Does Matt Forte Have the Skills For the Mike Tice Rushing Attack?

Mike Tice gave his sneak peak into the running game the Chicago Bears will be employing in 2010, and from there intrigue and excitement spread across the Windy City.  Inside zone, a blocking scheme that seems to be foreign to most of the fan base in Chicago.  What most people do know and have heard comes from the success Mike Shannahan has had utilizing the scheme on an annual basis.  While in Denver Shannahan had one of the most consistent and the best rushing attacks in the NFL.  Whether it was Terrell Davis or Olandis Gary or anyone in between Shannahan could find a back from near obscurity and turn him into a highly productive running back.

While much of the focus has been on the blocking scheme and the offensive line, the question that is also a part of the equation is how do Matt Forte and Chester Taylor fit into the zone blocking scheme?   I feel it’s important to point out there needs to be certain qualities in the running backs to make the scheme work.  Do Forte and Taylor have the qualities you look for in this rushing attack?

To put it simply the answer is a resounding yes, and Bears fans should be extremely excited to see what Forte can do in this offense.  Forte’s strength since college hasn’t been his pure speed, an aspect that isn’t the top priority for success in this scheme.  Forte’s attributes fit extremely well into this blocking scheme that the Bears will employ.

So what precisely are the attributes that best succeed in this offense that Forte possesses?  Simple answer that is one of the most underrated qualities when scouting a running back, vision.  The ability to see the hole, see the opening or in the literal sense make the run to day light.  Matt Forte’s vision is top of the line and it’s the main reason he was so successful as a rookie in 2008.  Forte could see things happen in front of him, and make the moves necessary to get into the open field and then break into the secondary for the solid yards.

Look no further than the very first touchdown run of Matt Forte’s against the Indianapolis Colts, a classic cut and burst through the hole another cut that dumped the safety and then a sprint into the end zone.  That ability to see the cut back lane is of vital importance in this offense, because the Bears are going to try to force the speed and the direction of the defense to read and attack the motion of the offensive linemen and the initial motion of the back.  From there they want the defense to get out of their gaps, to over pursue or to get more than one player in the same gap to create cut back lanes.

Seeing those cut back lanes is where Forte will be at his best, because once he sees that hole he’ll use his second best attribute to get to the hole.   Whether it’s a jump cut, or a simple plant the foot and go this is another aspect of Forte’s game that is so highly valuable.  Forte is the classic one cut back, yes he has the ability to make other cuts in the open field a unique ability for a back of his size, but he has the exceptional ability to cut and then accelerate through the hole.  While Forte’s speed is not elite by any means it is more than adequate to get big yards in the zone blocking scheme.

So we’ve covered two of the most important aspects for success in the zone blocking scheme for a running back, so is there anything else?  I’d be foolish not to point out one of the final aspects of this blocking scheme that will help Forte excel, the ability to break tackles.

As was pointed out recently by the NFC North blog on ESPN and football outsiders, Matt Forte was second in the NFL in broken tackles behind Adrian Peterson.  Meaning Forte has some pretty solid power and agility to make people miss but also grind out some tough yards.  This represents the final aspect of Forte’s game that best fits into this blocking scheme.   At times for Forte to have success getting to the second level and then getting into the secondary he may have to break through a lot of arm tackles or partial angle tackles when the offensive lineman isn’t able to completely win his battle or finish his block.  This will be something Forte can do quite well with his size and his ability to get low.  Combined that with the already mentioned cut back ability and when Forte cuts into the open field and then needs to break through to bigger yards against the safeties or corners he’ll be able to lower the boom quite handily.

Why though is pure speed the last quality necessary for success in the zone blocking scheme?  Simple because a running back that runs a 4.3 40-yard dash straight ahead but can’t see the hole or cut into the hole is essentially going to run the 4.3 40-yard dash directly into the heavy traffic of the pursuit.  The goal of any defense is to get the most people to the point of attack as possible within reason.  So if three players attack the same point of the action, the back side opening of their pursuit is going to be wide open.  Seeing and then breaking into that opening comes before the speed necessary to pull away from tacklers.  The reason being is every back in the NFL is faster than 95% of the defensive linemen out there anyway, but he needs to be able to see where those defenders aren’t.