There are two things that go into making a success NFL offense. A strong scheme devised by coaches and the talented personnel to execute. People have remained focused on the roster for a long time in Chicago. So long that nobody has stopped to ask the simple question. Is the Bears offensive scheme something that can produce against modern defenses?
New starting quarterback Mike Glennon believes so. During the first minicamp practice of the offseason, the veteran gave some rare insight into how the Bears system under Dowell Loggains differs from the one he ran with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The primary difference comes down to how aggressive the scheme is.
“In Tampa,” says Glennon, “they’re more about hitting explosive plays, throwing the ball down the field, where here, more about getting completions, quick game, just more multiple —nakeds, boots, play-action, dropbacks — it’s got it all.”
Glennon may not have big-bodied wideouts on the perimeter like he did in 2013-14 with Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson, but he’s “really excited about the direction of the offense.”
“We can do multiple things with our personnel,” Glennon says. “We have a deep group at tight ends, deep group at running backs and then mixing the receivers in. … I think we can create some matchup problems with some of the guys we have.”
Bears offensive scheme about wearing defenses down
Basically what Glennon is saying is the Bears are running a variation of the classic West Coast offense invested by Hall of Fame coach Bill Walsh. There are variations of course but the idea remains the same. Play the chess game by systematically moving the ball down the field. Chip away at the defense. Force them to play more snaps. It might not mean a lot early on, but in the fourth quarter? By then the time on the field piles up. Then the big plays can come.
Brian Hoyer showed the potential of what this scheme could do more than anybody. He used the entire field, got the ball out fast, and was accurate with most of his passes. As a result the Bears were able to put up over 600 yards of total offense including 397 passing from Hoyer. For the season the team averaged just 6.6 yards per pass, yet ranked 15th in the NFL. With all the injuries they had, that’s impressive stuff.
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The key to remember about Mike Glennon is he was never known for being the bombs-away type of quarterback. He averaged just 6.8 yards per attempt in college. Can’t say it didn’t work for him. He threw 62 touchdown passes in two years as a starter there. He seems to gain confidence when he’s able to string completions together.
In fact the three highest rated games of his career as a starter in Tampa were ones where he completed over 66% of his throws. He was 2-1 in those games. So no doubt the Bears plan to let him play his style. Get the ball out to the fast weapons on the field and let them create. It’s not a bad plan presuming Glennon can execute it with the necessary precision.
