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Rozner: Bears' O-line survives, thrives

About an hour before each NFL game, the teams announce their inactives.

It arrives in the press box on a bright yellow sheet of paper, and includes the lineup changes for that day's contest.

It ought to be written in red pencil.

This past Sunday was particularly disturbing for the Chicago Bears, considering the inactive list had two offensive linemen - Jermon Bushrod and Hroniss Grasu - and gave the following changes in the starting rotation:

Patrick Omameh at right guard for Vladimir Ducasse; Matt Slauson at center for Grasu; Ducasse at left guard for Slauson; and Charles Leno at left tackle for Bushrod.

By my count that's four of five positions - five being more than four - and doesn't take into consideration that Kyle Long had been at right tackle for a grand total of six games.

Crazy.

But it's been like that since Week 1 - maybe not to this extent, but nearly every week filled with numerous alterations.

Despite it all, the Bears' offensive line has at least survived and at times performed admirably, especially Sunday against a tough Minnesota defense that shows more odd combinations of pressure than perhaps any team in football.

And no one has had a more complicated season than Slauson, who has moved between guard and center, and once only moments after a game had started.

"We work hard at it," Slauson said. "I'm confident in myself wherever I have to play. They can line me up at (slot receiver) and I'm gonna do it.

"I'm just very comfortable and familiar with our offense as far as our identifications. Everyone is going off our identifications and following the rules.

"When you have a lot of moving parts - guys moving, switching positions, guys out, new guys in - everybody just has to follow the rules. It falls on the center and quarterback to make sure everyone has the identifications."

There were several times Sunday that Long had multiple players lined up over him on the outside, and each time Long picked the correct pass rusher and kept him away from Cutler.

"Thank God we have a center who's telling me who to block, because I'd be trying to block both guys if I didn't know," Long said with a smile. "There's a lot of communication on every play.

"With the multiple picks, fronts, looks and stunts that the Vikings run, you need to have a guy in the center of the line that can make the call. Hroniss is a guy who can do it and Matt's a guy who can do it.

"Then, it's a matter of executing once you get the call."

Slauson, naturally, says Long has picked up tackle and all the adjustments quickly because he puts in the work and is incredibly talented.

"Kyle is just a freak," Slauson said, shaking his head. "He can be one of the best offensive linemen to ever play in the NFL, and I just want to give him the opportunity to be that guy.

"I just want to make sure that everyone has the right assignments."

With so many players in different positions and facing a team known to blitz from anywhere on the field, the Bears began with a conservative game plan and accomplished very little in the first half.

"I think we didn't start out on the line as quickly as we'd like to, from an efficiency standpoint," Long said. "But we got more and more comfortable as we went, which is a good thing. But at the same time I think we need to start the way we want to start.

"In the second half, we committed to the run. We were almost demanding it on the sideline. I know if you'd ask us we'd run it 100 percent of the time. Nobody wants to try to pass block those guys.

"We feel like we can run the ball against people. Sometimes it doesn't start as quickly as you'd like it to, but things loosen up and you're able to get some movement."

If the line struggled with everything it's been through this season, it would be hard to blame the group, but Long says there is no one in his meeting room expecting anything but a strong performance.

"We don't make excuses," Long said. "We're offensive linemen. Throw us in there and we make it work to the best of our ability.

"We understand we're the Mushroom Club. Keep us in the dark and feed us (manure), and we're supposed to come out with a good product."

No position group has had a better reason to complain or perform poorly this season, but instead the line has survived.

At times, frankly, it has even thrived.

brozner@dailyherald.com

• Hear Barry Rozner on WSCR 670-AM and follow him @BarryRozner on Twitter.

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