Bears rookie Kyler Gordon, Jaquan Brisker display ball-hawking skills at training camp

Since joining the Bears, the two rookies have shown some of the same skills they displayed in college. On one play during an offseason practice, Gordon blanketed a receiver, stopped on a dime, turned around and leaped high to intercept a pass. On another day, Brisker punched the ball loose from a receiver twice on the same play (the receiver recovered the first fumble).

“Ball hawks; that’s what they are, that’s why we brought them here,” said coach Matt Eberflus. “A person doesn’t change from college. If they have ball skills in college, they still have it. We enhance them by being fanatical and us practicing the way we practice and the drills we do that we’ve done forever and the new ones that we’re incorporating now. We’ll enhance that skill. But it’s got to be a want-to.”

With the Colts from 2018-21, Eberflus coordinated a defense that ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in takeaways in all four of his seasons. Last year Indianapolis finished second with 33 takeaways. The Bears, meanwhile, tied for 26th with 16 takeaways.

Eberflus wants the Bears to focus on creating turnovers like former cornerback Charles Tillman did throughout his career. Employing a technique that was dubbed the “Peanut Punch,” Tillman forced 42 fumbles during 12 seasons with the Bears from 2003-14.

Eberflus welcomed Tillman to Halas Hall to speak to the team’s rookies during rookie minicamp in May.

“It’s got to be like Peanut, when he was here he’s talking to those guys about how to punch it out and the details of that, and to me, that’s exactly what they’re doing,” Eberflus said. “They’re taking that to the next level. You play like you practice, so keep practicing this way, keep doing it, we’ll do it in a game.”