Bears Blitz

Published by TAB BAMFORD on October 19, 2009
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

Lots of Bears fans are going to jump off the bandwagon after Sunday night’s prime time disaster in Atlanta. Matt Forte‘s career is over, Jay Cutler‘s a baby, and the defense is awful.

Slow your roll, Chicago.

There are some real problems with this Bears team, specifically the left side of the offensive line. Orlando Pace is clearly three or four years past his prime, and Frank Omiyele might not have one. Forte is not having a very good season, but when the line isn’t giving you anything—it’s hard to produce.

Another real issue is the depth with the linebackers and secondary. In Atlanta, the Bears didn’t cover anyone all night. There were noticeable issues with the play calling from Nick Roach when the Falcons went to the no-huddle. And the pass rush that had been so good all year disappeared under the bright lights.

The Bears might have lost Pisa Tinoisamoa for the season, too. With injuries to Brian Urlacher and Hunter Hillenmeyer already killing the team’s depth at linebacker, adding another defensive lineman at the cost of a second round draft pick might not have served the 2009 Bears as well as adding someone in the secondary or linebacking corps.

And, despite me throwing the offensive line under the bus, there are legitimate concerns about Forte. He has not looked healthy or confident so far this year, and he fumbles on consecutive goal line plays should get the coaches to start asking questions. Forte’s right hand was apparently wrapped when he spoke with the media Sunday night.

There’s a pretty big cloud around the silver lining.

But let’s take a step back, sober up, take a deep, tobacco-free breath, and think about what the reality is for these Chicago Bears.

Nick Roach had played fairly well for a couple weeks as the Bears’ middle linebacker. But those were his first two games in the position, and adrenaline gave him an extra boost. But after a bye week, the rush of being the starting middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears has probably worn off, and he looked new.

Let’s also not forget the Atlanta Falcons are a good football team. The fact that Roach got played by Tony Gonzalez for a touchdown is disappointing, until you consider that Gonzalez has played more linebackers and safeties than any tight end in the history of the league.

Atlanta averages nearly 330 yards per game of offense; the Bears defense held them to 253. They also forced Matt Ryan into two uncharacteristic interceptions (he now has four for the season). They also did a nice job of shutting down Michael Turner, holding him to just 30 yards on 13 carries.

Also consider that Cutler threw for 300 yards again and two more touchdowns. Johnny Knox and Greg Olsen both got into the end zone again, and Devin Hester had a solid game receiving with 83 yards.

With a few exceptions—Tennessee, Detroit, Tampa Bay, St. Louis—this year’s NFL schedule has been ruled by parity. Look at Sunday, when the Oakland Raiders beat a healthy Eagles team. Knowing which team is going to win from one week to the next is almost impossible.

These Chicago Bears have played poorly, but have been competitive with the Packers and Falcons so far this year and have beaten the Steelers and Seahawks. We won’t credit the Bears for handling the Lions.

Indeed, these Bears are Nathan Vasher covering Greg Jennings and Orlando Pace falling offside from potentially being undefeated right now.

And yet they’re Troy Polamalu and Matt Hasselbeck being healthy from being 1-5 to start the season.

Thanks to parity, they Bears are able to beat any team on any Sunday, but they’re just likely to be beaten.

The NFL is a league that is carried by parity, and these Bears are a middle-of-the-league team. Until they develop an offensive line, figure out what’s wrong with Matt Forte, and start covering tight ends and wide receivers, this team will be a wild card caliber team at best.

Which is why I’m confounded by their willingness to part with draft picks. The Bears won’t pick until the second day of the 2010 draft and don’t have the cap flexibility necessary to build a line or acquire quality depth through free agency.

Hopefully the Bears win enough to make the playoffs, where cliches tell us anything can happen. But with the roster Chicago’s playing with now, parity might be their best chance at being anything but average this year.

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