Washed-Up Lance Briggs Poster Boy for Bears’ Defensive Woes
Published by Gary Davenport on November 6, 2014
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears have long been known for their defense. The “Monsters of the Midway” of the 1940s. The ’85 Bears, widely regarded as the best single-season defensive squad (and overall team) in NFL history.
Now, however, the Bears sit at 3-5 with the 29th-ranked defense in the league in terms of points allowed. Not only is that defense a shell of its former glory, but it’s being “led” in 2014 by a player about whom many of the same things can be said.
Outside linebacker Lance Briggs, the elder statesman of the Bears’ defense with 12 years with the team, will return to action Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers after missing three games with a rib injury.
As Michael C. Wright of ESPN reports, defensive coordinator Mel Tucker is excited to be getting Briggs back in the fold. “Lance, it’s great to have him back,” Tucker said. “He’s a really good leader for us and he’s a playmaker. We need him to do his job. That’s going to be big for us.”
For Briggs, on the other hand, the return is somewhat bittersweet because he sees the writing on the wall, per Wright:
It’s the last year of my deal. It’s not like I’m going to magically show up after this year, and they’re going to open the gates up for you. I’ve talked to my buddy [former Bears defensive end] Alex Brown. Those gates are closing, you’re a free agent. I know the reality of it, and I’m proud of all the years I’ve had here. It’s been great.
It’s the Brian Urlacher saga all over again. Just like Urlacher, Briggs has struggled with injuries of late, missing 10 games over the past two seasons. Even when he was on the field this year Briggs barely resembled the player who made seven Pro Bowls over his time in Chicago and was graded as the fourth-worst 4-3 outside linebacker in the NFL in pass coverage over this season’s first month, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
When Urlacher’s contract expired after the 2012 season, the Bears made very little effort to re-sign him, and that was that.
Briggs was a great player, one whose candidacy for the Hall of Fame will receive serious consideration. But as the old saying goes, “Father Time is undefeated.”
Still, Briggs’ decline isn’t the reason the Bears are so bad on defense this year. In fact, it’s Briggs’ absence that has really exposed a Chicago defense that’s a mess on just about every level.
The Bears spent a ton of money on their pass rush in the offseason but so far have very little to show for the investment. Yes, Willie Young and his seven sacks have been a godsend, but only because the team’s higher-priced acquisitions have been horrible.
Jared Allen, who hadn’t recorded fewer than 11 sacks in a season since 2006, has all of 1.5 in eight games this year. He currently ranks 38th among 4-3 ends at PFF.
LaMarr Houston tore his ACL celebrating his first sack of the season—in Week 8. After making nearly 60 tackles for the Oakland Raiders in 2013, Houston managed all of 11 this year before getting hurt.
And the linebackers. Great googly moogly, the linebackers.
Simply put, the Bears probably have the worst cadre of linebackers in the NFL, and that’s with Briggs on the field. D.J. Williams hasn’t had any more success staying healthy the past two years than Briggs has, which may be a blessing given how badly he’s played when he was on the field.
Jon Bostic plays like he was shot out of a cannon, which is great right up until he has to change direction. Second-year pro Khaseem Greene was so awful in place of Briggs that the Bears were forced to turn to undrafted rookie Christian Jones, who has played, well, like an undrafted rookie.
The problems don’t end there. Rookie cornerback Kyle Fuller has played well in relief of the injured Charles Tillman (who is nearing the end of the line himself), but opposite Fuller Tim Jennings has regressed badly.
In 2012, Jennings was the seventh-ranked cornerback in the NFL per PFF (subscription required) in a season in which he led the league with nine interceptions. This year, Jennings ranks 28th and has yet to pick off a pass.
As far as safety play, the Bears have ignored that position for so long that I’m not sure they realize they even have safeties on the field. You know things are bad when fans are waxing nostalgic about the departed Major Wright, who had 100 tackles in 2013 but ranked dead last among safeties at PFF.
It’s an issue that goes far beyond any one player (or even any one position), and it’s emblematic of a failure at every level of the organization, from the front office to the coaching staff to the players.
For all the talk of quarterback Jay Cutler‘s struggles in 2014, the fact is that Chicago’s defense is putting Cutler in exactly the sort of position you don’t want Jay Cutler in—forced to take chances in an effort to outscore people.
And with zero evidence to support a change anytime soon, it’s hard to see the second half of the 2014 season being any less disappointing than the first for the Bears.
Gary Davenport is an NFL Analyst at Bleacher Report and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association and the Pro Football Writers of America. You can follow Gary on Twitter @IDPManor.
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