Is It All Doom and Gloom for Our Beloved Bears?

Three games into the 2011 season and our beloved Chicago Bears are 1-2, dropping their last two games to the Saints and the Packers. 

Is it doom and gloom time for the Monsters of the Midway? History says no, but the optimism around town is not at an all time high that’s for sure.  After three weeks, the Bears have proven a few things, not all great obviously, but not all bad either

Chicago started the season facing three playoff teams from last year and these same three teams are going to be right in the thick of things this year. That means two loses from two quality opponents and one win against a quality opponent.

We also have to keep in mind that even though the Bears have dropped two in a row, they have been in both of those losses with at least the possibility to win the game in the fourth quarter. Not so bad, right?

A few different play calls, better coaching, and good old-fashion lady luck on their side and the Bears could easily be 2-1 or even 3-0. Okay, so maybe a little wishful thinking, but the point is the Bears are not being blown out and the struggling Carolina Panthers are in town this week with a rookie quarterback at just the right time.

So, is the imbalanced offense the real issue and the main reason the Bears are 1-2? Most knee-jerk reactions and the less than normal football enthusiasts would probably say yes.

It’s definitely a portion of the issue, but the ineffective passing game and lack of running game is not the main culprit. However it’s a decent portion of the issues surrounding the defending NFC North Champs.

After doing some research and reading I found that other teams with better records pass the ball nearly just as much as Chicago. Look at the following teams and the percentage of the time they throw the ball: San Diego 61%, New England 65%, New Orleans 65%, Carolina 60%, Buffalo 58% and Green Bay 57%. All but one of those teams has at least two wins with the exception of Carolina. Chicago is at 69% and tops in the league thus far.    

The difference is that all of those teams, with the exception of Carolina, have identified their strength and identity as an offense. The Bears look like a team that has no clue what they are good at and are struggling to reveal their true identity on the offensive side of the ball.

The strength of the offense, whether run or pass, will need to surface very soon or it will be doom and gloom for the Bears this season.  Most successful offenses have one good leg to lean on when the going gets tough, especially in crucial games versus playoff opponents.

The lack of execution, lack of identifying a strength, and sheer lack of offensive confidence has played a role in the last two losses but is not the entire issue. Football is made up of three units: Offense, Defense, and Special Teams. With a little focus of improvement on all three units of the team (and the Carolina Panthers in town) the Bears will be 2-2 after this weekend.