By Wes French
I sat down on Monday determined to dissect the Bears defensive problems. All I could do the first two days was rant and wish Lovie Smith didn’t have two years/$11 million left after this season. 10 passing TDs allowed in their last two losses. One sack in those games. Allowing near 200 yards rushing in each game. Opponents scoring on every possession of the first half. Twice.
Yesterday I decided to start all over, give it a clear-headed shot at writing an intriguing article and began some research. That’s when I found that ESPN’s NFC North Blogger Kevin Seifert had already done this article.
Seifet, like many Chicago fans, thought that the players had to be impostors. He focused on three main points: Lovie’s handling of the coordinator position, the decline/lack of talent and decline of pressure up the middle. While I agree with all of his points I believe that you have to trace everything back to Lovie Smith and what has transpired since the 2006 Super Bowl appearance.
This decline began when Lovie decided that Ron Rivera wasn’t his guy and fired him after the 2006 season. Rivera never saw eye-to-eye with Lovie and paid the ultimate price for it. Bob Babich, Lovie’s good friend and linebackers coach, was promoted to coordinator. That era ended last offseason as changes were demanded following a steady decline in yards allowed and points per game over the last two years. Babich, obviously over matched, was not fired but instead demoted back to linebackers. Lovie took the responsibility of defensive play calling. The defense is worse now than at any point under the unqualified Babich.
The personnel is obviously controlled more by the front office and General Manager Jerry Angelo, but following the Super Bowl appearance and Lovie’s extension it became apparent that Smith wanted more control over personnel decisions. The team locked up key contributors in 2005/06 to big contracts even though they showed signs of decline like Tommie Harris and Nathan Vasher. As these players and others like Charles Tillman, Adewale Ogunleye and Brian Urlacher have slowed and become injury prone, the team has failed to draft and develop adequate depth.
Eight players drafted on the defensive side since 2006 have been released or retired due to injury. Six more are buried on the depth chart, resigned to special teams duties. Two of those players are 2009 draftees that are in Lovie’s “Redshirt Program”. What? This is the program that kept Earl Bennett off the field last year. Remember seeing those videos of the pool jumper freak Jaron Gilbert after the Bears drafted him in the third round? Corner D.J. Moore has been his redshirt program buddy for all of 2009.
The lack of pressure up front is a product of the personnel shortage but can also be attributed to Lovie’s play calling and coaching. His scheme is as tired and old as his players look. The front four gets no pressure up the middle, forcing linebackers to take on blocks when they blitz. When linebackers do blitz there doesn’t seem to be much mystery as to who’s coming from where, allowing opposing QBs to bark out blocking assignments and hot routes that further expose the defense.
Many people (myself included) want Lovie’s head. Others will tell you that with two years and more than $10 million remaining on his contract He’ll be here at least one more season. I know the Bears front office is not normally one to pay people not to work, but if this decline continues they may need to clean house.
The Bears are in the middle of a three game national TV stretch and were embarrassed in the first tilt last Sunday on Fox, at home no less. If they turn in a poor performance at San Fran tonight and return home for another beating on Sunday Night Football against the Eagles Ted Thompson may have a Chicago wide mob calling for drastic changes. They can play the money card to an extent, but if these results continue they won’t have much of a fan base to fall back on if the do.
November 12th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
I was sitting around pissed off because there was nothing to read online. Then I remembered you were ranting about the Bears, so I was pleased. Lovie will stay, sorry, but you’ll get a new coordinator for sure.