Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2017 10:38:15 GMT -6
Column: Are Bears on upswing with youth, or is that wishful thinking?
Brad BiggsBrad BiggsContact ReporterChicago Tribune
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-spt-bears-essentials-biggs-20171214-story.html
The youth movement has been up and running at Halas Hall for three seasons, and while the Bears don’t have a lot to show for it, Sunday’s blowout of the Bengals did more than change the mood in the building for a week.
It sparked hope that perhaps the franchise is showing signs that good times are ahead in the not-too-distant future. One game against a team that was emotionally and physically whipped the week before doesn’t validate the heavy lifting that has gone on for nearly three calendar years. Remember an overtime road victory over the Ravens in Week 6 and a throttling of the Panthers the next week wasn’t exactly a turning point as the Bears then lost their next five games.
It’s difficult to read future plans of general manager Ryan Pace from afar. The best we can do before this season ends in a little more than two weeks is parse through the available comments he makes, interpret and read between the lines.
“We need to get over the hump,” Pace said on the Bears pregame show last week on WBBM-AM 780. “We have lost a lot of close games. A lot of our younger guys are developing, but they need to feel the confidence that comes with winning. And that can only be accomplished by finding ways to win these close games.”
Indeed, the Bears have been unable to close out some close games. The one-point loss to the 49ers two weeks ago was the most recent. Four of the nine losses this season have been by six points or fewer.
The Bears missed opportunities from the 5-yard line in the closing seconds against the Falcons in the opener. They lost to the Vikings by three points in Mitch Trubisky’s first start. There was a three-point loss to the Lions on Nov. 19, the team they face again Saturday at Ford Field.
The team pointed to close losses a year ago in what was a disastrous 3-13 season. Six losses were by six points or fewer and, of course, injuries had ripped through the depth chart on both sides of the ball.
Is it all evidence the Bears are knocking on the door while learning what it takes to make game-defining plays in the fourth quarter against quality opponents? Or is it the standard losers’ lament one hears time and again from teams that can’t find ways to compete on a regular basis? The 0-13 Browns have suffered four losses by three points this season and lost by six in overtime Sunday to the Packers.
Bears running back Tarik Cohen
“There are a lot of younger guys who are playing and getting better from these experiences,” Pace said on the broadcast. “You can point to teams that have sustainable winning right now, and if you look back on their drafts there were years of draft classes stacked together.
“It's not just drafting the talent but also playing them and then seeing them grow. If you do that, eventually your roster is strong. It's sustainable if you stay that course.”
The Bears have been playing young players since Pace and coach John Fox arrived in 2015. Starting Trubisky and free safety Eddie Jackson and giving playing time to running back Tarik Cohen and tight end Adam Shaheen, all members of this year’s draft class, is nothing new. The current regime inherited an older roster when it arrived and youth has been served for some time.
Here’s an examination of playing time for young players since 2015:
2015
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 10.2 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 22.2 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 23 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 45.6 percent
2016
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 17.1 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 30.1 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 19.7 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 44.4 percent
2017
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 14.3 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 28.4 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 10.9 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 25.5 percent
The figures for rookies on offense for this season will rise slightly in the final three weeks as Trubisky, Cohen and Shaheen get more action. Of the young players who counted in these tabulations, only left tackle Charles Leno, drafted by former general manager Phil Emery, has received a multiyear extension. Nose tackle Eddie Goldman, drafted in the second round in 2015 by Pace, likely will be targeted for a new contract before the start of next season.
Those are the real building blocks for winning organizations, the players who lead a team to success. Draft picks re-signed to second contracts are players entering the prime years of their careers, poised for the greatest success and impact. Those players were in short supply when Pace and Fox arrived, and no doubt they have others who will play a part in the future.
Jordan Howard, a fifth-round draft pick a year ago, is the first running back in franchise history to begin his career with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Outside linebacker Leonard Floyd has been good, not great, and will have 10 missed games at the end of his first two seasons. Wide receiver Kevin White looks like a big miss, former third-round pick Hroniss Grasu isn’t likely to become a full-time starter and defensive end Jonathan Bullard, last year’s third-round pick, has yet to break out.
Drafting is an inexact science and Pace seems to be appealing for more time to stack draft classes together, now with the opportunity to build around the quarterback.
Is Pace saying the close games are evidence the Bears are competing better than their 7-22 record the last two seasons would indicate? A cynic might interpret Pace as saying the thing the Bears are missing most, besides a completely revamped corps of wide receivers, is a coach to get them over the hump after what will be the organization’s fourth consecutive last-place finish in the NFC North. Pace clearly believes in the talent assembled on the roster and would appear to be making a case for stability, at least in the front office, to gain additional time to assemble the roster.
