An in-depth look at the Chicago Bears Defense

When the Bears decided to let Ron Rivera walk last year, a lot of people were concerned about the Defense, and what might happen. Bob Babich was quickly promoted to DC, as this is the position that Lovie has been grooming him for.

Babich and Lovie go way back….all the way back to Tulsa in 1984, where they were both position coaches. Babich was the LB Coach for Lovie since 2003, when Lovie was the DC for St. Louis. When Lovie took the Bears job, Babich was the first person he hired to come with him. A year ago, the Bills wanted to interview Babich for their DC position, but the Bears gave him a promotion to assistant Head Coach and he stayed with the Bears. Under Babich, the LB corps the Bears had thrived. Urlacher went to Pro-Bowl after Pro-Bowl, and Briggs soon followed in his steps. Even Hunter Hillenmeyer had very solid seasons playing the SLB position.

Many rumors about Rivera’s departure have been noted. Some say he wasn’t aggressive enough, as noted by Urlacher having 0 sacks last year. Some say he disagreed with Lovie on how the defense should have been run. Everyone has their own opinion, but the fact remains that Babich was Lovie’s guy since day one, and it’s now his time to shine. Babich is a much more aggressive coach than Rivera was. You will see many more blitzes out of Urlacher, Briggs, and even the DB’s. Since Lovie and Babich basically “grew up” together coaching, Lovie has an inherent sense of trust for Babich. Babich will be allowed to call his plays, his blitzes, etc. Lovie will have a say in the gameplan, but Babich will be running the show.

The Defensive Line:

Currently, this is the starting lineup: LE – Adewale Ogunleye, Alex Brown, DT – Tommie Harris, Darwin Walker, Anthony Adams, Dusty Dvoracek, RE – Mark Anderson, Dan Bazuin. We also have some more depth in the names of Isreal Idonije and Antonio Garay. Alex Brown lost his starting RE job to 2nd year man Mark Anderson. Now Brown is fighting for playing time behind each DE job. Brown is obviously upset at losing his spot, but in the NFL, you have to consistently work to be the best at your position, or you will be replaced. Now Babich will rotate guys in and out, so Brown will see plenty of playing time, he just won’t be starting. Harris is coming off a very severe hamstring injury, but from all reports seems to be back to 100%. He is practicing at full speed and should be a major factor this year. Last year, the Bears had 40 sacks in total, 36 coming from their lineman. I expect this group to get to the 40 mark this year by themselves, as long as the injury bug doesn’t hit too hard.

The Linebackers:

Here is the starting lineup: WLB: Lance Briggs, MLB: Brian Urlacher, SLB: Hunter Hillenemeyer. Behind them we have Jamar Williams, Rod Wilson, Micheal Okwo, and Brendan Ayanbedajo. Everyone knows about Urlacher and Briggs. Perennial Pro-Bowlers at the MLB and WLB respectively, it doesn’t get any better than these two. Hillenmeyer plays the much less glamorous SLB position, but he holds his own out there. Hillenmeyer is not as physically gifted as either Urlacher or Briggs, but he is a very smart football player with great instincts. Out of the three, he would be my first choice to be a coach someday in the NFL. This group had a whopping 2 sacks last year. Look for that to change to at least 8-10 sacks under Babich. All 3 LB positions will have blitz packages and they will be getting after the QB a lot more this year.

The Defensive Backs:

The Starting Lineup: CB’s: Charles Tillman, Nate Vasher, S’s: Mike Brown, Adam Archuleta. Behind them we have Ricky Manning Jr, Trumain McBride, Danieal Manning, Brandon McGowan, and Kevin Payne.Charles Tillman and Nate Vasher man the CB position and do it very well. The both have ball skills, and they both have the speed to play man-to-man coverage. Although, in the systemt he Bears run, they are rarely in man-to-man. Playing the Nickel is Ricky Manning Jr and S/CB Danieal Manning will also be there at times this year. Then you throw in rookie Trumain McBride, who is burning up training camp, and we have a surplus of guys that are very good at the CB position. Last year Ricky Manning JR and Tillman tied for the team lead with 5 interceptions. Vasher recorded 3, down from last year, but only because teams threw away from his side after last year’s performance. I expect to see the Interception # increase this year, if for no other reason than Mike Brown’s return from injury. He is the unquestioned leader of the DB’s, and it’s a whole other ballgame when he is on the field.

Look for the Bears to have a top 5 defense again this year, if not the top defense. They will give up yards, but scoring against them is where they excel. Also, look for them to be one of the top scoring defenses in the league. They have an amazing mix of veteran talent and young athletes just coming into their prime. They are an extremely fast defense, and an extremely physical defense. What else would you expect out of the Bears?