Bears Blitz

Published by Bryan Dietzler on January 9, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

Have you been a little bit frightened at some of the recent performances of the Bears defense?  Are you afraid that they will suffer a breakdown in the playoffs and cost Chicago the chance to go to the Super Bowl? 

Never fear. The Bears defense remains one of the best in the NFL heading into the playoffs and cannot be underestimated.

But fans and some media members have felt that this defense has broken down over the course of the last few games.  We saw what happened to the defense in both their game against the New England Patriots and the New York Jets and they were exposed in those games. 

What happened to the defense in those two games to expose them?

The biggest problem that the defense had was not getting enough or consistent pressure on the opposing quarterback.  In their game against the Patriots, the Bears did manage to sack quarterback Tom Brady three times, but the pressure was not consistent, and Brady was able to pick the Bear’s secondary apart easily. 

In their game against the Jets, the Bears didn’t get to quarterback Mark Sanchez one time. This allowed Sanchez to find his receivers easily and, like Tom Brady, pick the Bears defense apart.

Another issue that the Bears had in both of those games was problems in the secondary.  With the pass rush unable to take care of the opposing quarterback the secondary was picked apart with seeming ease. 

The quarterbacks were able to find the receivers in the seams and those open spots, and often times those receivers could gain extra yardage and help move the ball down the field.  This happened a lot in the Patriots game, especially.

So what can the Bears defense do to make sure that they don’t have these same breakdowns on defense again? 

First and foremost, they have to get pressure on the opposing quarterback.  Any team that they could meet in their game on the 16th has a passing game that is potent.  In order to stop a good passing game, you need pressure and when the Bears get good pressure from their front four, they usually win the game.

This means that guys like Israel Idonije and Julius Peppers are going to have to get things going up front and get to the quarterback.  But there is a problem, or at least some of the players and media think there is a problem. 

Soldier Field’s surface isn’t the ideal surface and in bad weather conditions (snow and cold), it becomes difficult to gain footing, especially when the defense is trying to get up the field and get to the quarterback.  We have seen the Bear’s front four struggle in these conditions, and they will have to endure them once again in their first playoff game.

Getting pressure on the quarterback is vital because it helps throw that quarterback off of his “game” and doesn’t allow him the time to sit back and pick apart the Bears secondary. 

Ideally it would be nice if the front four could do all of the damage up front, but there have been occasions where the Bears have been forced to use a linebacker (most of the time it’s been Brian Urlacher) to help them rush the passer.  They have had some good success with that.

In addition to rushing a linebacker, the Bears have also brought the nickel back (usually D.J. Moore in) as part of a pressure package, and this has worked at times this season.  The only thing is, it’s hard to take that extra guy out of the secondary, and if the quarterback catches the Bears doing that and has a window to throw the ball, he can complete it for a long gain.

The linebackers need to be able to drop back into coverage and take away those short and middle routes so that they don’t get burned in those areas.  That is why pressure from the front four is so important.

The secondary needs to keep the play in front of them and make the tackle as soon as possible.  The Bears have actually done well at this for the most part, but did struggle in that New England game. 

Remember that the cover-two defense allows for teams to complete those short passes and only works if the guys can tackle right away and not let anyone go.  This is what makes the cover-two work, and the Bears need to do a very good job of it.

The Bears can stop the run, so that shouldn’t be too big of a deal.  Knowing that, any team that they face in the playoffs will be forced to pass the ball to win.  That is why the Bears defense has to stop the opponent’s passing game.  If they stop it, they will win.

Oh, and the offense can help the defense do its job as well.  The Bears have had some success keeping the ball in their possession by using a mix of rushing and passing, but against the Jets they scored quickly, which then put the ball back in the opponent’s possession and put the defense right back on the field. 

Granted, you can’t complain about the Bears scoring points, but what if they are unable to score?

The defense gets tired and pretty soon the opposing team is having a much easier time scoring.  We saw this in the Bears game against the Giants this year.  The Bears offense couldn’t move the ball and the quarterback was getting sacked on a consistent basis. 

There were a lot of three-and-outs, and the defense couldn’t rest.  They tried their best, but just couldn’t hold the Giants offense back after being on the field that long, and they gave up 17 points and lost the game.

So the offense can help the defense out in the playoffs.

Chicago has a good defense and they can be world-beaters if they really try hard and want to win.  And believe me, they will want to win and get to the Super Bowl this year.

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