Forte admits he's not sure what offense does best
Probably the only way the Bears can keep their postseason hopes alive after a 3-4 start is for their offense to start playing up to the high expectations it had entering the season.
Former Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher chided former teammate Jay Cutler on the radio for being an elite quarterback in salary only, but that charge could be leveled against several members of the offense.
To paraphrase Luke 12:48: “To whom much (money) is given, much is expected.”
The problem is, despite its high payroll and numerous collective Pro Bowls, the Bears' offense ranks just 17th in yards and 18th in points. Maybe even more damning is that, with the season almost half over, the offense has failed to develop an identity.
Before it's too late, Cutler and Co. must stop idling and stalling and shift into overdrive — hopefully Sunday against the Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
Running back Matt Forte, perhaps the only marquee name who's playing up to expectations, was asked what the offense does best.
Forte repeated the question, smiled and said: “That's a good question. I don't know right now. We need to figure that out. We need to start playing more consistent where we have something that we can have as a go-to.”
The Bears are only 24th in rushing yards and 17th in average gain per rush. They're 10th in passing yards but just 21st in average gain per pass. Though both phases are about equally mediocre, that's not the kind of balance that is required for the offense to run at peak efficiency — emphasis on “run.”
“This offense works best when it's balanced and the run and the pass are feeding off each other,” Forte said. “We just need to be balanced — and be effective in both.”
Coach Marc Trestman, whose play-calling resulted in just 2 Forte carries in the first half last Sunday, agreed with his go-to running back — for the most part. Putting the threat of a balanced attack into the collective mind of the opposing defense is half the battle.
“The most important thing is that we feel comfortable being able to run it when we want to run it and throw it when we want to throw it,” Trestman said. “Sometimes it's not totally balanced. But when we know that our running game is a factor from a defensive mindset, and our passing game is, too, that's always the best.”
An opponent that must defend run and pass equally is susceptible to both.
That's the kind of attack that was expected from the Bears after a 2013 season in which they were No. 2 in points, No. 5 in passing yards and No. 8 in total yards. This year, they're 18th in points, 10th in passing yards and 17th in total yards.
Forte says knowing the talent level on offense makes it frustrating to everyone when the group underachieves.
“Everybody knows that. It's not just because of the names,” Forte said. “We know how good we can be, and it's just frustrating to see us struggling as an offense right now when we know we can be better than what we're doing.”
After last week's pass-heavy first half, a stronger commitment to the run is an obvious strategy going forward, and it's one which Forte expects and endorses.
“I know our coaches have probably analyzed that into oblivion these past couple of days after what happened last Sunday,” he said. “The first half of last season, we weren't running the ball a whole lot, and then we really leaned on the run toward the end.”
This would seem the ideal week to lean on Forte, considering the Patriots' defense is No. 1 in passing yards allowed but just 24th in rushing yards allowed.
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