Instead of ignoring it, Grady Jarrett is using the outside noise he sees and hears about the Bears defensive line as motivation.
"We've all got cell phones and internet, so we hear it," said the veteran defensive tackle. "It comes with the job. At the end of the day, we've got to take it personal and get back to work. You've got to find out, 'Where can I be better?' All we can do as a unit is look in the mirror and challenge ourselves every day to go be better and do what we need to do to have better output."
Jarrett is confident that the defensive line will raise its level of play in 2026 due to being healthier and refocusing on fundamentals and techniques. The unit was decimated by injuries in 2025; Jarrett missed three games, Austin Booker sat out the first seven contests and Shemar Turner and Dayo Odeyingbo were lost for the season in October and November, respectively.
"That's a big part of it, staying healthy," said Jarrett, who was hampered by a knee injury much of the season. "We were all kind of bit some way somehow by the injury bug last year, but that all goes into the preparation and it's how we take care of ourselves and how we go through our processes and stuff like that.
"It's also the coaches believing in us, the guys that are in the room, knowing that … we can get the job accomplished. It's up to us as players to go out here and get it done because the coaches and personnel department believe in us to do a job at a high level and that's what we need to go do."
Since the start of the offseason program, the defensive linemen have worked on honing their fundamentals and techniques. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen explained the rationale to reporters last month during rookie minicamp.
"We focused so much on installing the scheme last year because it was brand new, and we do have a high volume of things we carry in the defense," Allen said. "We focused so much on that, we lost sight of some of the fundamentals and techniques that it takes to function. I don't think we were as fundamentally sound defensively as we need to be. So how do we have to coach it better? Well, let's minimize how much we're focused on the scheme, OK, and let's focus not on what we're going to do, but how we're going to do it. I think that's how we're going to improve."
The different approach has been evident to Jarrett.
"You could feel it from Day 1 of this program," he said. "We really, really took it to the basics and I think it's been super helpful. We can see the progress of it on the field already. It's just the way we speak to each other, speak through what's expected, the details of whether it's stance or finishing at the ball how we need to."
Although Jarrett is entering his 12th NFL season (and second with the Bears), he still believes that he can improve as a player and is not above being coached.
"Guys that don't [accept coaching] don't make it to Year 12," Jarrett said. "You always have to be coachable. You've always got to make adjustments. Whenever you see people who are the best at what they do, they're always trying to get better. That's why you see guys like LeBron James playing 23 years, working year-round. Derek Jeter played for however long he did, always looking at the small things. It's just humbling yourself and thinking: 'Why not try to be the best you can be every day?'"
As Jarrett's knee improved late last year, he gained confidence and began playing better. As he prepares for the 2026 season, he intends to pick up where he left off.
"It's exciting to be feeling a lot better this year," Jarrett said. "I know that I owe Chicago a better year and I'm excited to go do that."
