"In evaluating the first half of the season for Julius Peppers, it's easy to see how he has made a significant impact on the Bears' pass defense.

Consider that opposing quarterbacks have combined for a passer rating of 68.9, second in the NFL behind only the Packers. The Bears aren't getting to the quarterback enough, and they're certainly not finishing plays as often as needed, but they're still tough to throw on and that wasn't the case a year ago when they ranked 25th in opposing passer rating.

Still, it's difficult to digest that the prize of free agency is earning $20 million and has just two sacks.

The Bears are used to pedestrian pass rushers so when Peppers arrived they were more excited than when Alonzo Spellman giddily announced his goal for a season back in the 1990s was to have a sack total in "high double-digits." Peppers will need to average one a game in the second half simply to reach double-digits. (Ex-Bears Alex Brown and Mark Anderson have combined elsewhere for two sacks, and Peppers' replacement in Carolina, Charles Johnson, has 3 1//2.)"