Bears Blitz

Published by Brett Solesky on August 18, 2009
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

Well it’s time to look at the Bears versus Bills game a little bit differently than a lot of people do—similar to how the coaches do with tape, but I’m nowhere near the level of an NFL coach. 

We’re going to go back and look at the tape and diagnose positive things from this game and negative things from this game.  Sizing up how things went and what needs to be improved upon.  

I’m going to try and go over each position and point out things that I like and things that I don’t like.  I think I’ll have a much better feel for the game after I re-watch it and learn more from watching it the second time around. 

There’s nothing like modern technology to help make you a smarter football fan.  

Anyway, as we all know, the Bears started their opening drive from the 40-yard line after the kickoff went out of bounds.  I’m going to break down the first series and each series there after on defense as well.  I’m going to try and dive into the intricacies of how each series went.  What went well what didn’t go so well.  

By no means am I an expert; I simply have a big mouth, a big opinion, and a strong desire to watch and learn, and become a better and smarter football fan.  I’m going to do my best to be fair and balanced in my approach to the film session, and we’ll see what happens. 

This isn’t the end-all-be-all, but I hope to generate more discussion and even more insightful debate among  Bears fans.  Hopefully, like me, everyone will be a little more football savvy after going through this.  

The first series with a starting line up of QB Cutler,  RB Jones, TE Clark, TE Davis, WR Bennett, WR Hester, OT Pace, LG Omiyale, Center Kreutz, RG Garza, RT Williams.  

The Bears’ first offensive play is a three wide set with Desmond Clark lined up in the slot, but it’s twin TE formation out of the single back so it has the flexibility of run or pass. 

I love the flexibility of the twin TE set because if both TEs can block and catch really well, it gives you a lot of options and causes a lot of mismatches.  Especially since most FBs now a days can’t run the ball very well so they’re just a blocker anyway and usually aren’t as good of a receiver as your TE. 

There’s a lot more versatility with this set so it’s a good offensive set for the Bears to run.  I know I’m blabbering on and perhaps oversimplifying the two TE set, but I am doing this because I don’t think Ron Turner gets enough credit as an OC.  This little two TE set is one example where Turner has a distinct advantage in personnel IMO.  

First Offensive Series

So we see Cutler take a five step drop and rifle a pass to Devin Hester on a little button hook pattern.  Cutler didn’t make any reads on the pattern, he just set and fired.  The play seemed to take a while to develop so it only went for a gain of two yards.  The blitz came from the safety spot but Kevin Jones picked it up nicely and the protection from the line was good.   

Second play is a two back formation off-set I with McKie in the backfield, it’s a nice call a screen to Kevin Jones that goes for a gain of seven.  If it’s the regular season I’d say it’s a little early in your game plan to be calling a screen, but it was effective in it’s execution.  Good call by Turner here.  

Third play, three wide set pass is behind Hester it really looks like there was a route communication problem on this play.  

Fourth down, Bears punt and Maynard booms one and pins the Bills deep inside at their own five yard line.  

First Defensive Series

The Bears come out with DE Anderson, NT Adams, DT Idonije, DE Brown, WILL Briggs, MIKE Urlacher, SAM Tiniosamoa, CB Vasher, CB McBride SS Afalava, FS Payne.  

Traditional 4-3 look with the LBs shifted to the weak side of the formation,  CBs up in press coverage.  Lynch takes a counter hand off squirts through the right side of the line for a gain of six on the play. 

The success of this play was the counter-motion of it, the line collapsed down and there was a big hole on the right side.  Mark Anderson came down to hard rather than maintaining his gap.  Tackle by Afalava on the play he came up good in run support.  He was a little hesitant which was why he didn’t make the tackle quicker.  Still a good overall tackle and read by Afalava.  

Second down and four, Bills try to run left with a simple off-tackle play and Alex Brown gets penetration up the field and into which causes havoc.  The linebackers come into clean it up barely a gain of a yard if not a loss on the play.  

Third down and three is the disaster play by Vasher that every has been mad about from the get go.  The key to this play is the look the Bears give on a third and relatively short.  The Bills have a three WR set with Edwards working out of the shot gun.  The Bears are in a Cover-1, with a blitz fake on by Afalava who takes the TE in coverage man to man. 

Payne was back deep in center field coverage.  The nickel package here with a Cover-1 is a bad defensive call.  Payne should maybe get over to defend the ball better, but for that to happen has to make the perfect read.  The Bears are up in press coverage on this third and short, but with the Bills working out of the shot-gun the read should be to move some players out of press coverage. 

Vasher bites on an out and up and gets burned by Lee Evans.  It’s a good route by Evans, poor defense by Vasher but a good call on the out and up.  Vasher bites on the route that would get Buffalo the first down, which is a good percentage read for him to make.  However his poor fundamentals lead to the big gain on this particular play.  

The pass rush is decent, but there isn’t a lot of time for it to get going because it’s out of the shot gun and Edwards makes one read and one throw.  This eliminates the time for the pass rush to work.  

First down run at Alex Brown out of a hurry up offense, doesn’t give the Bears much time to substitute.  Run for a gain of five but the defensive pursuit was pretty good.  No huddle play again, single back three WR set by Buffalo. 

Second down run towards the weak side again, trying to go at Lance Briggs.  Briggs slips the blockers comes in and makes one of those tackles that makes you proud he’s a Bear.  He has done really well in run support his entire career and this is just another example.  

Third and six the Bears go with the SAM lined up on the line and fake a blitz, Corey Graham brings the blitz, the pass rush overall is good, with Graham flushing Edwards from pocket to his right.  Edwards makes a dump off to the RB and Afalava comes up and makes a solid tackle short of the first down.  

Fourth down is a punt for a fair catch.  

Second offensive series

Bears line up in a straight I-formation hand off up the gut through the one hole, Jones cuts back at the line through an opening and makes a solid gain out of the play.  Frank Omiyale looked lost on this, he missed his block so that’s why Jones had to make the cut back.  On the flip side Omiyale gets down field and does make a block rather than quitting on the play.  Sure he missed his initial block but it was good hustle to see him get to the next level after missing that block.  

The Bears line up with a single back two TE formation, Bills up in strong press coverage eight men in the box expecting run all the way.  Bears go strong protection, with only three options on the pass patterns.  Hester runs a great route a deep hook play.  Excellent pass and catch between Cutler and Hester, that shows a good level of chemistry between these two.  

First and ten, the Bills come with a blitz that is picked up the pass protection is there.  Cutler tries to float one out there to Hester but he’s swallowed up in double coverage.  A better read may have been a check down or something with a higher percentage of success written on it.  Going to Hester one too many times, is my call here. 

But if you want to take a positive look at it, the Bears want to give Hester as many chances to make plays as he can.  The more chances he gets the more complete and better he’ll become.  Better to work on this in the preseason.  If this were a real game, I’d be frustrated they’re singling in on Hester so much for their throws.  

The next play is the other play that has caused nightmares and PTSD not to mention media stories.  The INT where Cutler goes to Hester yet again.  Cutler really sits on this play to long and the pressure gets to him because of him sitting on the play too long.  He makes an awkward throw as he’s stepping up in the pocket trusting his arm strength to get the ball to  Hester. 

Hester isn’t a jump ball kind of guy and he doesn’t even try to make the play because the ball is severely under thrown in the first place.  Hester could have done more to try and make some sort of play on the ball whether it was defensive or otherwise.  Both players are at fault here, but the story has been Cutler shoveling the blame onto Hester.  I don’t think it was shoveling the blame so much as a bit of coaching and encouragement for him to say he needs to make a play on the ball.  

First down and ten for the Bills and the Bears drop into a zone and run a stunt with Anthony Adams, Idonije gets solid pressure up the middle but gets pushed down from behind.  The effort to get to the QB is there on this play and it forces Edwards to throw to the only option he has, a back out of the formation.  Trumaine McBride makes a nice tackle on this play.  No gain, on the play.  Three seconds to throw the ball is about average for a QB.  

Second down sends Corey Graham on the blitz for a nice sack.  The D-Line gets good movement in the pocket which causes this blitz to be successful.  The back makes the wrong read trying to help with the four man front and Graham comes free. 

Excellent call, made successful by a solid effort from the DTs to get into the backfield.  Idonije again with good pressure, Bears have everything down the field covered.  It’s another check down to Marshawn Lynch who gains eight after breaking a tackle by Trumaine McBride.  The Bears went with a nice zone defense got adequate pressure which made the defense work.  

Third offensive series

A run to Kevin Jones to the right side.  Good gap defense by Buffalo Bears manage just four yards.  A break down in the blocking on the left side not sure if it was Omiyale, Pace or Kreutz, but it was ugly.  Part of it was the CB up in the box shot the gap hard and made Jones stop and stutter. 

From there, it was just garbage and a broken down run play.   Third down is the next ugly Cutler play.  Out of the shot gun three wide he sorta hesitates when he sets to make his throw.  The hesitation lets the DB really get into position to make the play.  From there it’s almost picked off, you wish Cutler would have just trusted his read the first time rather than hitched it just enough to give the DB a chance to make a break on the ball.  

