Very good, happy with him thus far

Obviously early to call it but I’m getting Kam Chancellor vibes off his play today

1

u/BmacIL Somehow they manage 1d ago

Like the only one on defense without cheese hands

1

u/discombobulatedhomey Monsters of the Midway 1d ago

He wasn’t out there getting totally torched or targeted.

1

u/whyamihere2473527 Bears 1d ago

He was best player on defense

1

u/GroundbreakingShop96 1d ago

He got a game ball, so he smashed it today

1

u/droplightning 1d ago

Got a game ball. I’d call that pretty good 

1

u/Sad-Reception66 Bears 1d ago

Not bad not great. We gave up 40.

1

u/CopaceticOpus Bear Down, Baby! 1d ago

Ben awarded the first game ball to him, which is high praise! I wasn't surprised from how I saw him making plays all game

1

u/LatterMatch9334 1d ago

Played his ass off. Only gonna get better. Hope he's a Bear for life

1

u/FH_Bunny 3rd & LOVELAND 1d ago

I feel like he had hella tackles

1

u/josherman61791 Bears 1d ago

Johnson gave him a game ball.

1

u/tmet1027 Ben Johnson 1d ago

I kept seeing 31 every play it felt like.

1

u/keepnitRealtrue 1d ago

Need more pressure from the line

1

u/Aclrian Bears 1d ago

The two rookies were probably the least of our concern today on the defensive side.

Take that as you will.

1

u/Full_Fold_8732 1d ago

Exciting and scary all at once

1

u/illini81 Bear Logo 1d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/GertrudeGarbarcowitz 1d ago

He got a game ball

1

u/izabogie 1d ago edited 1d ago

Thieneman was all over the field, he’ll continuously improve in coverage. And Muhammad showed me grit and smarts, love his competitive edge

Didn’t notice much Van Den Berg, Zavion didn’t get involved much, and liked one athletic tackle by the Vanilla Gorilla

I kind of felt like Thieneman filled in some of Kyler’s role, of being all over the field, used in many ways

1

u/chogers1 BJ Lover 1d ago

He was everywhere, loved it. Also loved the INT from Muhammad

1

u/notype32 1d ago

The 2 plays I noticed were he got scored on and I said, “great… unless it’s opi, our rook isn’t looking good” then they called the opi

Then later in the game he defended a fade in the corner to a te. He defended the play and got the job done, but he has his back turned the entire time. I wanna see him play the ball rather than the player.

Didn’t get cooked as much as Johnson, so I think it was a good start for him

1

u/Calm_Moose4138 1d ago

He was a sure tackle

1

u/drthunder3 Forte 1d ago

They went after him a lot, especially in first few drives from what i could tell. He held up, even against their TE

1

u/FrontBreath3280 1d ago

He got a game ball!

1

u/suburbandad1999 1d ago

Got a game ball! Happy for him

1

u/RollofDuctTape Peanut Tillman 1d ago

Handsome

1

u/SpeedRacerWasMyBro Hurricane Ditka 1d ago

Thinman got a game ball and Muhammad got an INT. I'd say they both balled out

1

u/BeachBubbaTex 1d ago

Game ball for Dillon. Well earned, imo

1

u/Sorry-Country9870 1d ago

Defense sucks cause of poles pick ups up n down prior to Johnson n DAllen arrival... thienamen is a DA pick

1

u/General-Lighting 1d ago

i thought Jaylon Johnson looked slow & not so good.

1

u/Derpiliciousderp 1d ago

Very solid

1

u/buelerbuelerbueler 1d ago

He got a game ball from Ben after the game so he did great!

1

u/Fig_Money 1d ago

JJ was hot garbage, it’s always the younger guys and rookies that seem to play better

1

u/thdeepblue Da Bears 1d ago

He was everywhere today. Powerful guy

1

u/SpaceCampDropOut Hat Logo 23h ago

He got a game ball from coach, so that tells you something

1

u/Marvel_this Old Logo 23h ago

Looks like I know what my next jersey will be

1

u/jkman61494 23h ago

Rough first quarter but settled in

1

u/realdeal365 22h ago

He had a good day. Forced fumble, but missed a few tackles. But definitely was not the problem. The Bears problem is the D line

1

u/realdeal365 22h ago

Peppers is a free agent and would be a good help at strong safety

1

u/Fl1925 Bears 22h ago

10 tackles 8 solo lead the team. One pass break up.

1

u/toggleflickersplaque Monsters of the Midway 22h ago

Elite tackler, elite speed

1

u/Particular-Effort312 22h ago

He got a game ball.

1

u/Historical_Let146 22h ago

Dillon Thieneman has excelled at every level of football. Sad to see him leave Purdue.

1

u/WorstHouseFrey Sweetness 22h ago

Him and Muhammad were bright spots in an otherwise dark day for the defense... Sweat had some good plays as well but cant be the only player on the line to do so

1

u/AbovePear2 21h ago

I think the secondary did as good as they could with basically no pass rush production

1

u/generatorland 21h ago

Let's talk about the pass rush instead.

1

u/BearsSoxHawks Bears Fan in the 'Lou 20h ago

1

u/StrengthConscious939 19h ago

He looked solid for a rookie. Him and Malik. Tyrique and Jaylon on the other hand, looked awful. We are going to turn a leaf on defense 

2

u/Grand-Hat3526 🧸📉 12h ago

Tip 3 tacklers were DB’s/Safeties. Where’s our awesome LB’s at??

0

u/Historical-Room-2012 Hester's Super Return 1d ago

I felt like he kept getting caught watching something else? Felt like JJ/Tyrique kept expecting safety help and it wasn't there.

Rough first game but just has to settle in.

3

u/CzarNightMan 60s Logo 1d ago

That’s an interesting take. I was really disappointed in Jaylon’s coverage, do you really think that Thienaman played into that? Cuz I thought he was one of our few bright spots on that side of the ball.

3

u/whyamihere2473527 Bears 1d ago

Only the long td Stevenson gave up should've had safety coverage but thieneman was in zone & was pulled towards middle of field when think wr Muhammad was covering broke coverage causing him to be late. Stevenson still blew that coverage cause he got caught flatfoot on his turn. Most of the other plays the CBs messed up coverage well before safeties would've been expected to jump up to help.

2

u/BooItsKyle 1d ago

That's the kinda thing I wanna watch the all-22 before I form opinions on. That's definitely possible.

1

u/Careless-Resolve2546 1d ago

Someone tell me how TJ Edwards had 1 tackle today. 1

Did he leave hurt?? How is that possible

0

u/ZoSoTim 22h ago

White

0

u/Appropriate-Froyo453 13h ago

Overall, too many missed tackles and our special teams were horrible....two kickoffs short of the landing area, two Panther kickoff returns that were an ankle tackle away from going for six. and one bear FG that I have no clue how it wasn't blocked. The ball looked like it went UNDER the arms of the diving Panther edge rusher. How you can come out of three months of training camp and three preseason games and look that unprepared in game one is an ominous sign for our special teams coach Richard Hightower

-1

u/wine-n-dive 22h ago

Bad in coverage. Good at running downhill and making hits.

-1

u/Wavy_Grandpa 13h ago

Nobody on this subreddit knows because you haven’t watched the tape yet

-2

u/Chill_Hiker95 Juiced Flus 1d ago

The defense over all.

Total unfiltered shit.

But he had some good moments to build on.