| 26 May 2010
Stating the obvious, the Bears' defense needs to improve in 2o10 no matter if the offense does better or worse. If the Bears can't pressure the quarterback with a four man rush front, then they'll be in a huge bit of trouble on defense. Cover-2 defense, Cover-3 defense, Cover-who defense it simply won't matter what defensive scheme the Bears utilize, they have to attack the quarterback.
This is why the Bears paid a ton of money for Julius Peppers, it doesn't take a genius to figure out the Bears had trouble getting to the quarterback in 2009. Most fans would prefer to see the Bears run a more attacking defense to help pressure the quarterback get the linebackers more involved. The problem with that strategy as I've stated for a long time now is that the Bears don't have the personnel to run an attacking style of defense where they blitz their linebackers.
So with that in mind the Bears head to mini-camp showing off their shiny new Lamborghini otherwise known as Peppers. Peppers by all accounts (in no pads) was outstanding. His elite level athleticism was on display and let's be frank there isn't another DE in the NFL currently, perhaps in the history of the league that has his level of talent. Can he be the difference maker on this defense that helps put the Bears in a position closer to the success they enjoyed in 2006?
Peppers was all over the place getting pressure on Cutler from each side of the line, dropping back into coverage, simply showing everything that he is capable of.
Which doesn't really mean jack squat since he didn't do a damn thing with pads on or any real physical contact from a blocking or chipping or cutting stand point. Obviously to everyone in attendance seeing a player of his abilities was an eye opener, and I agree it is exciting, but there is almost nothing to take away from the men in the trenches because no one is out there bumping heads or even really getting physical. As I love to say they're out there running around in their underwear and not really playing or even really practicing football.
A better guide to how things are going to go on defense can be made with subtle observations in the secondary because covering a receiver, is allowed to be a little more physical than rushing the quarterback. Still keeping in mind that it is simply mini-camp, it was nice to hear about Zack Bowman making plays out on the field over the weekend. Bowman was slotted into Charles Tillman's right corner back role meaning he's the primary starter and was getting reps against the best receiver on the field throughout most of camp. As a result Bowman picked off a number of passes and was all over the field making plays. Bowman it can be argued was the MVP of mini-camp, and while he has typically shown strong without pad on and not playing in games, it is good to hear that Bowman was continuing to show signs of progress.
Elsewhere in the secondary Danieal Manning and Chris Harris spent most of the time running as the starters Manning at strong safety and Harris at free safety. Manning showed better at defending down in the box at times last year than he did flying around in coverage so it will be interesting to see how he progresses into the new role as the strong safety.
As has been stated many times in the past by Lovie Smith the players at strong and free safety are essentially interchangeable. From the coverage stand point and the Bears typically preferring to line up the safety as the eighth man in the box, Manning should be able to competently fill that role. Typically when the Bears do bring the safety down into the box, they run a Cover-3 defense rather than the Cover-2 most fans are familiar with.
Also when the Bears give that Cover-3 look it typically gives them more flexibility in the zone-blitz department, a scheme they are not afraid to run in most games. As I've picked up in my film study, the Bears will drop ANYONE back into coverage from the front four of their defense. The Bears aren't afraid to experiment with any number of personnel groups when it comes to rushing the QB. They've put Mark Anderson as the three technique, Idonije, they'll mix it up on all sorts of levels all in an attempt to get the best possible pressure on the QB.
This is the type of versatility and flexibility Lovie Smith had preferred from his D-Linemen and there is little doubt that things will change under the direction of Marinelli as the new defensive coordinator. Peppers only adds to that versatility, same with Wootton and that means the Bears likely won't be shying away from using those players in zone blitz schemes even out of the DT spot. I have in fact witnessed both Tommie Harris and Marcus Harrison dropping back in zone blitz packages and have seen it be successful with various blitzes from the CBs and the safeties. Undoubtedly Harris' return coupled with Manning's speed off the edge means the Bears will continue to mix in various sprinkles of zone blitz looks.
Shifting focus over to some of the new defensive additions, Tim Jennings, Josh Moore and Major Wright didn't show anything exceptional at camp over the weekend. The rookies weren't especially impressive or stood out next to the starters, although Zack Zaidman from WSCR reported that Wootton of the rookies is the one who caught his eye the most. Zaidman's report simply stated that Wootton looked good running with the second team DEs.
Elsewhere 2009 fourth round pick Henry Melton has been shifted inside to the three technique spot, a move that had been rumored a lot during the early part of the off-season. Melton has that one-gap burst and experience from his playing days at Texas. The Longhorns run that one gap penetrating scheme and the athletic personnel they have on their front four has made them successful on an annual basis. In Austin they aren't afraid to convert big Texas prep RBs into defensive lineman and two of those types of players have been drafted off the Longhorn front four recently, Melton in '09 and Lamarr Houston this year.
Jarron Gilbert spent most of mini-camp working on the outside at the RDE spot though did nothing to stand out from his peers. Gilbert is going to have to get his butt in gear this year heading into 2011 if he wants to stay on the roster spot beyond '11. Gilbert is an enigma for now but 2010 needs to be the year where the light bulb goes on for him. He may not necessarily need to step up in a big way during the regular season, but there needs to be some signs from him during the four-game pre-season set. Most Bears players would obviously prefer to see Gilbert contributing in a big way in '10, but the Bears are usually pretty stingy with their DE usage typically only keeping three active on game day. With three DEs active for game day there doesn't seem to be a place where Gilbert will overcome Peppers, Idonije or Anderson. That's not his fault, it just speaks to the level of play we've come to see from those three or expect to see from Peppers.
For now though the veterans have this week off and then they'll come back for the start of voluntary OTA workouts starting a week from today (Wednesday June 2nd). They'll sprinkle in some OTA workouts throughout the month of June and then training camp will start July 30th. The OTA schedule is as follows: June 2-3, June 7-10, June 14-17, June 21-24. From there the Bears will get their last bit of off-season rest and weight room work before the official 2010 season starts.
As always things will move very quickly over the next month and MidwayIllustrated will have continuous coverage of the 2010 season.
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