What is the biggest hole in the Bears list?

Before the Chicago Bears exchanged Eddy Pineiro, the answer to that question would have been easy. One could even say that, with Pineiro's inexperience, the kicker remains the biggest hole in the lineup.

But what if this question was asked before Ryan Pace sends a conditional 7th round to the Raiders for a kicker?

Have you ever guessed that the Bears' biggest hole was the depth of the defensive front?

In a recent article by ESPN Insider, Football Outsiders looked at the most important hole in every line-up following the NFL draft in 2019 and chose it for the Bears.

That's what they had to say about the depth of Chicago's defensive front.

Khalil Mack, Leonard Floyd, Akiem Hicks and Eddie Goldman: It's a strong defensive core that any team can ask for. It was a versatile and overwhelming group that propelled the Bears to ninth overall total yards allowed. They also finished third in the league with 50 sacks. Depth, however, is a concern. Aaron Lynch, Isaiah Irving and Kylie Fitts present an ominous fallback plan in case of Mack or Floyd's injury. Likewise, the revolving defensive linemen of the interior, Jonathan Bullard and Roy Robertson-Harris, are both in contract and must increase their level of play to prove that the Bears should not replace them in 2020.

I guess they only talk about the defensive line and, by extension, the defenders, because that's all they mention.

But I still disagree with this assessment.

I'd have been to the party if they had used the depth of the blade because after Mack and Floyd, Lynch is at best an effective starter. He had a good year of rebound in 2018 after two disappointing years with the 49ers, but how much was attributed to his meeting with Defense Coordinator Vic Fangio? With Fangio in Denver, Lynch, still only 26 years old, will have to prove that he is determined to be the best he can be.

Everything else outside the linebacker is a question mark.

But the defensive line proved capable a year ago with Pro Bowler Akiem Hicks and nose tackle Eddie Goldman in mind. Bilal Nichols started as a rookie and started at the end of the year. Roy Robertson-Harris and Jonathan Bullard are both capable reservists.

Robertson-Harris is still an up-and-coming player and it will only be his third year in this position. He tied for third place in the Bears in 2018 with 11 hits (3 sacks) and is expected to become a restricted free agent after the 2019 season so he can also get into a great deal.

Bullard has never lived up to the "Stealing the project" He was awarded the title when the Bears got him in the third round in 2016, but he is a good defensive lineman by rotation. He has never been able to understand how to get to the quarterback, but his run defense is solid at the first and second low.

They will need young linebackers and defensive linemen to intensify this off season and prove that they deserve a place at the bottom of the list. and Bullard is far from being a hole in the lineup.