How Have Chicago Bears Addressed Biggest Weaknesses from 2014?
Published by Matt Eurich on June 4, 2015
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
To say the 2014 season was a disappointment for the Chicago Bears would be an understatement. The Bears were coming off an 8-8 season in 2013, and the team had just added pass-rushers Jared Allen, Lamarr Houston and Willie Young in free agency to solidify the team’s defense.
The Bears struggled on both sides of the football, though, and the organization cleaned house at the end of the season and decided to start fresh with new management and a new coaching staff.
The organization fired general manager Phil Emery after three disappointing seasons and hired Ryan Pace to succeed him. Pace spent 14 years with the New Orleans Saints, and, at 37, he is currently the youngest general manager in NFL.
“I am extremely excited for this opportunity,” Pace said after he was hired, according to Larry Mayer of the team’s official site. “I embrace the challenge of being one of 32 general managers in the NFL. Our plan will start being put into place to get the Chicago Bears back to sustained success this city deserves.”
The Bears struggled in every facet of the game last season, and Pace has overhauled the coaching staff and added various players via free agency and the draft this offseason.
Pace has been one of the league’s busiest general managers since taking over the position in January, but what has Pace specifically done to address some of the team’s biggest weaknesses from a year ago?
Hired Coaches with a Proven Track Record
Marc Trestman was hired by Emery and the Bears in 2013, and the former CFL head coach finished his two-year tenure in Chicago with a 13-19 record. Chicago’s offense improved in its first year under Trestman, going from 16th in the league in points scored per game (23.4) in 2012 to second in the league in points scored per game in 2013 (27.8).
The offense dropped off significantly in 2014, however, and the team struggled with consistency all season long. Trestman lost control of the locker room in his second season, according to kicker Jay Feely on Mad Dog Sports Radio (h/t the Chicago Sun-Times), and the Bears opted to fire him and his staff at the end of the year.
When Pace was hired in early January, he put an emphasis on hiring the right head coach.
“The first order of business is to hire the right head coach to lead us to championships,” Pace said, according to the Chicago Tribune. “Right now, that is the most critical thing I am doing. I’m not going to get into specific candidates today but I can assure you I understand the importance of decision.”
Pace acted quickly and signed former Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos head coach John Fox to a three-year contract. Fox holds a 119-89 regular-season record and has been to two Super Bowls as a head coach.
After Fox was hired, the Bears brought in Adam Gase to run the team’s offense and Vic Fangio to run the team’s defense.
Gase was the offensive coordinator in Denver in 2013 and 2014, and the Broncos offense was one of the league’s best during that time.
Gase’s offense is more complex than Trestman’s West Coast offense, and he tries to create mismatches for his best players. Trestman’s offense focused more on the short-passing game and screens, while Gase likes to spread his offense out and push the football down the field through the air. Even though Denver put up big numbers through the air under Gase, he is not afraid to run the football when needed.
Fangio gives the Bears an accomplished defensive coach who was one of the league’s best coordinators during his time with the San Francisco 49ers.
The Bears struggled mightily under defensive coordinator Mel Tucker the last two seasons, and Fangio has already received praise from some of his new players this offseason.
“[Fangio] seems like he wants to teach us,” said linebacker Christian Jones, according to Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times. “He’s not one of those guys who gets on your back and starts yelling at you. He’s all about: If you make mistake, let’s talk about it, let’s fix it, and move on to the next play.”
The additions of Fox, Gase and Fangio alone should make the Bears a much better team than they were a year ago, but Pace also addressed some of the team’s weaknesses in free agency and the draft this offseason.
Signed a Proven, Young Pass-Rusher
In Trestman’s first year with the team, the Bears struggled to get after the quarterback. The defense only recorded 31 sacks that season—tied for last in the league—after finishing the 2012 season with the eighth-most sacks in the NFL with 41.
The team added Allen, Young and Houston to help bolster its pass rush, but both Houston and Young finished the season on injured reserve, and Allen finished the campaign with a career-low 5.5 sacks.
