What's Really Working with Bears Offense?

Between the failed pass plays at Bears training camp have been the occasional hard run for nice yardage.

It's not much to hang a helmet on, navy or orange, but the Bears have seen some positives in the running game through the first few padded practices and it's more encouraging for them to dwell upon this than the fact Justin Fields and receivers other than Darnell Mooney and maybe Equanimeous St. Brown haven't consistently beena thing.

"We're having less pre-snap penalties, less penalties overall, more clean football," coach Matt Eberflus said, pointing out one early trouble that seems to be rectified, "And I really think we're doing a good job of running the ball right now. I told the team that yesterday, the run blocking is really starting to pick up, really starting to improve. You can see that unit coming together in the run blocking for sure.

"The runners I think have done a great job for us, for our football team getting the ball vertical and taking it down the field. That really helps the defense a lot too because we have to cup the ball. We have to have a force, pursuit, apex player and what that does, it creates big plays for offense and eliminates big plays on defense. And that's a winning formula."

It's going to start with basic football for the Bears when they're putting this offense together.

"You know you take the ball away or protect the ball and you hatve explosive plays on offense or defense or you limit those, that's an explosive way to go so we really enjoyed that part of it," Eberflus said.

Running backs have had to fit into a different style of blocking much the way defensive players have had to learn a new style up front under Eberflus.

"I feel like that's a big thing with the wide-zone offense and the offense we have going right now is each practice we've gotta get more and more comfortable with how the running backs see it, how we're seeing it and everyone starts jelling together," guard Michael Schofield said.

The Bears talk about the wide zone blocking scheme but they will be multiple. They'll use some gap blocking and also inside zone.

"I mean, with the O-line, everything, I feel like we're able to go outside, inside, gap scheme," running back Khalil Herbert said. "The guys that we got in our room and the O-line we got in front of us, I feel like we're going to be tough to stop as running backs."

When camp started, it seemed the Bears had too many similar backs and not enough complementary types. However, it's become more apparent with practices that rookie Trestan Ebner is a big-play type. He has had a flare and a screen pass that he's broken with to the outside in practices. Montgomery and Herbert are more workhorses, with Herbert possessing the breakaway speed if they can get an opening in the wide zone scheme.

Herbert thinks the added year of experience is a huge benefit even if he is trying to learn a new offense.

"Last year I was so focused on not making any mistakes and not trying to mess up here and there," Herbert said. "This year, just being able to get in here early from April, studying and learning things. I'm able to just go out there and play and not being worried about making mistakes. Mistakes are going to happen but now that I know the offense and the things I need to do, I'm able to go out there and attack and play freely."

For two days this week the Bears ran plenty against a scout team look. They had defensive reserves lined up in vests using 3-4 schemes with two-gap fronts because their own defense isn't using this style.

"Yeah, the biggest thing for us is we've got two teams in our division that play a three-down (Vikings and Packers) and our defense doesn't, so that's really the biggest thing when you're talking about the big guys up front," offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said. "Everything changes in your rules and assignments when you have three down. 

"So you've got to mix that in. If we were the other way, if we had a three-down defense, we'd have to scout team a four-down set."

Still, the longer passes haven't been there. Usually it's a case where they aren't even thrown. Fields doesn't see a receiver open. When he does, it's usually Darnell Mooney as a target.

It's a small sample size now with only a few padded practices. The passing game can't flourish with receivers starting to come up injured, and losing Byron Pringle and N'Keal Harry to injuries is going to make it difficult for quarterback Justin Fields to establish a rapport in the passing attack with both.

Getsy wouldn't call the first two weeks of camp a disaster in the passing game even if there has been an obvious in ability to break passes for big chunks of yardage.

"I would challenge that," Getsy said.  

Success lies in the down and distance in scrimmage, he argues. 

"Situationaly we've done a pretty good job of getting this ball down the field," Getsy said. "I'm a big believer in that, you have to do that and that'll be a part of our game regardless of whether we're good at it or not.

"You've got to do it and so I feel like we've done a pretty good job. We've got to execute maybe a little bit better. There's been times when we didn't execute or finish the play off the way we should for sure but I feel pretty good about where we're at just in that regard."

Montgomery thinks too much is made of the daily punch and counter punch going on between offense and defense. 

"There are going to be days where the defense wins, there are going to be days where the offense wins," he said.

It will be much easier for the offense to say this when the passing game is clicking and it's obvious they have actually won a day of practice rather than lose or battle to a draw as they have throughout camp to date.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven