30 Most Important Bears of 2022: No. 28 DeAndre Houston-Carson

The Chicago Bears are gearing up for the 2022 NFL season, which features plenty of new and returning faces within the organization. There are a number of players, coaches and front office members that are crucial to the team’s success this season.

Every day from now until the start of training camp, we’re counting down our 30 most important Bears for the 2022 season. We’ll recap their 2021 season, look ahead to 2022 and tackle the biggest question facing them this year.

Next up at No. 28 is safety DeAndre Houston-Carson, who looks to be the new leader on special teams and a key reserve in the secondary.

Background

AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh

Position: Safety

Age: 29

Experience: 7th season

2022 cap hit: $1.035 million

2021 recap

AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps

The Bears secondary was the defense’s biggest weaknesses, but there were some bright spots amid the disappointment. Houston-Carson is coming off his best season with Chicago, where he once again proved to be a viable asset both on special teams and as a key reserve at safety. He earned a 78.0 grade from Pro Football Focus, which was the third-best grade on the Bears’ defense.

Houston-Carson has been a valuable special teams contributor during his stint with Chicago, and it was needed after the team didn’t re-sign Sherrick McManis last offseason. But Houston-Carson also provided key depth at safety, where he was called upon to start at times during the season due to injury. Houston-Carson totaled 51 tackles, two fumble recoveries, one interception, four pass breakups and a defensive touchdown in 13 games games with three starts.

2022 outlook

AP Photo/John Bazemore

The Bears re-signed Houston-Carson to a one-year deal worth $1.77 million this offseason, where he’ll continue to serve as a vital contributor on special teams and as a reserve at safety. When looking at an overhauled special teams unit, Houston-Carson figures to be a key leader on that unit.

While it appeared that Houston-Carson was in the mix for the starting safety job opposite Eddie Jackson earlier this offseason, that changed when Chicago drafted Jaquan Brisker in the second round. At this point, it would be a total shock if Brisker isn’t starting come Week 1. That leaves Houston-Carson as the top reserve option at safety for the Bears, a role that he filled nicely last season.

Big question: How valuable is Houston-Carson to this new regime?

AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn

When general manager Ryan Poles was brought in, he immediately made it clear that he’s building his roster, showing no ties to previous veterans, including trading Khalil Mack and releasing Eddie Goldman, Tarik Cohen and Danny Trevathan. After evaluating the roster as a whole, Poles was selective about any returning veterans who were free agents.

Houston-Carson was one of the few returning Bears that Poles re-signed, which speaks volumes about how the new regime values him on this roster. That’s due to his contributions both as a special teams ace and key reserve at safety, where he’s able to step up in a starting capacity and produce. Assuming Houston-Carson continues to thrive in his role, the question is whether Poles decides to bring him back for another season. But so far, Houston-Carson has continued to earn deserving contract extensions due to his contributions on defense and special teams.

30 Most Important Bears of 2022

We’re counting down our 30 Most Important Bears of 2022. Check back every day leading up to the start of training camp.

1

1