Bears coach: We had chances, but didn’t finish

Coach Lovie Smith said it was a tale of two teams that resulted in an 8-8 finish, the fourth time in five years the Bears have missed the playoffs.

With a healthy roster, the Bears streaked to a 7-3 start. But after losing quarterback Jay Cutler, they dropped five straight, as the subsequent loss of running back Matt Forte and wide receiver Johnny Knox worsened the slump.

“That was the best team we’ve had since we’ve been here,” Smith said of the 7-3 Bears. “But when you’re not in the playoffs, those words don’t mean an awful lot.

“That group was able to get to a 7-3 record, and that’s hard to do in the NFL, and it had a lot of things going its way.”

Then reality and the injury bug hit, and the Bears lacked the depth to weather the storm.

“We didn’t handle that five-game stretch the way we need to, and we had opportunities,” Smith said. “Even with injuries, we had opportunities. We just didn’t finish the way we normally do. That was a learning experience that we’ll have to live with.”

The 10-3 home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and the 13-10 overtime loss in Denver to the Broncos in back-to-back weeks highlighted blown opportunities that could have salvaged a postseason appearance.

So, while the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers prepare to defend their Super Bowl title, Smith says the Bears will be working to close the gap between themselves and their neighbors to the north.

“They beat us by 10 the first time (14 the second time), and they’ve beaten us the last four times,” Smith said. “So how close are we to them?

“Not close enough. We need to close that gap, and I think we are. I think we’re as close as anyone else has been to them.

“They’ve had their way, but things change. That’s why we have to make some good, sound decisions in this off-season. Once we get our core back together … it’s unfortunate we didn’t have a chance to see that core together when we played them the second time around.

“But they’re Super Bowl champions, and we’re trying to get where they are.”

To do so, Smith admits that there are areas that need to improve. He considers Jay Cutler a franchise quarterback and had great praise for a run game that produced more than 2,000 yards for only the second time since 1990, so it’s fairly obvious where Smith sees the need for improvement.

“We need to get more production from our passing game,” he said. “Wide receivers are a part of that. Tight ends are a part of that. I think it’s safe to say we didn’t get as much production from our receivers as we need to.”

Even though he missed three full games and most of a fourth, running back Matt Forte had a team-best 52 catches, 15 more than any teammate.

Johnny Knox and Roy Williams tied for the team lead among wide receivers with 37 catches, followed by Dane Sanzenbacher (27), Devin Hester (26) and Earl Bennett (24), and none of their numbers approaches those of a No. 1 receiver.

Even though the Bears threw 158 fewer passes than their opponents (473-631), they allowed 16 more sacks (48-32).

Some of the blame goes to backup quarterbacks Caleb Hanie, who was sacked 19 times in four starts, and Josh McCown, who was dropped seven times in two starts.

But the offensive line had major problems in pass protection. Both left tackle J’Marcus Webb and right tackle Lance Louis had enough meltdowns to raise concerns about their ability to remain NFL starters at their current positions.

Still, Smith had encouraging words for an O-line that lost its best run blocker (rookie right tackle Gabe Carimi early in Week 2) and another first-round pick (left guard Chris Williams after nine games).

“I think this is the best situation we’ve been in since I’ve been here with our offensive line,” he said. “We feel pretty good about the offensive line.”

As usual, Smith’s glass is half full after a season that was half good and half bad.

“With those two first-round offensive linemen (added) to this team, a franchise quarterback and a Pro Bowl running back back, and adding the right guys, I think we’re going to be in pretty good shape,” he said.

“I definitely don’t think we need a complete overhaul, and our players know that. We see a team leaving here knowing we’re 8-8 right now, but we’re not always going to be in this position.”

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