All three pass-rushers are moving from 4-3 defensive ends to 3-4 outside linebackers in Fangio’s defense, but only Houston has previous experience playing out of a two-point stance. Because of the team’s inexperience at 3-4 outside linebacker, Pace struck quickly in free agency to sign Pernell McPhee.
A fifth-round pick by Baltimore in 2011, McPhee was used as situational pass-rusher by the Ravens and registered 92 tackles and 17 sacks in four seasons. He was used as an outside linebacker, defensive end and defensive tackle in Baltimore’s 3-4 defense, and Bleacher Report’s Matt Bowen thinks McPhee is a perfect fit in Fangio’s scheme.
The 26-year-old linebacker is strong and powerful at the point of attack, and he is surprisingly quick for his 6’3″, 280-pound size. According to Pro Football Focus, McPhee finished last season with 21 quarterback hits and 35 quarterback hurries in 540 snaps and registered a plus-26.0 overall grade—second best among all 3-4 outside linebackers.
McPhee will begin the season as one of the team’s starters at outside linebacker, but he will move around in Fangio’s defense and could also see some playing time at the 5-technique defensive end position.
Added a Speed Threat at Wide Receiver
Prior to the official start of free agency in March, Pace traded former Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall and a seventh-round pick to the New York Jets for a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft.
“He’s a good football player,” Pace said about Marshall, according to ESPN.com’s Michael C. Wright. “Going forward, we felt this was the best for us. Quite frankly, it’s the best situation for him, too. So that’s where we’re at.”
Marshall was very productive in Chicago in 2012 and 2013, but he struggled with injuries last season and turned into an off-the-field distraction at times. Without Marshall in the lineup last season, the Bears struggled to push the football down the field, but Pace added West Virginia wide receiver Kevin White in the first round of this year’s draft to help the offense improve in 2015.
“In my mind, we just got [quarterback] Jay [Cutler] another dynamic weapon,” Pace said, according to ChicagoFootball.com’s Kevin Fishbain. “That’s what I’m excited about it. I hope right now he’s fired up because we just gave him another powerful weapon. With this receiving corps, this only adds to Jay’s ability to distribute the ball.”
White hauled in 109 passes for 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, and he has the ability to take the top off the defense with his speed. At the NFL Scouting Combine in February, White ran a 4.35 40-yard dash.
“What’s dangerous about this guy is he can catch a quick slant and break a tackle and go 99 yards,” Pace said, according to John Mullin of CSNChicago.com. “He has that kind of play-making ability. You see the WR screens, the ‘now’ routes and things like that. You throw him a little, short check-down, and he’s gone.”
The Bears have lacked a true speed option at wide receiver since the days of Johnny Knox. White gives Chicago’s offense the dynamic, speedy receiver it has lacked for the better part of the last five seasons.
Overview
The Bears struggled in a lot of areas last season, but the organization as a whole is stronger now than it was a year ago.
Both Emery and Trestman proved they were overmatched at their positions, and the Bears made the right decision to move on from both of them. Pace is still a bit of an unknown quantity, but he quickly signed a proven head coach in Fox and added a bevy of talented new players to the roster.
Adding a young pass-rusher such as McPhee to be the face of Fangio’s 3-4 defense is a step in the right direction, but the team still has plenty of question marks on that side of the football. Many starting spots along the defensive line and at linebacker are up for grabs this offseason, and the Bears are hoping veteran safety Antrel Rolle can help solidify the secondary.
Offensively, the Bears struggled with play-calling and execution in 2014, and Gase should help the offense be more efficient in 2015. White could potentially be the only new starter on offense this season, and his speed will make him a weapon in Gase’s scheme.
Pace’s coaching hires, free-agency acquisitions and draft additions this offseason will not solve all of Chicago’s issues from 2014, but the young general manager has pointed the team in the right direction this offseason.
Statistical information courtesy of NFL.com and Sports-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
Matt Eurich is a Chicago Bears featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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