By Brad BiggsPart 3 of a 12-part series
The popular phrase -- or punch line -- that the Bears get off the bus running has been tweaked.
It's a way of life, if you will, not necessarily the title of the Bears' playbook.
"When I say get off the bus running the football, I mean that is a mindset," coach Lovie Smith said Monday after the hiring of offensive coordinator Mike Martz was announced. "The run will always be a part of what we're going to do. I mean Chicago, we play in the elements. That won't change.
"But there's nothing wrong with being able to run the football well and having balance to be able to pass the football. That's what I'm excited about. ... It's not just Mike that's coming in, it's (offensive-line coach) Mike Tice and what he will bring to the table. We're looking for balance to be able to run and pass the ball."
Translated, Matt Forte will not have 316 carries like he did as a rookie in 2008. He might not reach the 258 he had last season, especially if his performance (and the performance of the run-blocking) doesn't improve.
The misconception is that Martz doesn't run the football. His teams have run very well at times, and he has found dynamic ways to use running
backs. Marshall Faulk was a dual-purpose threat with the St. Louis
Rams.
Here is the third installment in a 12-part daily breakdown of the Bears' roster, looking at strengths and weaknesses and what the future might hold:
Running back/fullback
Roll Call: Kahlil Bell, Matt Forte, Kevin Jones, Adrian Peterson, Garrett Wolfe, Jason McKie.
2009 overview: The common wisdom is that the Bears were significantly worse running the ball in 2009 than they were the year before, when Forte set a franchise record for rookies with 1,238 yards rushing. That's not true. In fact, the Bears did a better job when they ran the ball. The offense shifted with the acquisition of quarterback Jay Cutler and changes were made on the line. In the end, the Bears were pretty much the same team rushing as they were the year before, they simply didn't have as many carries. The disparity came with Forte, who went from 3.9 yards per carry as a rookie to 3.6 last season. He finished with 929 yards and had four rushing touchdowns. Forte had arthroscopic knee surgery after the season, and that could be an explanation for some of his carries. He had more than 100 yards only twice, in the two meetings with the Detroit Lions. For the season, the Bears averaged 4.0 yards per carry. That's better than the 3.9 they had in 2008.
Jones was supposed to share the load with Forte, but he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the final preseason game. Forte worked as a change-of-pace back briefly before he was injured and Bell was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster and given a chance. He showed flashes, particularly with a 72-yard run in his debut. Cutler proved to be effective tucking it and running at times, and that's all part of the big picture when it comes to the ground game.
One problem remained: The Bears struggled running in short-yardage situations, such as third-and-one. It haunted them in 2008 and it was a problem again. Forte is an upright runner and that doesn't suit him well to the tight, between-the-tackles running needed at those times.
By the numbers: Forte had 26 rushes for negative yards, more than one-tenth of his carries. It sounds like a lot, but consider that ranked only ninth in the league. Tennessee's Chris Johnson had 45 carries for negative yards. Minnesota's Adrian Peterson was next with 37. The difference is they're more capable of taking their next carry 80 yards than Forte.
Free agency/draft priority: There's no question the Bears could use a powerful change-of-pace back, the kind of runner that can move the pile for a tough yard. It would be nice to add an explosive back to the mix but there are certainly more pressing needs at this point. The Vikings' Chester Taylor has been mentioned as a possibility, but there are so many examples of teams finding productive backs in the late rounds of the draft and on the street that the Bears likely will look at a more affordable alternative.
Player to watch: Forte. What kind of player can he become in Martz's scheme? Faulk caught more than 80 passes a season in Martz's system and had nine receiving touchdowns in 2001. Forte isn't the same dynamic make-you-miss-in-the-open-field kind of runner, but he's polished as a pass-catcher and Cutler showed more confidence in him as the season went along. Forte caught eight passes for 120 yards in the loss at San Francisco. But more important than his role as a receiver will be his role as a runner. Can he improve and be more of a game-breaking threat?
Looking ahead: The Bears' Peterson will be an unrestricted free agent and it not expected to return after being a reliable role player for eight seasons. Jones is entering the final year of his contract and nothing is guaranteed for him. Wolfe returns from a rough injury, a bruised kidney, and he's going to have to battle for a roster spot but has proven to be a productive performer on special teams. Look for the team to add some type of competition, preferably a bigger back.
McKie's role will be something to watch. Forte is a more effective runner in two-back sets when he has a fullback. That was the case under Ron Turner and it's not going to change. Martz favors an abundance of four-receiver sets where there will not be room for two backs. McKie's role is bound to change some, and it will be interesting to see if Forte can flourish from single-back sets.
Bottom line: The Bears no longer get off the bus running, but they like to talk about having a physical attitude that is established at the point of attack. They need to be able to run the ball more effectively under Martz, and while he's pass-happy, it's something that can happen if they remain committed to it. Martz didn't run the ball with the Lions because the team was constantly playing from behind. There's a chance for this to work.
Next: Defensive tackles.
Here is the third installment in a 12-part daily breakdown of the Bears' roster, looking at strengths and weaknesses and what the future might hold:
Running back/fullback
Roll Call: Kahlil Bell, Matt Forte, Kevin Jones, Adrian Peterson, Garrett Wolfe, Jason McKie.
