Chicago Bears Mailbag: Leonard Floyd’s death spiral and more
By Erik Lambert
@jalali_jan
We lost a lot of close games but I feel still good about the team. But why was the defense so much different after the bye week than before. A lot of missed tackles and it feels like the energy is missing or not consistent. What did Vic different?
Vic Fangio is a top-notch coordinator but he has a passive approach that can be maddening at times. He is too often slow to recognize when his pass rush can’t get home with four men, which is his preferred method. Rather than send extra bodies to compensate, he takes the opposite approach and rushes fewer men and floods the passing lanes with eight guys. That may have worked 10-15 years ago but the rule changes and advanced offenses of today can deal with that sort of thing now.
@DressSweatpants
Why does Fangio keep dropping pass rushers into coverage?
I think the reasoning for it last week was two-fold. The first was because he knew Mack was ailing and dropping in coverage was less of a burden on his ankle. The other was his desire to prevent the Patriots from connecting on too many big plays. It’s hard to say if it worked or not. The Bears gave up 38 points but 14 of those were from special teams. The defense allowed 24, which isn’t bad against Tom Brady but it feels like it would’ve been more if he’d had more opportunities.