Olin Kreutz knows offensive line play. He should. The guy played it at the highest of levels in the NFL for over a decade. He was a six-time Pro Bowler at center. Maybe the best ever to play that position in a Chicago Bears uniform. So when he shares his opinions on play involving the front five, it’s best to take his word for it.
Don’t think of him as somebody who doesn’t do his homework either. Kreutz watches a ton of film on the Bears every week. He watches all the games live as well. So he has a firm grasp for how the offensive line has looked both at their best and worst in 2020. Based on his latest findings up to this point? Kreutz believes this latest variation is the best they’ve put together. At least on the interior.
Much of it revolves around two men.
Probably the most important move the Bears made in Kreutz’s estimation was making Sam Mustipher the primary starter at center. The former undrafted free agent was thrust into the job against New Orleans last month and handled himself well. Enough to where when Cody Whitehair returned from injury, he was moved to left guard. A decision that has benefitted the entire front as Kreutz explained on the Under Center podcast.
“He (Mustipher) organizes the protection. Let’s everybody know basically who they’re blocking off of his point of the ‘MIKE’ linebacker. So Sam does a nice job with that. Something I’ve said before I thought Cody struggled with a little bit when I watched him on film. So then two-fold, Sam going to center has allowed them to move Cody to left guard which has strengthened their offensive line. Cody is, man, at left guard he is a strong run blocker at left guard. It’s been fun to watch that.”
There is no denying this. The Bears went to this configuration out of their bye week in Green Bay. Since then the offensive line has enjoyed a ton of success running the football. After failing to top 100 yards in seven-straight games, they’ve averaged 143 in their past three. A gigantic improvement and Whitehair’s shift to guard has indeed been at the heart of it.
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Olin Kreutz brings up a sticky situation the Bears are in
What exactly do they do after the season if this success continues? Whitehair going back to center doesn’t feel like something the team would prefer. So if Mustipher stays put, does that mean Whitehair stays at left guard? This creates an issue because the Bears still have James Daniels set to return next season from his pectoral injury. Daniels was their left guard to start the season and was playing well.
Do they shift him to right guard? Do they shift Whitehair to right guard? It’ll be a complicated issue to tackle. One the team can’t afford to worry about at the moment for obvious reasons. Chicago is preparing to fight for their season once again in Minnesota. The Vikings held the Bears to just 41 yards rushing in their previous meeting. One can imagine those guys up front haven’t forgotten that.
Will they bring some of that newfound juice?
Olin Kreutz certainly hopes so. The momentum they’ve built the past three weeks could prove huge. That and the presence of running back David Montgomery. He didn’t play in the first meeting. Minnesota ranks just 19th against the run and they’ll be missing star middle linebacker Eric Kendricks due to injury. Things are in place for Chicago to have a big afternoon on the ground.