Not Everything Has Gone Wrong for Bears

Analysis: Listing everything wrong so far for the Bears takes too long but there have been a few positives to build on during three losses.

When a team is 0-3 and underdogs at home to a winless opponent that was edged out 70-20 the previous game, something's obviously wrong.

The Bears have had so much go wrong on the field and off of it since training camp started and yet their coach is telling everyone they're close.

Of course he has to say this, and players need to echo it.

"I think we can't really control what people are seeing or what the past has looked like," Edwards said. "For us all we want to do is just change what's happening right now."

It would take too long to list everything they would need to change on both sides of the ball and it would start on defense by being ranked last in the league at stopping third downs and last in sack percentage.

There's a direct correlation between the two things -- more pressure and they don't give up such a high percentage of completions and they get off the field on third downs. The offense then has more chances with the ball and you can go deep into next week debating what the offense is doing wrong.

It's easier to know they have done a few things right and simply just assume the rest of what the Bears are doing has gone wrong.

Here's what has gone right for them so far.

1. Limiting Gains on Runs

They've given up only 3.5 yards per carry.

This is quite the achievement considering they finished last year at 4.9 yards a carry allowed and were 31st against the run.

This was one of the primary aims for their defense when they signed players like Andrew Billings, DeMarcus Walker and Edwards.

On the other hand, they're still only ranked 20th against the run but it's largely because opponents run the ball so much against them. In three games, they've faced 103 rushing attempts. Obviously, this has happened because they've been behind so much in the second half. Twice they got blown out in the second half as the Packers and Chiefs both had plenty of time to kill with their ground attack after surging to big advantages.

The Bears rank 11th in tackles for loss with 16. Achieving these is the aim of their gap-shooting scheme and it is happening.

"Running game-wise I thought we were actually decent," Edwards said, referring to a game the Bears lost 41-10. "I thought we were solid in terms of the point of attack. I thought the D-line did a really good job in the run game with things like that.

"But for us, it's been a focus we've had. But it's really those third downs and getting rid of those explosive passes. And that's everybody. That's from the rush, the back end, the linebackers, everyone doing their jobs so we can get those things narrowed down so that we can get off the field."

This is one of the areas where they might actually be close, like Eberflus suggested.

2. Yards Per Rush

The No. 1 rushing attack in the NFL last year is only ranked 17th this year but they are 11th in yards per attempt and it's been done without Justin Fields padding their yards per attempt too much. He's only averaging 4.5 yards on his rushes, mostly scrambles, and last year averaged 7.1 for the year. Roschon Johnson is averaging 5.3 and Khlail Herbert 4.0. Johnson and Herbert both rank in the top 21 among 54 running backs graded this season by Pro Football Focus and both are in the top 12 among grades as runners.

Yet, they're only giving the ball to running backs 15 times a game. If they want to accentuate the positive, then they need to start leaning on their conventional running game more. It can only take pressure off Fields.

Considering how they've had to shuffle their offensive line in three straight games and had one starter playing Sunday where he's supposed to be starting, they can't be unhappy with the way their running backs perform when given the chance.

"I do know that running the football, the conventional way, is also going to be beneficial to opening up the other types of runs that we have," Eberflus said.

That would be the end-around game and even Fields carrying it on zone reads.

3. Darnell Wright

Maybe it's because he's the last guy standing, but first-round pick Darnell Wright is the highest-ranked Bears offensive lineman according to PFF blocking grades, even after allowing a sack to Chris Jones. The only offensive lineman who played the position he's supposed to play all three games, Wright has allowed only three pressures.

4. Kicking

Cairo Santos is 4-for-4 on field goals and made his only 50-plus kick. And he hasn't missed an extra point. It might seem like a small victory but at this rate the Bears will take anything positive they can.

5. Offensive Balance

No. Really. 

Last year they ran the ball 56.2% of plays, and that's completely unsustainable in the NFL today. No one had done this since 2004. 

Now they're passing 58.7% of the time, which ranks as 17th highest percentage, or just about the middle of the league. No one can complain about balance achieved by passing more.

However, what they need to do now is pass successfully.

Here's one suggestion, just a little something: Take the one positive in the running game, which is their ability to gain yardage with the conventional ground game, mix it with the passing game by using play-action throws, and then they might have something.

Fields ranks only 26th in number of play-action passes thrown with just 12, and 27th in yards off play-action passes (76), according to Sportradar. 

Whatever happened to that running team and play-action passing team both Luke Getsy and Matt Eberflus said they wanted when they first started all of this?

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