At this point, wouldn't any defense not running a prevent represent a stiff test for Jordan Love? He's done next to nothing, and if there's one thing the Bears will have, its a good secondary and linebacking corp.
Yes? I mean I’d rather he face an average defense his first start than face a defense like, say the jets, that even a great quarterback would struggle to move the ball on.
The Jets defense would be an IMPOSSIBLE test for Love. Anyone else actually TRYING to play defense would represent a stiff test.
The fact is, the Bears finished the season as a horrific team against the pass AND the run. Both. And while the Bears have added players that I hope will improve the defense this year (I believe it will be better), the two DL guys are clearly "projects" and we haven't added a significant edge threat yet. Will we still be one of the worst teams in the entire NFL on defense? No, we should be better... but how much better I don't know. I'll put it this way for that 1st game of the season for Love. If he struggles against the Bear defense then that's a red flag because the Bears D will probably the easiest defense he will face all year.
The defense is still a work in progress.
With the significant upgrades to the OL and backfield, I am expecting the Bears running game is going to be PHENOMENAL— I mean PHENOMENAL— this season. We haven’t talked enough about that. All we need is enough passing to make them PAY for loading 8 in the box to stop the run. A great running game takes a lot of pressure off the QB and the defense.
With the significant upgrades to the OL and backfield, I am expecting the Bears running game is going to be PHENOMENAL— I mean PHENOMENAL— this season. We haven’t talked enough about that. All we need is enough passing to make them PAY for loading 8 in the box to stop the run. A great running game takes a lot of pressure off the QB and the defense.
Phenomenal?
That's a little strong. I wouldn't expect that.
Okay, how about we lead the NFL in rushing again with more yards than last year? What’s the best adjective for that?
Okay, how about we lead the NFL in rushing again with more yards than last year? What’s the best adjective for that?
Realize that we led the league in rushing because we HAD to run the ball and Fields had a ridiculous amount of yards.
I really hope we have a more balanced attack this year because the rest of the NFL is gonna adapt and not let Fields run for 60+ yards at a pop.
Having a good run game is a plus no question but it's a passing league. I hope we DON'T have the most rushing yards again cuz that likely means the pass O still sucks.
Okay, how about we lead the NFL in rushing again with more yards than last year? What’s the best adjective for that?
Realize that we led the league in rushing because we HAD to run the ball and Fields had a ridiculous amount of yards.
I really hope we have a more balanced attack this year because the rest of the NFL is gonna adapt and not let Fields run for 60+ yards at a pop.
Having a good run game is a plus no question but it's a passing league. I hope we DON'T have the most rushing yards again cuz that likely means the pass O still sucks.
We can do both, and we don’t need Fields to run for 1,000. Fields will pass enough to keep the defense “honest” and Bears will run well over 500 attempts and average over 5 YPC. Not many teams can do that.
Realize that we led the league in rushing because we HAD to run the ball and Fields had a ridiculous amount of yards.
I really hope we have a more balanced attack this year because the rest of the NFL is gonna adapt and not let Fields run for 60+ yards at a pop.
Having a good run game is a plus no question but it's a passing league. I hope we DON'T have the most rushing yards again cuz that likely means the pass O still sucks.
We can do both, and we don’t need Fields to run for 1,000. Fields will pass enough to keep the defense “honest” and Bears will run well over 500 attempts and average over 5 YPC. Not many teams can do that.
OK, let's see it. (The passing part)
It's a passing league. The best RB this century (Henry) has never made a SB.
Okay, how about we lead the NFL in rushing again with more yards than last year? What’s the best adjective for that?
Realize that we led the league in rushing because we HAD to run the ball and Fields had a ridiculous amount of yards.
I really hope we have a more balanced attack this year because the rest of the NFL is gonna adapt and not let Fields run for 60+ yards at a pop.
Having a good run game is a plus no question but it's a passing league. I hope we DON'T have the most rushing yards again cuz that likely means the pass O still sucks.
There is no balance, nor do they want it. Coach believes in Lovie ball, they are going to run the shit out of the ball, and will be more then happy to have Justin Fields running, even if not as much as last year. LT is a better run blocker then pass blocker, and they didn't upgrade, they did upgrade RT though. And brought in like 50 backs to either block, run or do both; and the WR they took was stated to be good in the run game. They want to run, the entire system is built around def and running.
We can do both, and we don’t need Fields to run for 1,000. Fields will pass enough to keep the defense “honest” and Bears will run well over 500 attempts and average over 5 YPC. Not many teams tcan do that.
OK, let's see it. (The passing part)
It's a passing league. The best RB this century (Henry) has never made a SB.
The Eagles did both. They had 2,500+ rushing and 4,000+ passing. That’s my model. And like the other run-oriented offenses (Eagles, Ravens, Bills), we are still going to have some designed runs for Fields. The Colts are obviously planning to adopt this offense for Anthony Richardson.
There is no balance, nor do they want it. Coach believes in Lovie ball, they are going to run the shit out of the ball and will be more than happy to have Justin Fields running, even if not as much as last year. LT is a better run blocker then pass blocker, and they didn't upgrade, they did upgrade RT though. And brought in like 50 backs to either block, run or do both; and the WR they took was stated to be good in the run game. They want to run, the entire system is built around def and running.
I agree that Eberflus wants to see an updates version of the old Buccaneers/Lovie Smith style of football. But I am hoping that Getsy updates it with a big dose of the Aaron Rodgers/Packer offensive philosophy. The part I'm thinking of is where the offense adjusts to what the defensive game plan is giving them and finds a couple of mismatches and then beats their opponent to death with that. With the assumed improved o-line and RB room and with Fields continuing his development with a moving in space option QB game I can see the potential for a pretty high yardage offense.
Personally, I really don't want to see Fields running like he did last year. I am really hoping that Roschon Johnson takes the lead in the RB by committee scheme. I've been watching a lot of his video from Texas and my impression is he can do everything that Montgomery did for us but is faster, is a better receiver and a better pass blocker. Assuming we get consistent run blocking from the o-line, I can see all three of the RBs having success. Then I hope Getsy will be getting Fields improved on the shorter passing game. With a QB of his running ability, the opposing defense has to have a scout assigned to Fields and has to react to Fields rolling out aggressively. With our improved WR room we should be able to have some sort of option passing game that allows WRs and RBs to snag a 5 - 10 yd pass and then take the punishment that Fields took last year.
If the Bears don't show an improved o-line and a more balanced offense in 2023, I really fear that Fields will continue to run like last year and we may be developing him as Cam Newton 2.0 (and Poles will be looking for his replacement in the 2024 draft). I think we will be significantly improved on the offense but at this time of the year all we have is old videos, hype and dreams.
