Bears can't forget about 'running' the offense

As captivating as the Bears' newfound passing game has been, it's time to put the focus back on establishing the running game.

You remember the run, it's what the Bears used to get off the bus doing. Behind rookie Matt Forte, the Bears averaged 152 rushing yards in their first three games.

But since then, they've averaged about half that, just 77 yards a game.

Quarterback Kyle Orton and the passing offense have picked up the slack, but with inclement weather inevitable for most of the five remaining home games - including three straight in December, plus a road game at Green Bay on Nov. 16 - the Bears will have to run the ball better than they have while winning three of their last four games.

And, with a defense that has struggled and often failed to hold late leads, the Bears' best way of slowing down opposing offenses might very well be to maintain possession of the ball. That serves the dual purposes of playing keepaway from the opponents' offense and giving the defense more down time.

The Bears have averaged less than 3.5 yards per running play in each of their last four games, and their cumulative average for those games is just 2.9 yards.

That isn't enough production to keep opponents fixated on Forte, which would afford Orton even more opportunities to throw the ball successfully.

The Bears haven't completely abandoned the running game, but they're not doing is as much as they did early in the season, when they established Forte as a force to be reckoned with.

The Bears ran 35 times a game in the first three weeks, but since then they've run it just 26 times a game. They've dropped from No. 8 in rushing yards after three weeks to No. 19, and their average gain per running play has plummeted from 4.34 yards to 3.63.

The Bears will continue to put up impressive passing numbers only as long as opponents believe the running attack is a threat. Forte has proved that he can make defenses pay if they don't game plan for him, but he can't do it alone. Kevin Jones, Adrian Peterson and Garrett Wolfe need to be worked into the mix.

Even though his numbers have been down in recent weeks, it's unlikely that Forte has hit the figurative rookie wall after just 147 carries and 29 receptions. That's not even half as many touches as he had last year at Tulane, when he carried 361 times and caught 32 passes.

On the other hand, Conference USA is hardly the NFL, and Forte will need a break at some time, so backups will need to step up at some time. They should be well rested, as Jones has just 32 carries, Wolfe 9 and Peterson none.

Statistics say there is no better time for the Bears to rediscover the run, regardless of who is carrying the ball. Three of their next four games are against opponents with deficient run defenses.

The Lions, Sunday's opponents, are 31st in rushing yards allowed and tied for 26th in average gain allowed per rush. The Packers are 25th and 30th, respectively, and the Rams are 29th in both categories.

Those defenses have combined to allow more than 150 rushing yards per game and an average of 4.8 yards per run.

So it's time for the Bears to start "running" the offense.

rlegere@dailyherald.com