Bears defense improving but faces big job trying to contain Charles
Coordinator Vic Fangio has seen improvement in the Bears' defense in recent weeks, but he's not ready to start handing out awards.
Fangio's defense held the Raiders to just 243 yards of total offense in Week 4, 108.5 below their season average. The Bears are now No. 7 in the NFL in fewest total yards allowed per game.
But the Bears are tied for last in the league in points allowed, coincidentally with the Kansas City Chiefs, this week's opponent. In the Bears' case, though, that low ranking is largely because special teams have allowed 2 kickoff-return touchdowns and the offense had an interception returned for a touchdown.
The defense has shown the most improvement in its pass rush with 6 sacks in the past two games after failing to get any in the first two games.
“Our defense has been progressing each and every week,” Fangio said. “We've been getting better and better, and we've had some solid play in there in spite of the three losses. But we are improving.”
The Bears are still 30th in third-down defense and 26th in red-zone defense, so Fangio objected when it was suggested that his group had “turned the corner.”
“Turn the corner?” Fangio said. “That's a pretty strong statement. We still are 1-3. They feel better.
“Winning has cured more ills than penicillin. But we've still got another game coming up.”
Against the Chiefs, the Bears will encounter a team that is also 1-3, but all three of the K.C. losses have been to teams that are 4-0 — the Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers and Cincinnati Bengals.
The Chiefs' offense is 10th in scoring and, led by Jamaal Charles, ninth in average gain per run. The 5-foot-11, 199-pound Charles is No. 4 in the NFL in rushing yards with 304, and his 5.2-yard average per carry is tied for fourth among running backs.
“He's extremely fast and explosive,” coach John Fox said. “Even for a smaller guy, he still plays with good power and strength. He's tremendous in both facets, as far as a runner and a pass receiver.”
Charles has scored an NFL-best 38 touchdowns in the previous three seasons, 7 more than his nearest competitor, Marshawn Lynch. Twelve of those TDs came on receptions, and Charles has 110 catches over the past two years for 984 yards.
“Having more than one guy around him is critical, particularly in the run game,” Fox said. “He gets his. You've just got to slow him down.”
A more favorable matchup for the Bears' defense is in the passing game, where the Chiefs are 31st in sacks allowed, having given up 19 already.
Outside linebacker Pernell McPhee has emerged as the leader of the defense, providing big plays against the run and the pass and a vast supply of emotion and confidence that has become contagious.
“He played physical against the run, which is up his alley,” Fangio said of the 6-foot-3, 275-pound McPhee's Week 4 performance. “He did a good job in pass rush for the most part. Just played the way he's capable of playing and what we thought we'd get when we signed him.”
McPhee is second on the team with 2 sacks, 1 behind defensive end Jarvis Jenkins, and he leads the team with 6 quarterback pressures, 1 more than Jenkins.
McPhee was the new regime's marquee off-season signing, leaving the Baltimore Ravens for the Bears' $38.75 million offer over five years.
“(General manager) Ryan Pace and his department did a good job of identifying him,” Fox said. “Our coaches did a good job of evaluating and researching. He's been as advertised.
“So much of this game is mental. Obviously he has the physical skills you have to have to even be in one of those seats. (But) there's a temperament he brings that's invaluable.”
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