The first padded training camp practice was uneven for the Chicago Bears offense. Justin Fields had some difficult stretches during red zone work, struggling to complete passes. The offensive line was even shakier trying to protect him. That said, there were bright spots. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy might’ve been the brightest. That was evident during goal line drills when he routinely outwitted the defense with a myriad of crafty play designs.
Cameras caught some of them. Here is one example. Fields takes the snap and fakes a toss to his right. The defense bit just enough for Darnell Mooney to slip out to the left, where the quarterback found him for an easy score. The closest defender had no shot at it.
An even better moment came when Fields was in the shotgun. He goes run-pass option to Khalil Herbert. It puts defensive end Trevis Gipson in no-mans-land. By the time he realizes Fields still has the ball, it’s far too late. The QB scores on a run. A great example of using Fields’ strengths to their fullest.
Luke Getsy seems to operate with common sense.
That is a big step from where the Bears were under Matt Nagy. Too often, it felt like he had no earthly idea how to call situational plays. He was so obsessed with overly intricate designs that he never bothered to wonder if the players he had were capable of running it. That led to confusion and often failure. Creativity is good but successful offenses are more about execution. All 11 players must be on the same page.
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That wasn’t the case last year. Or the last three years, for that matter. Luke Getsy stated his primary focus is cleaning up the mistakes and getting his players to execute better. That will take time. It looks like players are buying in. That is a big first step. Goal line work was miserable for the Bears last year. They already look so much better. Next will come fixing their ability to sustain drives. Baby steps.
If a defense believes you can run it in on them they will stack up to prevent it. When they do that, you’ve got them. Love me some play action strikes.
Sounds encouraging.
Pretty interesting to compare this super optimistic piece with the one from si.com Bears Digest with the title “Defense Dominates Justin Fields, Offense” in the first padded practice. Seemed like a lot of cherry-picking going on but that’s not really a surprise is it?
IMO we will have a much higher TD conversion rate in the red zone this year, Getsy will spread the ball around and use different plays from the same formations that will confuse defenders and get the ball in the end zone.