Bears' defensive line in a slump
By TOM MUSICK -- Shaw Suburban Media
LAKE FOREST – The word is out among NFL teams about how to stop the Bears' pass rush.
Now the Bears defensive line will have to adjust to opponents’ adjustments to regain the upper hand.
After the Bears registered 14 sacks in the first four games, they have none in the past two. On Thursday, Bears defenders echoed the mantra of defensive line coach Rod Marinelli.
“If you talk to coach Marinelli, it’s ‘No explanations, no excuses,’ so I’ll give none,” said defensive end Adewale Ogunleye, who has no sacks or tackles behind the line of scrimmage since Week 4. “But you guys watch the game as much as we have. They have been doing a little more tight ends in max protecting.”
By using tight ends as extra blockers, teams such as the Atlanta Falcons and Cincinnati Bengals have bought time for their quarterbacks to pick apart an inexperienced Bears secondary. Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer set a career high against the Bears last week with five touchdowns and a 146.7 passer rating.
Do recent opponents deserve the credit, or do the Bears deserve the blame?
“I think it’s a combination of both,” Bears coach Lovie Smith said. “Whenever you don’t get the sacks, you have to give them some credit. We have gotten a lot more maximum protections, especially in the passing situations, but that’s a part of life. We just need to do a better job getting pressure.”
Ogunleye said it was only natural that opposing teams would clamp down on the pass rush.
“We knew that was going to happen,” he said. “When that happens, that means there are [fewer] guys out on the route, so we should be doing a little better job in the back end if that happens. So there’s a give and take when it comes to defense."
Offensive schemes were only part of the problem, defensive end Alex Brown said. Like Ogunleye, Brown has no sacks or tackles behind the line of scrimmage since the Bears hosted the Detroit Lions on Oct. 4.
“The last couple games, I don’t believe we’ve been getting off the ball like the first four games, as far as the defensive line,” Brown said. “We’ve been talking about it a lot lately, so hopefully we can get it back.”
The return of a mostly healthy Tommie Harris should help the cause. Harris has not hit a quarterback once this season, but his teammates hoped that a week off against the Bengals would give him an extra burst.
“Tommie on the field makes us a much better team,” linebacker Lance Briggs said. “He’s a disruptive force. I think a healthy Tommie Harris is the best defensive lineman in the game. Best since I got here.”
This weekend, a matchup against the hapless Cleveland Browns (1-6) would seem to offer the Bears' defensive line a great opportunity to reverse its slide. But Cleveland’s offensive line includes Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas, former Bears tackle John St. Clair and first-round draft pick Alex Mack at center.
“This offensive line, I think, is probably the best offensive line we’ve played,” Brown said. “Their record doesn’t say how good the offensive line is. Their left tackle (Thomas) is top three in the league.”
No explanations, no excuses. Brown and his teammates will have to adjust.
Bears bits: Ogunleye returned to limited drills in practice Thursday after sitting out the day before because of an ankle injury. ... Briggs revealed his costume plans for Halloween: "I'm going as an American taxpayer."
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