The fourth down play is a muffed punt that the Bears recover.  Primarily because their punt coverage is so good and always so well executed.  A tip of the hat to Dave Toub here once again.  

Kevin Schaeffer checks in at LT in place of Orlando Pace.  

First and ten and what a pass and catch between Cutler and Desmond Clark.  This is why it’s great to have a two TE option because Clark can still get down the field, get open and catch the ball.  What a nice catch in classic Clark fashion, just an all-around great call here.  Good pass protection on the whole and Clark runs a good route and it’s just a devastating play. 

First down again, Cutler with a quick out to Earl Bennett, good pass protection.  Bears wanna get Cutler in a rhythm so they do so by throwing the ball around.  Jones with nowhere to go up the middle stopped up the run play.  Olin Kreutz just got man handled on the play and with the DT sliding down into Jones’ path it stuffed what was an otherwise good running play. 

Kreutz just got manhandled at the point of attack and it threw off the entire run play.  They took a second shot of the play from behind the Bills in back from the end zone and you can clearly see Kreutz getting washed right into the play.  

Third and three from the six, Bears call a time out just as Cutler was going to throw a slant that looked like it might have been caught for the touchdown.  Although it was thrown slightly behind Brandon Rideau so there is no guarantee that he would have made the catch. 

The next play is a throw into double coverage, Cutler’s gunslinger mentality evident on this one.  Trying to squeeze it into Hester where the ball couldn’t go, incomplete pass fourth down Robbie Gould chip shot field goal.  

Third defensive series

Bears come with an all-out blitz and it’s a quick slant to Lee Evans, no press coverage, Urlacher just missed getting a hand into the throwing lane.  

Next play I don’t get to see because the production is slow to get back to it.  It’s a run  play that gets snowed under after about two yards.  Next play is a quick hitch to the WR for a small gain.  Bears play off in coverage which is why the quick hitch works well. 

First and ten on a pitch to the ‘back the Bears get good pursuit and Al Afalava just misses another tackle. He slows up the back though and the back side pursuit catches up and finishes up the play.  Good pursuit to the football here.

Another short pass play with the Bears in Cover-3.  A stop route right in front of the CB that goes for another first down.  Bears play off, Bills dink and dunk which is the story of the game to this point.   

This is the play that Urlacher makes on first down here.  An off-tackle play Urlacher reads perfectly storms through the tap and makes the tackle.  In classic Urlacher fashion he’s moving so fast the O-Lineman doesn’t have time to block him.  Read and react, make the play great stuff from number 54.  

Second and nine Anderson gets pressure off the edge, but  it’s a little late getting there.  Edwards makes another short quick throw that  BARELY gets to the TE.  The rhythm of this play was clearly thrown off by the pressure Anderson applied.  He cleanly beat his man on the left side.  Just a speed rush to the outside by Anderson throws off the timing of the play.  

The Bills going with a lot of hurry up offense here trying to wear down the Bears, trying to exploit a mismatch.  To this point it hasn’t really happened as the Bears still lead 3-0.  Brown gets a little bit of a pressure, everything covered down the field, another dump off to the back. 

He makes a few tacklers miss and storms his way forward for a gain he never should have gotten.  Good pursuit by the defense, but horrible tackling.  This play should have been stopped right where the ball was caught.  

The play where every fan in Chicago was screaming at the T.V.  The Mark Anderson play where he collapsed down so hard on the line of scrimmage on fourth and one.  Kept absolutely no contain, good naked boot leg play for Edwards.  Anderson looks like a dip shit on this play.  Another pass no pressure on the QB here although it’s yet another stop route by the WR. 

The Bears should by now do a better job of jumping this route, but by now it’s a bunch of roster slobs out there in coverage anyway.  Yes the starters along the front seven are still mostly out there but the back ups are in more in the secondary at this point.  

First and goal, Freddie Jackson with the run towards the four hole and he’s stuck and dropped by Afalava.  What a read and a superb tackle by this kid.  Completely as advertised nothing critical to say about him to this point. 

He’s showing why he’s moving  up the depth chart in such a hurry and why he should start. 

Second and goal empty backfield for Buffalo, out of the shot gun.  Bears in zone coverage, outstanding pass rush here, Edwards is flushed from the pocket here on second and goal right into the waiting arms of Alex Brown. 

A clutch pass rush here by Alex Brown who gets a solid pass rush inside, and then Idonije’s pass rush up the middle gets Edwards moving right back into Brown.  The pass rush by Brown did this as well as a good rush from Idonije.  

Bills run the ball on third and goal from the 14 yard line and the Bears stuff it up.  Field goal attempt is good just into the second quarter.  We’ll finish the second quarter later in another blog.