The Bears have given considerable playing time to young players for some time. Soon those players must prove they’re all grown up.
bmbiggs@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @bradbiggs
Brad BiggsBrad BiggsContact ReporterChicago Tribune
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-spt-bears-essentials-biggs-20171214-story.html
The youth movement has been up and running at Halas Hall for three seasons, and while the Bears don’t have a lot to show for it, Sunday’s blowout of the Bengals did more than change the mood in the building for a week.
It sparked hope that perhaps the franchise is showing signs that good times are ahead in the not-too-distant future. One game against a team that was emotionally and physically whipped the week before doesn’t validate the heavy lifting that has gone on for nearly three calendar years. Remember an overtime road victory over the Ravens in Week 6 and a throttling of the Panthers the next week wasn’t exactly a turning point as the Bears then lost their next five games.
It’s difficult to read future plans of general manager Ryan Pace from afar. The best we can do before this season ends in a little more than two weeks is parse through the available comments he makes, interpret and read between the lines.
“We need to get over the hump,” Pace said on the Bears pregame show last week on WBBM-AM 780. “We have lost a lot of close games. A lot of our younger guys are developing, but they need to feel the confidence that comes with winning. And that can only be accomplished by finding ways to win these close games.”
Indeed, the Bears have been unable to close out some close games. The one-point loss to the 49ers two weeks ago was the most recent. Four of the nine losses this season have been by six points or fewer.
The Bears missed opportunities from the 5-yard line in the closing seconds against the Falcons in the opener. They lost to the Vikings by three points in Mitch Trubisky’s first start. There was a three-point loss to the Lions on Nov. 19, the team they face again Saturday at Ford Field.
The team pointed to close losses a year ago in what was a disastrous 3-13 season. Six losses were by six points or fewer and, of course, injuries had ripped through the depth chart on both sides of the ball.
Is it all evidence the Bears are knocking on the door while learning what it takes to make game-defining plays in the fourth quarter against quality opponents? Or is it the standard losers’ lament one hears time and again from teams that can’t find ways to compete on a regular basis? The 0-13 Browns have suffered four losses by three points this season and lost by six in overtime Sunday to the Packers.
Bears running back Tarik Cohen
“There are a lot of younger guys who are playing and getting better from these experiences,” Pace said on the broadcast. “You can point to teams that have sustainable winning right now, and if you look back on their drafts there were years of draft classes stacked together.
“It's not just drafting the talent but also playing them and then seeing them grow. If you do that, eventually your roster is strong. It's sustainable if you stay that course.”
The Bears have been playing young players since Pace and coach John Fox arrived in 2015. Starting Trubisky and free safety Eddie Jackson and giving playing time to running back Tarik Cohen and tight end Adam Shaheen, all members of this year’s draft class, is nothing new. The current regime inherited an older roster when it arrived and youth has been served for some time.
Here’s an examination of playing time for young players since 2015:
2015
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 10.2 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 22.2 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 23 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 45.6 percent
2016
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 17.1 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 30.1 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 19.7 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 44.4 percent
2017
Rookie and first-year players on offense: 14.3 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on offense: 28.4 percent
Rookie and first-year players on defense: 10.9 percent
Rookies, first-year and second-year players on defense: 25.5 percent
The figures for rookies on offense for this season will rise slightly in the final three weeks as Trubisky, Cohen and Shaheen get more action. Of the young players who counted in these tabulations, only left tackle Charles Leno, drafted by former general manager Phil Emery, has received a multiyear extension. Nose tackle Eddie Goldman, drafted in the second round in 2015 by Pace, likely will be targeted for a new contract before the start of next season.
Those are the real building blocks for winning organizations, the players who lead a team to success. Draft picks re-signed to second contracts are players entering the prime years of their careers, poised for the greatest success and impact. Those players were in short supply when Pace and Fox arrived, and no doubt they have others who will play a part in the future.
Jordan Howard, a fifth-round draft pick a year ago, is the first running back in franchise history to begin his career with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Outside linebacker Leonard Floyd has been good, not great, and will have 10 missed games at the end of his first two seasons. Wide receiver Kevin White looks like a big miss, former third-round pick Hroniss Grasu isn’t likely to become a full-time starter and defensive end Jonathan Bullard, last year’s third-round pick, has yet to break out.
Drafting is an inexact science and Pace seems to be appealing for more time to stack draft classes together, now with the opportunity to build around the quarterback.
Is Pace saying the close games are evidence the Bears are competing better than their 7-22 record the last two seasons would indicate? A cynic might interpret Pace as saying the thing the Bears are missing most, besides a completely revamped corps of wide receivers, is a coach to get them over the hump after what will be the organization’s fourth consecutive last-place finish in the NFC North. Pace clearly believes in the talent assembled on the roster and would appear to be making a case for stability, at least in the front office, to gain additional time to assemble the roster.
The Bears have given considerable playing time to young players for some time. Soon those players must prove they’re all grown up.
bmbiggs@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @bradbiggs
