We are three years into Offensive Line Coach Chris Morgan’s tenure with the Chicago Bears and the team still has a basic issue that is driving me up a wall.
This offensive l🅷i🦄ne struggles to block against line stunts. And it is maddening.
Sure, sometimes a defense will draw up a stunt that’s complicated, run effectively, and just works. That’s going to happen, and sometimes you have to tip your cap. But way too often even in just the two weeks we’ve had this season are we seeing basic, fundamental mistakes in picking up these stunts.
We have players burying themselves into someone that’s not their assignment. We have shoulders being completely turned which creates open rushing lanes. We have slowed feet. And a lot of these are coming and very basic two-man stunts.
There’s a general concept as an offensive lineman that if a defender leaves your gap, there’s very likely someone else coming to it. Defenses aren’t really keen on leaving gaps unaccounted for. If I’m the right guard and I’m pass setting on a three-technique, and he immediately bolts toward the right tackle, I can come to the conclusion fairly quickly that someone will be coming to replace him.
Similar to what I said in this week’s installment of In The Trenches, this is a correctable issue. But it’s going to take a hell of a lot of reps in practice, and it’s going to take continuity on that line. I’m a little bit concerned that this has been an issue for quite some time now, and this isn’t really a new problem. So while the fact that we have a correctable issue on our hands is a good thing, it also speaks to some potential flaws in the Bears’ practice and preparation process as an offensive line.
of a few examples from Sunday night (and this season so far𝕴) where Nate Davis has struggled with basic stunts:
W🦄ay ওtoo many examples of basic stunts besting the OL on Sunday
— Matthew Rooney (@mrooney23)
Some coaches will have different names for it, but usually when the DL stunts, the first man to go is called the ‘drive’ man as his job is to go hard across and try to take up two linemen. The second man is the ‘loop’ man as he slowly plays his first step, then attempts to loop around the drive man into an open gap if the OL plays it poorly.
This is just one of a few examples from Sunday night (and this season so far) where Nate Davis has struggled with basic stunts. Some coaches will have different names for it, but usually when the DL stunts, the first man to go is called the ‘drive’ man as his job is to go hard across and try to take up two linemen. The second man is the ‘loop’ man as he slowly plays his first step, then attempts to loop around the drive man into an open gap if the OL plays it poorly.
If you watch Nate Davis on this play, this isn’t the worst example of him burying himself in the drive man, but where he messes up here is turning his shoulders and body completely toward his man. What that does is open up gaps in the OL. If you look at the 1-2 second mark of the clip, Davis’ shoulders are already perpendicular to the line of scrimmage. That’s not good. it leads to him getting buried in the DL, and even when Darnell Wright tries to bump Davis off it’s too late.
If Davis keeps his shoulders a little more square, and his head 🦹out of the block, he likely sees the loop man and is able to come off and pick that up.
Oddly enough on the left side, Jenkins and Jones pick up a delayed stunt perfectly. Jones isn’t buried in his man, and when he starts drifting inside, the Bears tackle and see the Texans DL over Jenkins start to make his way around. Credit to Jenkins as well, he doesn’t chase his man, he is very patient, sees his man start to loop, and slides to take over the end which allows Braxton Jones to pick up the looper. Well done.
This is how the Bears should block vs. line stunts
Let’s give credit where it’s due:
It wasn’t all bad!
— Matthew Rooney (@mrooney23)
Nate Da⛦vis passes off the drive man and picks up the looper just fine here. I do think he lunges for the drive man a tad early which gets him slightly out of position, but he keeps his head out of the block enough so he can see the loop man coming around. He passes off the DT to Darnell Wright and 🐻is able to get back in time for the looper.
Caleb has plenty of time to stay in the pocket, he delivers a perfect throw, PI geไts called and the Bears score a play later. More of this!
Braxton Jones plays this wide nine technique very nicely. When an edge defender lines up like that, a tackle needs to use the correct footwork to get out there in time. It’s one of the rare occasions that an offensive lineman needs to be a little more worried about protecting the outside than the inside.
Jones takes two solid kick-slides to get himself in a good position, then the defender sticks his foot in the ground to slant inside, and it’s an easy adjustment for Jones to do the same. He and Jenkins pick up that stunt nicely and all is right in the world!
