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-Charles Leno seems to be player that is inspiring a lot of debate and after reading the PFF grade for him I have to wonder what they term a pressure. I have always seen pressures graded as allowing a rusher to effect the QBs ability to throw the ball, effecting the throw itself, or hitting the QB. The QB simply having to move in the pocket, or step up to me has never constituted a pressure and I have never seem the graded that way. I felt Leno played a strong game considering it was his 2nd career start, against an accomplished pass rusher, in a difficult building. I saw almost no plays where he gave up clean pressure, he kept rushers outside and high, and he did not give up the inside rush. The plays where I saw him give up pressure were slide protections against blitzs and that looked like more of a mental error.
Leno is not dominant and he commits to many penalties. That being said I see exactly what the Bears see in him. He is athletic and consistently meets the rusher with a square chest, he does not give up the edge like Webb use too. He uses his long arms well and when beat he uses his long arms to steer the rusher wide of the QB. Leno is not overly powerful and is not going to win a ton of run blocking awards, but he works hard and fires out of his stance. He flashes good athletic ability on screens and reach blocks. Charles Leno has LT skills, technically he is very sound, and he has competed with 2 excellent rushers and not allowed splash plays.
They gave Leno almost no help the entire game, they gave him almost no help.
I am actually shocked what they are getting from Leno, shocked.
-The other much talked about player was Hroniss Grasu making his 1st start. What surprised me on the 2nd viewing of the tape was how few times Grasu was physically manhandled. By no means was he putting guys on the ground and driving guys off the ball, but I was expecting him to be pushed around more than he was. Most of the plays, like the sack TD, were more mental busts that out him in bad positions. On the sack he and Slauson both got picked and missed a stunt and were chasing to catch up. Grasu was pretty stout in pass pro against some good inside players and after being a little shell shocked by Bob Sutton's blitz package and having Slauson make the calls he was much better. The run game is going to be a challenge for him as he is just not very strong.
I was impressed with what Grasu put on tape.
-Sam Acho pops off the tape. Incredible effort level and physicality. One of my favorite plays was a screen to Maclin where Acho 2 hand jacks Kelce in the chest and then comes off and makes a great open field tackle for the loss. The guys energy is infectious and he flies around the field. He is actually a surprising compliment to McPhee. I know we all wanted a pass rusher across from McPhee, but Acho's ability in coverage and as a run defender in space really allows Fangio to rush McPhee all the time.
Jahns and Hoge on their podcast talked about how the Bears love Acho, and while I doubt he ever consistently sacks the QB, what an addition to the run defense, in coverage and on special teams. Another player that is getting better with more reps.
-Most of the pass protection issues were mental busts, which will happen with new guys playing, physically the Bears matched up against a very good front 7 and played pretty well.
-Jeremy Langford at WR was a nice wrinkle for Adam Gase. He continues to add things to the offense that will make DCs have to scheme and plan. We have not seen an offense in Chicago with this many options and wrinkles in the play calling and style. It is almost as if Gase switches philosophy's throughout the game. Zone run, to power run, to empty backfield spread, to motioning everyone into the formation, to zone read, back to power run. You can tell defenses get off balance a little.
-Special Teams has improved a lot. They still do not have great athletes and are getting downfield late, but they are in their lanes and they are controlling the return. Special mention to Demontre Hurst who was awesome as a gunner.
-Marquess Wilson's route running is much improved. He works back to the ball, is more physical in his routes and shook some pretty good CBs this week.
-I continue to be totally unimpressed by Lamaar Houston. His pass rush is non-existent, his run defense is solid and if he gets stuck in coverage watch out. Houston just does not seem to have a skill set right now. He is not fast enough to threaten the edge and he does not appear big enough to threaten the power rush. Based on what I saw we should switch his salary with Sam Acho's to make it fair.
-Lots of max protect from the Chiefs made the pass rush difficult. I am sure they did this because they are giving up a ton of sacks, but the Bears pass rush might be starting to get some respect in the game plan.
