Bear Digest

Quantifying Ashton Jeanty's fit for Ben Johnson's Bears offense

Blocking scheme experience matters for backs and one study shows dramatically how Boise State's star and other backs would fit within the rushing plans for Chicago's coach.

Gene Chamberlain

Ashton Jeanty applies the stiff arm to Hawaii's defensive back Kilinahe Mendiola-Jensen.
Ashton Jeanty applies the stiff arm to Hawaii's defensive back Kilinahe Mendiola-Jensen. / Marco Garcia-Imagn Images
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The acquisition of personnel to fit the scheme has been a central point of discussion about the Bears defense and coordinator Dennis Allen.

It also applies to their offensive line and what they've done in acquiring linemen capable of blocking various schemes like Ben Johnson wants to use. This no longer is an offense using wide zone blocking for the vast majority of plays.

"We love to have some versatility to our schemes, some multiplicity if you will," coach Ben Johnson said. "We got a couple guys in the building now that we feel strongly can handle a variety of different concepts and schemes that we might want to employ each and every week."

They might use more inside zone blocking or gap scheme now than they had been using. Johnson's Lions offense was multiple in this regard.

It can't hurt having backs experienced at running within a particular blocking scheme, and D'Andre Swift's experience in Detroit does give this to them.

If the Bears do as expected and pursue a running back in the draft, finding one with this experience would be a boost.

Football Insights uses Pro Football Focus and college football statistics to produce analytic studies and did a study with a chart on which backs have had the most plays in each type of blocking scheme.

Their statistical study on forcing missed tackles and yards after contact showed a dramatic difference between Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty and the rest of the backs in the draft class.

This study they did on zone and gap blocking schemes shows something else Bears-specific that is rather dramatic.

Not only is Jeanty the top running back in terms of missed tackles forced and yards after contact, but he's also one of the most experienced for a team hoping to employ a balance of blocking schemes. It's probably more accurate to say he's the most experienced at it because he had a huge amount of carries (374) last year, far more than any other back.

In fact, there is no back who has run more times in a more balanced mix of zone and gap. Jeanty ran 51% of the time behind gap scheme and 48% in zone scheme.

Other backs who have had this extensive dual exposure include Ohio State's TreVeyon Henderson (53% gap, 44% zone), Oregon's Jordan James (48% gap, 49% zone), Arizona State's Cam Skattebo (56% gap, 44% zone), Kansas State's DJ Giddens (54% gap, 46^ zone), Oklahoma State's Ollie Gordon (53% gap, 46% zone), Syracuse's LeQuint Allen Jr. (51% gap, 47% zone) and Auburn's Jarquez Hunter (53% gap, 47% zone). Of course, none of them were close to what Jeanty did for total carries.

Other suitable ones would be Ohio State's Quinshon Judkins (58% gap, 42% zone), Michigan's Donovan Edwards (58% gap, 42% zone).

Probably the back among this group studied who most lacks ideal experience one way or the other in relation to what the Bears say they want to do is Iowa's Kaleb Johnson. He ran behind zone blocking 80% of the time and gap only 20%.

Other backs with too much exposure to one way of blocking but not enough to another include North Carolina's Omarion Hampton (37% gap, 60% zone), Virginia Tech's Bhayshul Tuten (25% gap, 75% zone), Tennessee's Dylan Sampson (63% gap, 35% zone), Rutgers' Kyle Monangai (20% gap, 79% zone), Florida's Montrell Johnson Jr. (29% gap, 71% zone), USC's Woody Marks (72% gap, 27% zone), Miami's Damien Martinez (67% gap, 32% zone) and Central Florida's R.J. Yarns (34% gap, 65% zone).

None of this says the backs without the balance would fail.

They might have been miscast with their team and would have been better in a different style. However, that does seem less likely today with all of the movement between schools through the portal. Backs can pretty much predetermine the best style of play and go to that school.

Another positive aspect of this study is it explains why the Bears have so much interest in Oregon tackle Josh Conerly.

He is slated for a Halas Hall 30 visit. Based on the study showing the near perfect balance in rushing attempts behind gap and zone for teammate Jordan James, it's obvious linemen from Oregon would have ideal experience for the Ben Johnson running game.

Run blocking alone won't sell teams on linemen, though, especially because it's a league where passing rules. However, it is a big plus.

Jeanty's level of competition can be debated forever, but to a large extent he gained against all levels of competition even if Boise State didn't always win against higher level opponents.

And there's little doubt from this study that he has been exposed to all manner of blocking he'll run behind in the NFL.

The problem for the Bears, of course, would be finding a way to draft Jeanty with the Raiders and a few other teams who could have possible interest ahead of them—not to mention those who might want to trade up ahead of them to draft him.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.