Heading into their Week 5 bye, the Chicago Bears feel like the epitome of a 2-2 team. On one hand, there are some easy-to-see areas of optimism. Ben Johnson’s offense is racking up explosive plays, Caleb Williams is showing clear signs of improvement, and Rome Odunze is playing like a bonafide star. On the other side of the ball, the defense has been one of the NFL’s best in forcing turnovers, despite being decimated by injuries at all three levels.
On the flip side, the Bears rushing attack — a staple of Ben Johnson’s offenses with the Detroit Lions — has been practically non-existent through four weeks. The offensive line, though not as bad as last season, is still forcing Caleb Williams to run for his life or evade pressure like a ninja on far too many passing downs. The pre-snap penalties continue to be a source of frustration.
But the biggest problem that the Bears need to find a way to address during their week off is how ineffective the defense has been at stopping the run. And to be clear, it’s not just that the Bears can’t stop the run… it’s that since the NFL-AFL merger, no team has allowed more than 6 yards per carry, and through four weeks this season, opponents are averaging 6.1 yards per carry against Chicago.
Forgive me for stating the obvious, but this is not sustainable if the Bears intend to push for a Playoff berth.
“No one likes seeing six yards, seven yards per carry. That’s not what we want to be about. We’re working very diligently on getting better in that regard,” Ben Johnson said, per Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I think the most important thing that we’re looking at is the staff and as players is, ‘How do we get better at some of our fundamentals?’”
Johnson went on to explain that it’s not just one position group that’s the issue, nor is it solely based on problems with Dennis Allen’s scheme.
“We’re not shedding blocks to the degree we’d like to yet, or at least as consistently as we’d like to yet. We’re not making tackles in space as well as we’re capable of,” Johnson added.
Two key stats prove this to be true: In Week 2, Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs had 80 yards on the ground before contact. Just two weeks later, Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty had 124 yards after contact.
Can the Chicago Bears Run Defense Course Correct?
That’s the million dollar question, isn’t it? First and foremost, it won’t hurt matters if/when the Bears defense gets a little healthier. Grady Jarrett missed Chicago’s Week 4 win over Las Vegas with a knee injury, though his impact in the opening weeks of the season has been minimal. More importantly, TJ Edwards and Kyler Gordon are both expected to be back on the field when Chicago faces the Washington Commanders and their 2nd-ranked rushing attack in Week 6.
Edwards, who has been limited to just 31 snaps this season, is confident that the Bears defense will be able to fix their issues soon enough.
“It’s everyone keying in on the little things, fundamentally,” Edwards said. “It’ll get fixed for sure. It’s been an emphasis, no doubt.”
Not everyone is convinced that the Bears presently have the personnel to get this on track, which explains why there are numerous writers out there who have proposed that the Bears should use this week to make a trade for a reinforcement along the defensive line. One of the more recent — and hopefully realistic — scenarios put out there by Gilberto Manzano of Sports Illustrated is that Chicago should be inquiring about the availability of Tennessee Titans star Jeffery Simmons.
“The arrival of Simmons would immediately improve the Bears’ defense, which needs pass rushers and run stoppers. Simmons excels in both areas and could form a dominant duo with edge rusher Montez Sweat,” writes Manzano. “For years, the Bears’ defense has done the heavy lifting. Now that the offense is showing signs of improvement, the defense has regressed. Simmons can help balance out Chicago’s problems this season.”
With three Pro Bowl appearances to his name, the 28-year-old Simmons would be a tremendous get for the Bears, even if the price were a 2nd round draft pick.
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