Chicago Bears Run Defense Will Be Key vs. San Francisco 49ers in Week 13
Published by Matt Eurich on December 4, 2015
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
After finishing the 2014 season ranked 30th in total defense after allowing 377.1 yards per game, the Chicago Bears sit 19th in total defense in 2015—allowing 343.1 yards per game under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
Chicago is second in the NFL against the pass—allowing just 214.5 passing yards per—but the defense is giving up an average of 128.5 rushing yards per game—fourth most in the league. On Sunday, the Bears will take on the San Francisco 49ers at Soldier Field, and slowing down San Francisco’s running game will be a key for Chicago’s defense.
As a whole, Chicago’s defense has flashed against both the pass and the run at times this season, but the unit has given up 100-plus rushing yards in eight of the team’s 11 games this season.
After allowing 77 yards on 19 carries to the San Diego Chargers on Monday Night Football in Week 9 and 94 yards on 21 carries to the St. Louis Rams in Week 10, Chicago’s defense looked like it had turned the corner against the run. The team’s defensive ends were doing a nice job of setting the edge on the outside, while inside linebackers Shea McClellin and Christian Jones were attacking downhill and making stops at or near the line of scrimmage.
Following back-to-back improved performances against the run, the Bears allowed 170 rushing yards to the Denver Broncos in Week 11 and 177 rushing yards on Thanksgiving night to the Green Bay Packers.
Fangio admitted earlier this week his unit has struggled against the run, particularly in the last two games, per the team’s official Twitter account:
WGNRadio.com’s Adam Hoge believes one of the reasons why the Bears struggled against the run against the Packers in Week 12 was because of issues along the defensive line:
In the first quarter on Thanksgiving night, Packers running back Eddie Lacy had no problem finding running lanes against Chicago’s nickel defense.
On second down in the middle of the first quarter, Lacy lined up as the single back behind quarterback Aaron Rodgers:
The Bears were in their nickel package and had just two defensive linemen in a three-point stance at the line of scrimmage. Bruce Gaston lined up opposite of Packers right guard T.J. Lang, while Mitch Unrein lined up opposite of left guard Josh Sitton:
Both Gaston and Unrein failed to get a good jump off the snap of the ball, and they were swallowed up by double-teams on the inside:
Lacy was able to knife his way between Gaston and Unrein and picked up a first down on his eight-yard run.
Against the run, the Bears have struggled throughout the year to get much of a push up front from their defensive line, and the defense has also had issues defending runs to the outside.
In Week 11 against the Broncos, Chicago lined up in its base 3-4 defense with strong safety Chris Prosinski lined up in the box over tight end Vernon Davis:
Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler then handed the ball off to running back Ronnie Hillman on a stretch play to the right of the formation:
Chicago’s defensive line failed to get a push at the line of scrimmage, while Prosinski and the linebackers struggled to work through traffic laterally to make a play:
Hillman was able to eventually get to the edge before cornerback Kyle Fuller knocked him out of bounds after he picked up 15 yards.
On Sunday, the Bears will square off against a 49ers team that is averaging just 97.1 rushing yards per game this season—20th most in the NFL—but San Francisco has been getting solid production out of former Bear Shaun Draughn in recent weeks.
Following injuries to Reggie Bush and Carlos Hyde, Draughn has been San Francisco’s starter at running back the last three games. Draughn was with the Bears in training camp in 2014 and played in the first two games of the season, but the Bears waived him after Week 2. He spent time with the Cleveland Browns earlier this year before signing with the 49ers in early November.
In three games with San Francisco this season, Draughn has carried the ball 43 times for 146 yards, and he finished with 51 yards on 15 carries against an Arizona Cardinals defense in Week 12 that is allowing just 91.1 rushing yards per game this season.
While Draughn’s numbers have not been spectacular, he has run the ball hard in his limited opportunities, and 49ers head coach Jim Tomsula has been impressed by the journeyman running back.
“We have wanted to work in other running backs,” Tomsula said, per Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. “Going in every game these last few games, we wanted to, but Shaun’s done a really nice job. He’s sturdy and he’s running well. He’s running hard. His pass protection this past week I thought was really good. So he’s doing everything as an every-down back.”
Draughn will not be the best running back the Bears have faced this season, but he is a hard-nosed, downhill runner who has the ability to break off big runs and can pick up yards between the tackles.
Chicago has shown a lot of improvement on defense this season, but the defensive line will need to do a better job of getting off the football this Sunday if the Bears want to limit Draughn’s impact in the running game.
Statistical information courtesy of NFL.com unless otherwise noted.
Matt Eurich is a Chicago Bears featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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