It’s not unusual for the defense to have the upper hand over the offense during the early days of Chicago Bears training camp. In fact, over the years — decades, really — it’s become fairly commonplace. But if ever there was a year for optimism that it would be the Bears offense that landed the first punch, it was this year… a year in which Ben Johnson arrived, Caleb Williams entered year two, and much of Chicago’s offseason equity was spent on the offense.
It turns out, the Bears defense had other ideas.
“This was the moment, the first snap of team drills all summer. It had been six weeks. Williams took the snap, dropped back to pass … and got picked off,” Kevin Fishbain wrote July 23 for The Athletic. “Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds read the route and jumped it, intercepting the pass and running the other way.”
It was only the beginning of a very long day for Caleb Williams and the Bears offense, one marked by sloppiness, and at times, an absolutely irate Ben Johnson. But again, the Bears offense getting off to a sluggish start at training camp is par for the course in the month of July, and considering all of the new faces and an entirely new scheme, there isn’t cause for concern just yet.
But on the opposite side of the ball, there’s a groundswell of optimism that new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen could get a talented defense playing up to their potential, reminding fans and the rest of the NFL why when at its best, the Bears are rightfully referred to as ‘The Monsters of The Midway.’
Dennis Allen Brings Old-School Flavor to Bears Camp
The ‘Monsters of the Midway’ moniker dates back to the 1930s, and that’s about the time that Dennis Allen, an old school defensive football coach if there ever was one, travelled back to in order to come up with his conditioning plan for his defense. The day began with up-downs, an absolutely miserable conditioning drill that everyone who has played youth football over the years knows all too well.
“It took me back to like seventh, eighth grade a little bit,” linebacker T.J. Edwards said. “Obviously, when you’re in it, it’s not that cool, but when you get done and you all are kind of a little tired and then you go out to practice, it’s kind of what you want. It’s that grimy camp start, but it was a good time for sure.”
For Dennis Allen, the decision to start camp with up-downs was calculated, and it sets the tone for what fans — and players — can expect from the new DC of the Bears defense.
“It’s all part of building the culture of what type of defense we’re going to be. You have to pay the toll. You have to pay the price. It’s a privilege to be on this defense,” Allen told reporters after the first day of training camp was in the books. “Training camp is going to be difficult, and we have to be able to overcome when we’re tired. How do we focus? How do we concentrate? How do we dig down deep inside, rise up and make plays in critical situations of the game?”
Bears Defenders Detail Differences of Dennis Allen Defense
Aside from a demanding, no-nonsense attitude, there are plenty of schematic differences that Dennis Allen will be bringing with him to Chicago too. While previous head coach Matt Eberflus implemented a defensive philosophy that was zone-heavy and fairly conservative, Allen’s approach is aggressive, and it will put Bears defenders in position to make plays.
From the sounds of it, that’s exactly what this hungry defense wants.
“He wants to dictate terms and take his chances,” linebacker T.J. Edwards noted, according to Gene Chamberlain of Sports Illustrated. “As a defense, you love that. The onus is on the player. Now it’s on us to win our matchups and go get it. Obviously, he has his wrinkles and things like that, but I think we’ll get into X’s and O’s as we go. Mentality wise and where he’s coming from, you can appreciate it for sure.”
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