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Bear Digest

Familiar Face to Bears May Have Provided Path to Open up Ground Game

The Falcons had been stout against the run until they couldn't defend the blocking scheme Baltimore used against them on Sunday, one Chicago knows quite well.
Gene Chamberlain|
D'Andre Swift is wrapped up by the Packers Sunday as the Bears' running game went nowhere.
D'Andre Swift is wrapped up by the Packers Sunday as the Bears' running game went nowhere. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Chicago Bears

Bears offensive coordinator Press Taylor is tasked with finding a way to kick start the Bears running attack a week after it failed miserably against Green Bay.

Considering they are facing an Atlanta defense that ranks No. 4 against the run ane are down running back Kyle Monangai due to a toe injury while D'Andre Swift doesn't look entirely healthy, this might be among the toughest assignments facing the Bears this week.

Then again, they seem to have two factors working in their favor.

For one, Ravens just trampled the Falcons using many of the run-blocking concepts the Bears use.

"Yeah, they did a good job just with some of their downhill schemes," Taylor said. "(Derrick) Henry did a great job bouncing a couple things. There were a couple things they had some gap schemes on that got boxed, and he was able to bounce outside the edge setter.

"Obviously, Baltimore is a talented unit in terms of their run game. Big, physical group, big, physical running back, playing with the backup quarterback as well, they committed to it, they had a lot of success with it. I think it’s something they caught them, were having success and were able to ride the wave of it, and then Derrick Henry is able to find some things and create some big run lanes for them."

And No. 2? The Ravens' offensive coordinator is, of course, former Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle.

"I talk to Declan every once in a while," Taylor said coyly.

The implication, of course, is the Ravens coordinator might point the way where the Bears could get something to work better than on the ground against Green Bay last week. After all, Doyle's Ravens just ran for 208 yards against an Atlanta defense that hadn't allowed more than 68 this year.

Even if it isn't quite as simple as Doyle helping out his old team, his Ravens ground game isn't a lot different than what the Bears try to do and the Bears can follow Baltimore's lead.

It's not quite a template, though. The Bears are missing some things.

The Bears don't have Derrick Henry, obviously. They didn't have Monangai at practice Wednesday or Thursday due to turf toe and it would appear they won't again this week. Their running attack tried to compensate last week by using more wide receiver runs and also deploying Roschon Johnson in the Monangai role, but he isn't quite the same back.

"Never felt like we were able to get in a rhythm where some of these runs were hitting," Taylor said. "These previous two games, we’ve been very efficient on first and second down. We’re calling a ton of plays. The whole game plan is open for you. Where it just felt like the other day, it was 1st-and-10, 2nd-and-9, you’re kind of playing behind the sticks a little bit more than we wanted to, and then the game kind of gets away from you a little bit in the fourth quarter, you’re kind of in dropback mode, and it changes the way you operate, obviously.

"So, the end of the game, you’re looking back, you got however many carries you got. Well the fourth quarter of the game is a completely different game script than we anticipated playing there."

They do have a back closer to Henry's size in 6-foot-1, 220-pound Zavier Scott, the former Vikings back who is on the practice squad. He was promoted last week but didn't play on offense. Scott has legs the size of tree trunks, but hasn't really been in Ben Johnson's offense to any extent.

Something else could assist their ground game this week and that's Caleb Williams' possible return. He has seven first downs rushing and two TDs to go with 105 yards total for less than two games. There could be other changes to the ground game to spark it. The Bears still lead the NFL in rushing but definitely didn't look like it last week.

"We'll look at what we've done well, what we haven't done well, and take the quarterback position into consideration when we're looking at that," Ben Johnson said. "But running game-wise, the types of throws that we're asking our quarterbacks to do, our route runners in general, the things we take a lot of pride in on offense are how we go about our business from a fundamentals technique and finish standpoint.

"And those things aren't consistent at the level with which we would like them to be right now."

Maybe Declan Doyle can help ... in an indirect way, of course.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.