-A player that I was not expecting to see much from kept popping up. Harold Jones-Quartey impressed me as well. On multiple occasions he came up and put physical tackles onto guys that limited them to no yards after catch. I counted 3 tackles in the first half where the ball was completed on a short pass and within 1 step by the receiver number 29 was putting a solid solo tackle on him. You have no idea how welcome of a change this is as the Bears used to have safeties that were late to react, missed tackles, or were often dragged for extra yards. The Bears safeties now average 216lbs and they play like they are LBs.
-Eddie Goldman continues to impress and his hand use in the passing game is getting better. The dude might not make the highlight reel quick swim, but he consistently disrupts the pocket by driving the line back into the QB. This is so important as it allows the outside rush to get home, clouds the QBs vision and disrupts the footwork, One play in the 2nd quarter Goldman bull rushes the center back and then gets knocked down by Grubbs coming over from LG. It looks like a bad rep for him but he and the center are lying right where Alex Smith wants to throw the ball.
-One thing that was interesting was how well the secondary keeps things in front of them. I know this was aided by Alex Smith being a coward, but they do a nice job of having layers in the pass game that do not allow big plays. Every completion had a group of defenders in the area. The Bears are forcing teams to grind it out underneath.
-Willie Young had a couple of nice rushes. His emergence is going to be a big story moving forward as the Bears could really use and effective designated pass rusher.
-During the Trestman era the run defense was pathetic. The Bears defense is showing some serious strength against the run. The DL is physical and active and they make a solid amount of tackles. The difference is night and day the level of physicality that the defense is playing with. McPhee described himself as violent and the entire defense seems to be playing with a ton of violence.
-Matt Forte is awesome.
-Jeremiah Ratliff is still very good at football. A couple of nice rushes in his return.
-Martellus Bennett was pretty bad all game and appeared to lack effort on some reps. His blocking was okay, but at times against Justin Houston he was either super over matched or not trying that hard.
-Shea struggled in 2 pass coverage against 2 elite players. Other than that I thought he played a solid game. He is more aggressive in the run game and when he is not asked to man up against really good players he is not a liability. The run defense really struggled once Shea left and Fangio said that there was alignment problems with Shea not making the calls.
-Christian Jones seems to struggle taking on blockers and when teams pull. When he has a clear picture and can run and attack he looks pretty good. His hit on Kelce in the 4th quarter was a big stop for the Bears. Jones needs to get better at avoiding blocks or defeating them.
-Latroy Reynolds struggled in coverage, but he can run.
-On Cutler's 30 yard completion to Marquess Wilson I am sure that OFF gave Leno a pressure, but he was in good position and pushed Hali past the pocket and had control of him around the office. It was a good rep that didn't look pretty that allowed a long pass.
-Tracy Porter was awesome again, and his play against Maclin on the Chiefs second last drive was perfect man coverage. What a difference he is making to the defense.
-Adrian Amos again had a strong game in run support as he comes into the box like a LB and does not miss tackles.
-Jarvis Jenkins did not appear on the stat sheet, but he was impactful on the field and again was causing issue for the DL. He was strong against the run and had multiple rushes that disrupted the pocket and caused Smith to move off his spot. On Houston's sack he had Grubbs going back into the QB and forced Smith over to Houston. Good pass rush is about multiple players affecting the pocket.
-Eric Berry would be an awesome off season signing for the Bears. The guy is a very good cover safety and he shut down Martellus Bennett for most of the game on his own. I also think he would fit nicely with the culture Fox is building.
-Last but not least Jay Cutler was very good. He looks so comfortable running this offense. I do not know the last time he looked so comfortable in a system and had such command of where the ball should be going. He is taking what is given to him within the offense and than at times is making perfect throws. The first half was not great, there were some bad throws at times, but Cutler moved the ball enough not to give the Chiefs good field position and he did not make the critical mistake. I do not put the fumble on him watching it again. He is immediately hit by both interior defenders and is trying to stay out of the end zone. Allen Bailey comes in and makes a nice strip. It is hard for a QB to hold a ball when he is being crushed by 620lbs at the snap. In the second half Cutler was brilliant. The TD throws were incredible.
