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A slow start pissed off fans, but the Chicago Bears offensive coordinator progressed the offense very well.
We may be on the threshold of a new era in Chicago Bears the story. Yes, many people over three decades have made this statement. However, this time it’s a little different.
Whenever Chicago has a rebuild, whoever is in charge ultimately focuses on defense. Historically, this franchise has developed one of the toughest defenses in the NFL. Some of the biggest names in NFL history have played in a Chicago Bears uniform.
What happened when all the attention went to defense was a deficient offense. The Bears haven’t had as good a history offensively as they have defensively.
We have seen far too many seasons in which the defense has had to attack. Even when the team did well, it was ultimately the offense that was disappointing, failing to provide enough to win big games.
This time, however, new chief executive Ryan Poles and his regime are trying something new. They want to develop a whole team and not just focus on one area.
A big part of that is hiring Luke Getsy as the offensive coordinator. He comes from the Green Bay Packers, a team that is (at least until this season) an offensive powerhouse.
Getsy had the opportunity to work with the future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The fact that he was there to help him develop is important to the Bears now. Chicago has Justin Fields, a quarterback they hope is a franchise quarterback like Rodgers. With Getsy’s experience, he seems like the perfect coach to help Fields.
Slow start annoys fans
There was a lot of hope for the Chicago Bears offense before the start of the season. There was some good news coming out of training camp about how Fields and the receivers were getting along. They also looked good in pre-season games.
However, looking good in training and pre-season is different from looking good in real games. Getsy and the players learned this the hard way.
At the start of the season, things looked completely different than in pre-season. The team was staggered and the offense looked worse than 2021. This offense ranked at or near the bottom of almost every stat.
Through the first four games of the season, the Chicago Bears offense totaled about 275 total yards and 16 points per game. That contrasts with the 18 points per game and 307 total yards per game they averaged last season.
Chicago Bears Nation was not happy. The fans demanded a change and now the change is worse than what they had? It was not good.
Fields himself was in trouble. He ranked last among qualified quarterbacks in pass attempts, completion percentage, passing yards, interception percentage and passer rating.
It got so bad that some people started wondering if Fields was the franchise quarterback they thought.
Suddenly the offense looks good
Through it all, however, Getsy was firmly convinced that things were moving forward. Some people thought he was crazy when he declared that he didn’t think Fields had a rough first month.
Now, however, we all see what Getsy was talking about. After the first hiccups, the attack is progressing well. It actually looks like a modern-day offense, despite a lack of talent.
Over the past five games, the offense has averaged about 25 points per game and 359 total yards. The last three games are even better, averaging 31 points and 376 total yards.
The mini-bye worked wonders
Things seemed to change after the Bears’ mini bye week. They had 11 days between their Week 6 loss to the Washington Commanders and their Week 7 game against the New England Patriots.
This game of commanders was embarrassing. Washinton was a shocked team, losing three games in a row. Additionally, they had issues with owner Daniel Snyder supposedly trying to dig up dirt on its co-owners.
The Bears moved the ball up and down the field against Washington but couldn’t get into the end zone. They only managed seven points and lost the game.
During this 11 day period, Getsy made some adjustments. He designed more pieces that used Fields’ skills. He set up more quarterback runs, play action passes, and play option plays.
The results speak for themselves. Right away, the Bears offense buzzed against the Patriots and Chicago pulled off a huge upset, 33-14. It was the second time in 24 weeks that they had scored 30 points or more.
Since then, the attack has gone very well. Last week they faced off against the Miami Dolphins, one of the best offenses in the league.
Of course, there is still a lot to do. Passing attack is still a work in progress. Against the Dolphins, Fields rushed for 178 yards, a record for a quarterback in a game. However, he threw for just 123 passing yards. Additionally, he has only played one game this season in which he threw for over 200 yards (208 against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 5).
Get tight end Cole Kmet has helped. He gives Fields a big target. It’s a big help, especially in the red zone. While Fields’ passing yards weren’t significant, he had three touchdown passes. Two of them were red zone targets for Kmet.
While there’s still a long way to go, the Getsy-designed Chicago Bears offense is poised to become one that can hurt opposing defenses.
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