Cutler's go-to guy? Knox says no, but stats say otherwise

The Bears have insisted from Day One that they don't need a traditional go-to guy for the passing attack to be successful in offensive coordinator Mike Martz's offense.

And they haven't made an obvious effort to feature any one player.

But they do have a clear-cut No. 1 receiver: Johnny Knox.

Martz's playcalling has kept everyone involved in the passing game, and quarterback Jay Cutler has done an impressive job of distributing the ball judiciously. As a result, five Bears have between 29 and 40 catches after 11 games.

But Knox, whose 40 catches lead the way, has 740 receiving yards, which are exactly double that of the next teammate, Devin Hester (370 yards on 31 catches).

Knox's 18.5 yards per catch ranks seventh in the NFL, and among players with at least 40 catches only Denver's Brandon Lloyd is averaging more yards (19.3) than Knox, who is on pace for a 1,076-yard season.

“He's the kind of guy you've got to account for defensively,” Cutler said. “If not, he'll get going. He's got so much speed in that second level that he'll get away from you in a hurry.”

When the Bears drafted Knox last year in the fifth round out of Division-II Abilene Christian, they knew he had elite speed. He officially ran a 4.34 at the NFL Scouting Combine and was clocked as low as 4.26.

Add in soft hands that gently absorb even the hardest of Cutler's fastballs and a toughness across the middle that belies his slender, 6-foot, 185-pound frame, and Knox is a legitimate go-to guy.

He's ideally suited for the Bears' ‘X' position, where he is split wide and can frequently be a deep target.

“The ‘X' position has a tendency to get isolated, and a guy with real speed, like Johnny has, creates a lot of opportunities,” Martz said. “One on one, like you saw in that (Eagles) game, I think he's an elite player.

“I'm not sure he even knows how good he can be yet with that much speed. He's just learning, too. Absolutely he would be considered (a No. 1 receiver) at that position.”

But you won't hear the soft-spoken Knox refer to himself in such glowing terms.

“Not at all,” he said, when asked if he was the Bears' go-to guy. “You really couldn't tell who was a No. 1 in the past in Mike Martz's offenses.

“There were three or four guys getting balls, and in this offense you see the same thing. So I really don't feel like a No. 1 in this offense; I just feel like another playmaker.”

He definitely is that. Although seven different players have led the Bears in receptions or tied for the lead through each of the first 11 games, Knox has led in yards six times and was second in four other games, including Sunday against Philadelphia when his 3 catches totaled 68 yards.

As a rookie last year in Ron Turner's offense, Knox caught 45 passes for 527 yards, and his 5 receiving TDs were second on the team.

Learning Martz's offense has taken time for everyone, but Knox hasn't let it slow his development.

“He's getting better and better with his routes,” Cutler said of Knox. “He's getting better and better at learning the offense. He's still a young player in the league, so to have to learn two different offenses quickly is tough.”

Earlier in the season it seemed there was one play in almost every game when Knox cut one way and Cutler's pass sailed in the other direction. But lately they're more in sync.

“In the past month we've been clicking and getting that timing right,” Knox said. “We're just trusting in each other and each week working on getting our timing right so we'll be on the same page come Sunday.”

•Follow Bob LeGere's Bears reports via Twitter@BobLeGere. Check out his blog, Bear Essentials, at dailyherald.com.