We have always waited for Cutler to elevate the players around him. His pocket movement, is making the OL better. His feet are keeping plays alive and converting 3rd downs. He is elevating a WR core that does not have it's top 3 options, Cutler passed for 250 yards and 2 TDs in a 2nd half that featured Marquess Wilson, Cameron Meredith, Josh Bellamy and Marc Mariani.
Leno is not dominant and he commits to many penalties. That being said I see exactly what the Bears see in him. He is athletic and consistently meets the rusher with a square chest, he does not give up the edge like Webb use too. He uses his long arms well and when beat he uses his long arms to steer the rusher wide of the QB. Leno is not overly powerful and is not going to win a ton of run blocking awards, but he works hard and fires out of his stance. He flashes good athletic ability on screens and reach blocks. Charles Leno has LT skills, technically he is very sound, and he has competed with 2 excellent rushers and not allowed splash plays.
They gave Leno almost no help the entire game, they gave him almost no help.
I am actually shocked what they are getting from Leno, shocked.
-The other much talked about player was Hroniss Grasu making his 1st start. What surprised me on the 2nd viewing of the tape was how few times Grasu was physically manhandled. By no means was he putting guys on the ground and driving guys off the ball, but I was expecting him to be pushed around more than he was. Most of the plays, like the sack TD, were more mental busts that out him in bad positions. On the sack he and Slauson both got picked and missed a stunt and were chasing to catch up. Grasu was pretty stout in pass pro against some good inside players and after being a little shell shocked by Bob Sutton's blitz package and having Slauson make the calls he was much better. The run game is going to be a challenge for him as he is just not very strong.
I was impressed with what Grasu put on tape.
-Sam Acho pops off the tape. Incredible effort level and physicality. One of my favorite plays was a screen to Maclin where Acho 2 hand jacks Kelce in the chest and then comes off and makes a great open field tackle for the loss. The guys energy is infectious and he flies around the field. He is actually a surprising compliment to McPhee. I know we all wanted a pass rusher across from McPhee, but Acho's ability in coverage and as a run defender in space really allows Fangio to rush McPhee all the time.
Jahns and Hoge on their podcast talked about how the Bears love Acho, and while I doubt he ever consistently sacks the QB, what an addition to the run defense, in coverage and on special teams. Another player that is getting better with more reps.
-Most of the pass protection issues were mental busts, which will happen with new guys playing, physically the Bears matched up against a very good front 7 and played pretty well.
-Jeremy Langford at WR was a nice wrinkle for Adam Gase. He continues to add things to the offense that will make DCs have to scheme and plan. We have not seen an offense in Chicago with this many options and wrinkles in the play calling and style. It is almost as if Gase switches philosophy's throughout the game. Zone run, to power run, to empty backfield spread, to motioning everyone into the formation, to zone read, back to power run. You can tell defenses get off balance a little.
-Special Teams has improved a lot. They still do not have great athletes and are getting downfield late, but they are in their lanes and they are controlling the return. Special mention to Demontre Hurst who was awesome as a gunner.
-Marquess Wilson's route running is much improved. He works back to the ball, is more physical in his routes and shook some pretty good CBs this week.
-I continue to be totally unimpressed by Lamaar Houston. His pass rush is non-existent, his run defense is solid and if he gets stuck in coverage watch out. Houston just does not seem to have a skill set right now. He is not fast enough to threaten the edge and he does not appear big enough to threaten the power rush. Based on what I saw we should switch his salary with Sam Acho's to make it fair.
-Lots of max protect from the Chiefs made the pass rush difficult. I am sure they did this because they are giving up a ton of sacks, but the Bears pass rush might be starting to get some respect in the game plan.
-A player that I was not expecting to see much from kept popping up. Harold Jones-Quartey impressed me as well. On multiple occasions he came up and put physical tackles onto guys that limited them to no yards after catch. I counted 3 tackles in the first half where the ball was completed on a short pass and within 1 step by the receiver number 29 was putting a solid solo tackle on him. You have no idea how welcome of a change this is as the Bears used to have safeties that were late to react, missed tackles, or were often dragged for extra yards. The Bears safeties now average 216lbs and they play like they are LBs.
