Bears rookie safety Jaquan Brisker making good first impression

Jaquan Brisker had five pass break-ups, two interceptions and one fumble recovery at Penn State last season. (Barry Reeger, AP Photos)

Bears coach Matt Eberflus’ emphasis on takeaways seems like just another new-coach cliché. Every coach wants his defense taking the ball away.

But as we learned from the Lovie Smith era, an obsession with takeaways can make a difference. Under Smith, the Bears were so wired to take the ball away that defenders would scoop up even clearly incomplete passes in training camp and take off for the end zone.