2009 overview: The common wisdom is that the Bears were significantly worse running the ball in 2009 than they were the year before, when Forte set a franchise record for rookies with 1,238 yards rushing. That's not true. In fact, the Bears did a better job when they ran the ball. The offense shifted with the acquisition of quarterback Jay Cutler and changes were made on the line. In the end, the Bears were pretty much the same team rushing as they were the year before, they simply didn't have as many carries. The disparity came with Forte, who went from 3.9 yards per carry as a rookie to 3.6 last season. He finished with 929 yards and had four rushing touchdowns. Forte had arthroscopic knee surgery after the season, and that could be an explanation for some of his carries. He had more than 100 yards only twice, in the two meetings with the Detroit Lions. For the season, the Bears averaged 4.0 yards per carry. That's better than the 3.9 they had in 2008.
Jones was supposed to share the load with Forte, but he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the final preseason game. Forte worked as a change-of-pace back briefly before he was injured and Bell was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster and given a chance. He showed flashes, particularly with a 72-yard run in his debut. Cutler proved to be effective tucking it and running at times, and that's all part of the big picture when it comes to the ground game.
One problem remained: The Bears struggled running in short-yardage situations, such as third-and-one. It haunted them in 2008 and it was a problem again. Forte is an upright runner and that doesn't suit him well to the tight, between-the-tackles running needed at those times.
By the numbers: Forte had 26 rushes for negative yards, more than one-tenth of his carries. It sounds like a lot, but consider that ranked only ninth in the league. Tennessee's Chris Johnson had 45 carries for negative yards. Minnesota's Adrian Peterson was next with 37. The difference is they're more capable of taking their next carry 80 yards than Forte.
Free agency/draft priority: There's no question the Bears could use a powerful change-of-pace back, the kind of runner that can move the pile for a tough yard. It would be nice to add an explosive back to the mix but there are certainly more pressing needs at this point. The Vikings' Chester Taylor has been mentioned as a possibility, but there are so many examples of teams finding productive backs in the late rounds of the draft and on the street that the Bears likely will look at a more affordable alternative.
Player to watch: Forte. What kind of player can he become in Martz's scheme? Faulk caught more than 80 passes a season in Martz's system and had nine receiving touchdowns in 2001. Forte isn't the same dynamic make-you-miss-in-the-open-field kind of runner, but he's polished as a pass-catcher and Cutler showed more confidence in him as the season went along. Forte caught eight passes for 120 yards in the loss at San Francisco. But more important than his role as a receiver will be his role as a runner. Can he improve and be more of a game-breaking threat?
Looking ahead: The Bears' Peterson will be an unrestricted free agent and it not expected to return after being a reliable role player for eight seasons. Jones is entering the final year of his contract and nothing is guaranteed for him. Wolfe returns from a rough injury, a bruised kidney, and he's going to have to battle for a roster spot but has proven to be a productive performer on special teams. Look for the team to add some type of competition, preferably a bigger back.
McKie's role will be something to watch. Forte is a more effective runner in two-back sets when he has a fullback. That was the case under Ron Turner and it's not going to change. Martz favors an abundance of four-receiver sets where there will not be room for two backs. McKie's role is bound to change some, and it will be interesting to see if Forte can flourish from single-back sets.
Bottom line: The Bears no longer get off the bus running, but they like to talk about having a physical attitude that is established at the point of attack. They need to be able to run the ball more effectively under Martz, and while he's pass-happy, it's something that can happen if they remain committed to it. Martz didn't run the ball with the Lions because the team was constantly playing from behind. There's a chance for this to work.
Next: Defensive tackles.
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It wasnt in my opinion Forte's fault that Turner chose to run the ball up the middle when we had an inferior run blocking Oline not saying you are incorrect about Forte but it's hard for any back to get through no holes, and the D knowing your running right at them, 3 times in a row. Forte was slow last year, whether due to inj, I dont know, but Bell got through some holes and Forte did not, but getting back to the Running game changing, we did alright pass blocking, I feel it was the TE/RB inability to pick up the blitz, and the Oline couldnt run block. Natural to look at the other teams and see the passing game is where its at especially if your Oline cant run block lol. This team is evolving into a passing team, and I feel Martz uses the short cross patterns effectively and the RB out of the backfield, and surely he wont ignore Olsen slanting out or cross field which will be effective in the windy city. More so than getting off the bus running w/o an Oline in the cold/windy sojer field, that worked out great huh?.
One of the big problems with the running game starts with Jason Mckie.
He doesn't run the ball.
He doesn't catch the ball.
And his blocking isn't that great.
He needs to go.
We need someone that can punch it in when they are in the red zone.
Forte has never been good and this.
We also need a better blocking back.
Average yards per carry is such a misleading number. A guy can have a terrible day, getting stopped for 0 to 2-yard gains but with one good 80-yard run his numbers suddenly look good. In Forte's case this is especially true. I wish they had a stat that measured the number of times a runner made it into the secondary before being tackled. In Forte's case I bet that is a very small number. He was one who would gain 2 yards or less most of the time, then pop the occasional long run to skew his numbers.
Hopefully hs surgery was a success and he can go back to having the pop he had as a rookie.
Thanks for your analysis, Brad. I used to read your stuff on that "other" newspaper site and have always enjoyed your posts.
You alluded to the FB role changing. In what way? More pass patterns? Less time on the field?
Any sense of Martz' opinion of Kevin Jones? Does this increase his chance of securing a roster spot?
What about the possibility of LaDainian Tomlinson?