Bears Blitz

Published by Brett Lyons on September 3, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

With the preseason a distant memory and the regular season on the horizon, the Chicago Bears have high expectations to meet following a season in which they hosted the NFC Championship game.

Critics in the city are not ones to be forgiving and optimistic. Every small move is seen in a much larger spotlight simply because of the population of the immediate fan base. Some moves the team made during the offseason brought a slight satisfaction, while others led to criticism and scrutiny.

Following the dud performance against the Green Bay Packers back at Soldier Field in January, the so-called experts have the defending Super Bowl champs miles ahead of the Bears in the NFC North. It’s true they have a more talented roster, but rosters don’t win games.

While some may be quick to point fingers and judge this Bears team based on a performance eight months ago, this featured columnist is out to defend the Navy and Orange against such preliminary strikes.

Nothing will be determined until teams take to the gridiron for the first meaningful time next weekend. Have no doubt; Chicago will be right in the thick of the race for the NFC North. All a Super Bowl run requires is a playoff spot and an appropriately timed hot streak. Any team can fly on from there.

This is not a Chicago Bears Super Bowl prediction, but it is a defense of a playoff contender. Here are five reasons why the 2011 Bears won’t be as miserable as some would believe:

 

Balanced Offensive Game Plans

The Bears performed very well in the second half of the 2010 season against some formidable opponents. The reason? A balanced offense.

When the Bears came out of their bye week last season, Mike Martz’s pass-first, run-second mindset was history. By sticking with the running game, the Bears were less predictable and didn’t need to rely on Jay Cutler’s arm as much.

Head coach Lovie Smith seemed optimistic when he spoke to the media last week as the preseason winded down and the talks of the regular season began.

“It’s about how you start off that first regular season game, and I just think we’ll be ready for it,” said Smith. “I think the fans will like the product we put on the field.”

The only thing fans will like about this offense will be how often they run compared to pass, converting short down situations and scoring in the red zone.

Other than that, this offense doesn’t need to be Martz’s “Best Show on Turf” 2.0. Run the ball well, pass when it’s opportune and score when given the chance.

If Chicago can post 24 points a week, the defense should have plenty of cushioning. Plenty of wins will follow.

 

Defensive Line Depth

The preseason defensive line pressure wasn’t a strong point of the defense, but many players seem to believe the blitzes and pressures are being saved for the regular season. Smith said it himself when he described the planning and play calling as “very vanilla.”

Chicago will need to see more out of the defensive line in the regular season. Defensive end Julius Peppers can’t be the only consistent force of pressure against the pocket. Israel Idonije matched Pepper’s eight sack total last season but the question is whether he can follow that up with another productive year.

“The bar is high and I’m going to keep the bar high,” said defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli before the team’s final preseason contest. “I just feel good about these [defensive linemen]—how they’ve worked and the movement they have. I just feel good about them.”

There’s plenty of depth at the defensive tackle position now as well with Henry Melton, Anthony Adams, Matt Toeaina and Stephen Paea. The defensive tackles don’t need to record four or five sacks a game in order for the unit to be effective.

Very little pressure is on the defensive line to complement Peppers and Idonije. It’s an area the team would like to see more productivity from and they should with the offseason moves made in the trenches.

 

Special Teams

The bread and butter of this team for the better part of the last decade has been the special teams units.

“We’ve won so many games because of our special teams,” commented Smith. “We have a core group of special teams players that we treat like starters.”

He’s not lying. The Bears special teams studs are considered to be high impact players on the Bears roster and are treated as such.

Kicker Robbie Gould and newly acquired punter Adam Podlesh have worked well with the field goal formations in the preseason. Podlesh has also pinned a couple of nice punts with very nice hang time.

The only question mark with the special teams is the effect of the new kickoff rule and returning sensation Devin Hester. The exhibition games have confirmed that the rule change to kickoff from the 30-yard line to the 35-yard line has a direct correlation to twice as many touchbacks.

Simple logic would state that the more touchbacks, the fewer chances Hester will have to return kickoffs. This also has a secondary effect on all 32 NFL franchises—the field position will be worse and drives will be longer in yardage.

Overall this may lead to less scoring for all clubs which does not spell good things for a streaky offense like Chicago’s. Special teams coordinator Dave Toub will have this team ready to adjust and make the unit just as effective as if the rule never changed.

 

Wide Receiver Revamping

Perhaps the most addresses needed on the Bears roster for the last decade has been the lack of a true No. 1 wide receiver that can catch tough balls and shed tacklers.

The addition of Roy Williams didn’t necessarily wow the masses but it did provide a cheap and low-risk need fulfillment.

Having worked with Martz before in the Detroit Lions organization made Williams a preference to start as the X receiver on the Bears depth chart. This meant that Johnny Knox would have to take a backseat and watch as the oft-scrutinized Williams got to take snaps with the first-string unit.

When asked about having competition at his position, Knox showed great maturity and insight when he responded to reporters.

“It’s a good one because it keeps you motivated; it keeps you wanting to compete,” replied Knox. “It makes you not want to mess up when you’re out there. It keeps you ready.”

Maybe this was some kind of psychological kick-in-the-pants to Knox to see what he can do as a true No. 1 option and so far he has out-performed Williams at almost all tasks.

Having the pressure to perform could be a key to fueling Knox in 2011 to set career-highs and save his starting position. Earl Bennett and Devin Hester are also in the mix to catch Cutler’s passes so it’s not necessarily all on Knox’s shoulders.

The wide receiver corps will not be the downfall of this Bears offense but could rather turn a lot of heads and impress some defenses.

Combining the competition, the second year with Martz and maximum protection theory factors may spell big things for the Chicago passing game in 2011.

 

Offensive Line Changes

For the new-scheme Bears, protection is the name of the game.

Multiple offseason moves were made with the mindset of pass protection. Martz stressed that the team needs to keep Cutler upright in order for his passing scheme to achieve its maximum effect.

Dumping Greg Olsen on the Carolina Panthers and signing Matt Spaeth from the Pittsburgh Steelers was an upgrade at the tight end position in the blocking department. Olsen may have been a better receiver, but Martz believes tight ends are just additional offensive linemen.

Other significant moves were made regarding the offensive line. Most noticeably, the Bears elected to let Olin Kreutz walk via free agency over a $500,000 difference in contract talks. There may be more to that story than appears at the surface, but nonetheless Kreutz is a Saint and the team is moving on under new leadership.

So with all these offseason changes and four preseason games complete, how do you feel about your new first-string unit up front, offensive line coach Mike Tice?

“We haven’t had many practices where I feel we’ve taken a step backwards,” stated Tice to reporters last week. “I felt like we’ve taken strides every day and that’s been great because this is a long haul.”

The line is an odd collection of players trying out new positions with new roles but the facts are the facts and that’s that Cutler has gone through the preseason rather unharmed.

Only time will tell whether or not this new bunch of guys up front will get the job done, but if the exhibition games are any indication, it seems Cutler’s body will thank the guys in the trenches for doing their jobs.

The offensive line improvements have shown in the running game as well. Lance Louis and rookie Gabe Carimi are better run blockers than pass blockers and both are slated to start as the right guard and right tackle, respectively.

With the better pass blockers on Cutler’s weak side and the more skilled run blockers on the strong side, it appears as if this unit has taken a progressive step forward finally. It may sound crazy to say now, but if the offense excels in 2011, the O-line may be one of the reasons as to why.

 

Brett Lyons is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand or from official interview materials.

Follow Brett Lyons on Twitter @BrettLyons670.

Read more Chicago Bears news on BleacherReport.com