Chicago Bears: Dennis Allen has high praise for recently signed safety Xavier Woods, but stats tell a different story

The Chicago Bears faced many difficult roster decisions when the off-season began months ago. Among these was the tall task of replacing their starting safeties, all of whom left via free agency. And while they did so by signing Coby Bryant and drafting Dillon Thieneman, there are still some significant concerns regarding the position.

As training camp began, the hope was that their new safeties would be just as adept at creating turnovers as the players they lost. Unfortunately, they have been bombarded with a plethora of their injuries, including one to Bryant who could be out for as long as 10 weeks.

The Chicago Bears signed Xavier Woods, but he has been far from productive

With injuries mounting in the secondary, the Bears signed eight-year NFL veteran Xavier Woods on Monday morning. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen had some high praise for their new addition, saying, “He’s a veteran player.  He’s played a lot of football, been in a few different schemes. He’s been a productive player. [Pass game coordinator / defensive backs coach] Al [Harris] had him in Dallas, so there’s some familiarity there with him.  And, I just think, right now, we needed another veteran piece back there in the back end, specifically at the safety position.  So, I’m anxious to watch him come out here and compete and see where he falls in the line.”

The problem, though, is that Woods has not exactly been a productive safety in the league for the past couple of years. In 2024, playing for the Carolina Panthers, he allowed a 68.6% completion percentage, five touchdowns, and 102.2 passer rating when targeted.

A year ago, playing for the Tennessee Titans, Woods allowed a 71.9% completion percentage, one touchdown, and 82.4 passer rating.

As Allen notes, Woods played for Chicago defensive backs coach Al Harris while the two were with the Dallas Cowboys. There is familiarity there, but that was at the beginning of Woods’ career. He is now on the wrong side of 30, and was not signed by any NFL team after becoming a free agent.

Indeed, the Bears would not have looked his way if their safety room had not gotten so banged up early in training camp.

If Chicago is going to rely on Woods and others like him to replicate their strong defensive play (in terms of generating turnovers) from a year ago, they are likely in for a major disappointment.

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