Bears piling up sacks along with victories
LAKE FOREST – The Bears still have a ways to go before they instill the sort of fear that gripped opponents back in 1985, or during the days of Dick Butkus.
They’re off to a good start, though.
The Bears have won three straight and are 3-1 heading into their bye, thanks in part to a pass rush that has produced 14 sacks – third in the league behind Minnesota and Denver. It’s a big improvement for a group that returned mostly intact even though it struggled to take down the quarterback last year.
Defensive end Adewale Ogunleye said he’s not surprised by the sacks since the opportunities are there. That wasn’t necessarily the case a year ago even though the Bears weren’t shy about blitzing.
“I take it like last year, the numbers were down, but even my opportunities to get sacks weren’t there,” Ogunleye said. “I wasn’t missing sacks, I just wasn’t getting there. This year in Seattle already alone, I missed maybe like 3 sacks. That’s the biggest difference this year, we’re getting the opportunities and we’re capitalizing on them.”
The Bears didn’t make any major roster moves during the offseason. They didn’t change schemes, either, but there was a shake-up on the sidelines. Coach Lovie Smith is now calling the plays, and Rod Marinelli is coaching the line. So far, the results look good.
A respected defensive line coach in Tampa Bay before a failed run as the Detroit Lions coach that ended in an 0-16 collapse last year, Marinelli has been praised by Bears players almost from the moment they met him. They mention his attention to detail, no matter how minute, and his ability to explain why it’s important.
“I feel like the majority of the guys that I’ve talked to who he’s coached in the past can become coaches after football,” defensive tackle Tommie Harris said. “A lot of guys don’t (ever) learn what they’re doing; they’re just out there doing it. But you actually understand the whole scheme of the defense when you have coach Marinelli.”
How valuable is Marinelli?
“Priceless,” Harris said. “He means so much to this team, so much to this defense. He’s meant so much to my career, taught me so much, in just this little time that I’m looking forward to our future here in Chicago.”
The line already has 10 sacks after registering 22½ of the team’s 28 last year, when Chicago tied for 22nd in the league. Ogunleye, in particular, is off to a good start with 4½ sacks, including 2½ of his team’s five in last week’s 48-24 romp over Detroit, and Chicago has produced at least two in every game.
A year ago, the Bears failed to register a sack five times and ranked 30th against the pass while missing the playoffs for the second straight year.
A bigger concern now is that Chicago has as many takeaways (six) as giveaways, yet the defense is hanging in despite a long line of injuries, particularly at linebacker.
Losing six-time Pro Bowl linebacker Brian Urlacher for the rest of the year to a dislocated right wrist in the opener at Green Bay could have ruined the season. It didn’t.
The Bears survived that, and they continued to get by even though his replacement at middle linebacker, Hunter Hillenmeyer (rib), and strongside linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa (right knee) have also missed time with injuries.
Nick Roach moved to the middle when Hillenmeyer went down after filling in for Tinoisamoa, who is expected to return next week against Atlanta. Jamar Williams had been playing strongside.
“I just think we’re a little hungrier,” Ogunleye said. “Coach Marinelli has helped us out a lot. It’s still early though. We’ve got a lot to improve on. We can’t get too excited about the way we’ve played because we’ve still got 12 games to go.”
