There are a number of problems with the Chicago Bears offense. Most would agree a lot of it starts up front. Blocking has been a real issue for this team for the past month and really dating back to last season. This year they are 31st in rushing and 25th in passing. Nick Foles and Mitch Trubisky have been pressured a combined 53 times and hit another 23. Panic already setting in for some. Yet one person has reasons for optimism. Former Bears Pro Bowl center Jay Hilgenberg.

Now those are not the sort of numbers that usually equate to a team that has Super Bowl aspirations. It’s funny this team gets compared to the 2010 Bears. That group made it to the NFC Championship game. Yet they failed to beat Green Bay. Anybody with a good memory knows why. The offensive line couldn’t control the line of scrimmage.

So why would someone like Hilgenberg have hope?

If anybody has high standards for offensive line play, it’s him. The man was a seven-time Pro Bowler and anchor of the great Bears front in the 1980s. In his estimation, a lot of people are overlooking a key factor about this current line. Talent might explain some of the problems. However, there is also the forgotten reality that they switched blocking schemes this past offseason.

Something that came when Matt Nagy replaced Harry Hiestand with Juan Castillo. Hilgenberg broke it down to Adam Jahns of The Athletic.

“There are new fundamentals that these guys are playing with, not only hand placement but maybe their footwork,” said Hilgenberg, a two-time first-team All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler for the Bears. “It’s going to be process and they just got to come along quicker and faster. As soon as these guys come along and get their fundamentals where Juan Castillo wants them, that’s when the offensive line will start going. They’ll be more consistent.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSwtSqMgPmo&ab_channel=ChicagoBears

Jay Hilgenberg has watched enough football to see the signs

One thing people said about Castillo since he arrived in Chicago is he’s extremely detailed. That isn’t a bad thing. Attention to detail is vital to success in the NFL. However, absorbing those details until they become almost second nature? Such things tend to take time. The Bears offensive line got handed a raw deal this offseason.

Not only did they get a coach intent on fine-tuning their detailed approach, but they had to do it in an offseason without minicamps, OTAs, or a preseason. That’s like asking a college student to master a full semester of physics in one month instead of six. Absolute lunacy. It is little wonder they look like their heads are spinning out there from time to time.

This doesn’t excuse the talent issue.

Let that be made clear. Chicago has clear deficiencies. Losing James Daniels was a big blow. Cody Whitehair is solid. Germaine Ifedi is fine. Charles Leno and Bobby Massie? They’re average. The Bears have no true star in their front five. Something that has remained the case for some years now. Kyle Long fit that description early in his career before injuries struck.

Until that changes, the blocking inconsistencies are going to continue. Especially against good defensive fronts. Hilgenberg is saying that getting by with who they have rests on their ability to play sound, fundamental football. Hard to do in a new blocking system. Based on the usual timetable, it’s reasonable to expect improvement by the second half of the season. Most likely after the bye in a few weeks.