2. DL Akiem Hicks, Chicago Bears
For the better part of the last eight NFL seasons, Akiem Hicks has been one of the more dominant defensive linemen.
Even considering his age, Hicks is getting after the quarterback as well as he ever has.
In the 2020 season, Hicks played 15 games and finished with 49 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, and a career-high 21 quarterback hits. He matched a season-high with 29 QB pressures and had 16 QB knockdowns.
There’s no denying Hicks’ effectiveness even coming off of a year where he only played five games due to injury.
When Vic Fangio was the defensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears, Hicks was considered among the elite defensive linemen in the game.
From 2016-18, Hicks averaged eight sacks and 18 QB hits per 16 games in the Vic Fangio defense. His 23 sacks in that timeframe represent two-thirds of his career sacks.
The Denver Broncos gave a big-money deal this offseason to Shelby Harris, but they can obviously still afford Hicks’ one-year, $10.4 million base salary, and they could even try to re-sign him to a short extension to get that number down if they so choose.
Putting Hicks in the fray along with Harris and blossoming star Dre’Mont Jones along with depth pieces like Mike Purcell, Shamar Stephen, and 2020 third-round pick McTelvin Agim?
This would only enhance the Denver Broncos’ already stellar-looking defense and Hicks would make everyone around him better because of the attention he commands. Hopefully, George Paton is already thinking about this move.