Bears Blitz

Published by Bryan Dietzler on August 13, 2010
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears will play the San Diego Chargers in San Diego this Saturday night in their first preseason game of the new NFL season.  Chicago has been gearing up for the game by installing plays (at times) during practice and will try to get things going against what has been one of the better NFL teams for the past few seasons.

Granted, neither the Bears nor the Chargers will be playing their starters too much in this game, but it’s going to be important to keep an eye on several things if you are curious as to how the Bears are doing in training camp and how the roster may look prior to the start of the season.

Here are five keys and things to watch for the game coming up this Saturday between the Bears and the Chargers.

1.  Watch the Offensive Line

Everyone talks about how the offense line is going to look, and we will get our first real look at how well this unit performs against another team.  The starting line heading into this game should be Olin Kreutz at center, Lance Louis and Roberto Garza at guard, and Chris Williams and Frank Omiyale at the tackles.

The Bears feel that they may go with this unit during the regular season, so we will get a chance to see if this is the right combination.  Granted, it’s still pretty early and there is a lot that can happen, but it will be important not only for the Bears to see what they have but for this group to start to play together in real game situations and begin to become a cohesive unit.

2.  Keep an Eye on the Quarterbacks

Even though quarterback Jay Cutler may not play that much, it’s important to watch the quarterbacks because they will all be running the same plays that we will see during the season.  It will also be interesting to see the chemistry that both Cutler and second string quarterback Caleb Hanie have developed between their receivers.

Hanie traditionally does very well in the preseason, so we will get a chance to see if he can keep this going.  We will also get to see Dan LeFevour play as well.

3.  How Well Will the Receivers Run Their Routes?

Yes, it’s the first preseason game and not everyone is perfect, but it’s going to be interesting to see what routes new offensive coordinator Mike Martz rings up for his wide receivers to run and how well they run them.  Don’t put too much into sloppy route running or missed passes right now.

Hopefully the Bears will spread the ball around and let us see how they will connect with their tight ends, running backs, and wide receivers.  

4.  If Peppers Plays, See How His Play Changes the Play of the Other Defensive Linemen

The Bears starters aren’t going to get a lot of time in the first preseason game, but watch the starters closely.  It will help us see how the starter is doing and how he is affecting others around him.  It’s been said (and seen) that Peppers is making a huge impact with the other defensive linemen and that he has even inspired the previously uninspired Tommie Harris to play better.

Hopefully what we have been seeing in practice will translate to the field. Having a good pass rush can really help the Bears out on defense so Peppers, along with the rest of this group, has to produce.

5.  Watch the Secondary

Not only should you keep an eye on safety Chris Harris and rookie Major Wright, but you should also check to see how well cornerbacks Charles Tillman and Zach Bowman are adjusting to their new positions.  Also keep an eye on the younger guys to see how they are doing.

Who Will Win

This is a preseason game, so it’s pretty tough to say.  The Chargers have some younger players that they will want to get into the game, as will the Bears, so we will see a lot of second and third string players after the end of the first quarter.

The Bears should play their starters through the first quarter and possibly into the second quarter.  It’s not known how long the Chargers will play their starters but they should get about as much time as Chicago’s first team.  The Bears are going to want to try some things with their first team players in this situation, so look for Chicago to try to get a few runs in with both Chester Taylor and Matt Forte as well as send a few passes toward the tight end and H-back. 

They will also take some shots down the field with the wide receivers to see how well they are coming along with running routes.

On defense, they will try out some new things that they have been working into practice, such as some line stunts, to see how well the defensive line works.  The coaching staff will look at how well the secondary is performing.

Prediction

This is the first preseason game for both teams, so they are bound to make some mistakes.  These games really get good (when it comes to who wants to win more) when the third teams are in, the game is almost done, and the score is close.  

Bears 21, Chargers 14.

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