Eddie Jackson embracing his new role for Chicago Bears

«When they really got rid of everybody, that was the big turning point,» Jackson said. «They got rid of everybody. (Khalil) Mack was my boy. Akiem (Hicks) and Danny (Trevathan), those were my guys. But now, it's like, you turn around and you look — oh, I'm one of those guys in the room now. These younger guys coming in, they're gonna look at you. (Safeties) coach (Andre Curtis), he told me: ‘Listen, baby, you ready to lead? Because we're ready to follow. You gotta lead from the front, doing all the right things even when no one's looking.'»

"I really eliminated the personal goals this year, it was just more overall helping the team, come in and be a better version of myself," Jackson said. "I know I'm a vet now, one of the oldest guys in the room, so a lot of the young guys look up to me. I have to lead from the front. That's how I prepare, how I work, how I'm in meetings, how I walk around the building, how I attack the weight room, all of that type of stuff. I feel like everything else will fall in line."

"It starts with 'Flus.' Coach, he's never late to a meeting, he's probably 5-10 minutes early waiting on us to get in there, sitting in the back of the room," Jackson said. "Just that accountability part and holding everyone accountable, everyone equally accountable. No matter if you're Year 10, Year 2, Year 1. And just the conditioning part. You see us out there. We fly around for however long practice is. From start to finish, we always preach that we want the first period to look like the last period, and he holds us up to that standard. Like today, we had guys not finishing through the line on one of the drills. He sent us back three times. That right there shows it's the little things."