-Eddie Goldman continues to impress and his hand use in the passing game is getting better. The dude might not make the highlight reel quick swim, but he consistently disrupts the pocket by driving the line back into the QB. This is so important as it allows the outside rush to get home, clouds the QBs vision and disrupts the footwork, One play in the 2nd quarter Goldman bull rushes the center back and then gets knocked down by Grubbs coming over from LG. It looks like a bad rep for him but he and the center are lying right where Alex Smith wants to throw the ball.
-One thing that was interesting was how well the secondary keeps things in front of them. I know this was aided by Alex Smith being a coward, but they do a nice job of having layers in the pass game that do not allow big plays. Every completion had a group of defenders in the area. The Bears are forcing teams to grind it out underneath.
-Willie Young had a couple of nice rushes. His emergence is going to be a big story moving forward as the Bears could really use and effective designated pass rusher.
-During the Trestman era the run defense was pathetic. The Bears defense is showing some serious strength against the run. The DL is physical and active and they make a solid amount of tackles. The difference is night and day the level of physicality that the defense is playing with. McPhee described himself as violent and the entire defense seems to be playing with a ton of violence.
-Matt Forte is awesome.
-Jeremiah Ratliff is still very good at football. A couple of nice rushes in his return.
-Martellus Bennett was pretty bad all game and appeared to lack effort on some reps. His blocking was okay, but at times against Justin Houston he was either super over matched or not trying that hard.
-Shea struggled in 2 pass coverage against 2 elite players. Other than that I thought he played a solid game. He is more aggressive in the run game and when he is not asked to man up against really good players he is not a liability. The run defense really struggled once Shea left and Fangio said that there was alignment problems with Shea not making the calls.
-Christian Jones seems to struggle taking on blockers and when teams pull. When he has a clear picture and can run and attack he looks pretty good. His hit on Kelce in the 4th quarter was a big stop for the Bears. Jones needs to get better at avoiding blocks or defeating them.
-Latroy Reynolds struggled in coverage, but he can run.
-On Cutler's 30 yard completion to Marquess Wilson I am sure that OFF gave Leno a pressure, but he was in good position and pushed Hali past the pocket and had control of him around the office. It was a good rep that didn't look pretty that allowed a long pass.
-Tracy Porter was awesome again, and his play against Maclin on the Chiefs second last drive was perfect man coverage. What a difference he is making to the defense.
-Adrian Amos again had a strong game in run support as he comes into the box like a LB and does not miss tackles.
-Jarvis Jenkins did not appear on the stat sheet, but he was impactful on the field and again was causing issue for the DL. He was strong against the run and had multiple rushes that disrupted the pocket and caused Smith to move off his spot. On Houston's sack he had Grubbs going back into the QB and forced Smith over to Houston. Good pass rush is about multiple players affecting the pocket.
-Eric Berry would be an awesome off season signing for the Bears. The guy is a very good cover safety and he shut down Martellus Bennett for most of the game on his own. I also think he would fit nicely with the culture Fox is building.
-Last but not least Jay Cutler was very good. He looks so comfortable running this offense. I do not know the last time he looked so comfortable in a system and had such command of where the ball should be going. He is taking what is given to him within the offense and than at times is making perfect throws. The first half was not great, there were some bad throws at times, but Cutler moved the ball enough not to give the Chiefs good field position and he did not make the critical mistake. I do not put the fumble on him watching it again. He is immediately hit by both interior defenders and is trying to stay out of the end zone. Allen Bailey comes in and makes a nice strip. It is hard for a QB to hold a ball when he is being crushed by 620lbs at the snap. In the second half Cutler was brilliant. The TD throws were incredible.
We have always waited for Cutler to elevate the players around him. His pocket movement, is making the OL better. His feet are keeping plays alive and converting 3rd downs. He is elevating a WR core that does not have it's top 3 options, Cutler passed for 250 yards and 2 TDs in a 2nd half that featured Marquess Wilson, Cameron Meredith, Josh Bellamy and Marc Mariani.
