When the Bears take on the Lions Monday night, they go into the Silverdome with the 26th-ranked pass defense. Such an advantage could serve them well. The Lions are ranked 27th in pass defense.
It is important that the Bears exploit this edge next week, too, when they face the Cincinnati Bengals, whose pass defense is ranked 29th.
In two weeks, they face a tougher test when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers come to town boasting the 23rd-ranked pass defense.
The Atlanta Falcons, the team the Bears may have to beat out for an NFC playoff spot, are ranked 30th in pass defense. The Minnesota Vikings, also in the playoff hunt, have the 28th pass defense.
The Bears only think they have problems. Hey, nobody can play pass defense. It’s illegal. Besides, what good does it do you? Know who has the No. 1 pass defense? The New York Jets, tied for the worst record in the league. Teams get ahead of them and don’t have to pass; they just run them to death.
So the inability to play pass defense isn’t necessarily a sign of weakness. Rather, it is a sign of the times.
In the NFC Central Division, it has spawned the closest race ever after three-fourths of the season. All five teams are within two games of each other. It also has created four quarterbacks who have thrown more than 20 touchdown passes apiece. In the entire league, there are only five. Cincinnati’s Jeff Blake (24) joins Green Bay’s Brett Favre (28), the Bears’ Erik Kramer (26), Minnesota’s Warren Moon (24) and Detroit’s Scott Mitchell (23).
“It reminds me of college. I played in the (Western Athletic Conference),” said Mitchell, remembering that wide-open conference from his days at Utah.
Pass defense never was easy, and rules have made it nearly impossible. The saying, “There is no defense against the perfect pass,” requires an amendment: “And perfect passes are no longer necessary.”
Rules against chucking or jamming by defensive backs have become so strict that they’re afraid to even breathe heavily on receivers. Rules liberalizing blocking have slowed pass rushers. When a rusher does get to a quarterback, he faces the risk of being fined by the league for exposing the passer to injury even if the hit is not penalized on the field. As if these restrictions weren’t enough, the quarterback also has the right to move out of the pocket and throw the ball away without being called for grounding.
“In essence, they have taken a defensive player away from you,” said Packers’ General Manager Ron Wolf. “It’s an entirely different game than it was three or four years ago.”
Scoring is up to 43 points a game, the highest since 1985, when the season average was 43.1.
The NFC Central is contributing more than its fair share. It is the only division with more than one team over 300 points. The Bears, Packers, Lions and Vikings all have reached that number and are on course to rare 400-point seasons. In the 1990s, only nine teams have reached that number. In the last three seasons, only the 49ers (three times) and Cowboys (twice) have made it.
The outstanding years by the four quarterbacks aren’t entirely explained by poor NFC Central defenses. Of the 101 touchdown passes by the big four, 49 have come in 26 games against division defenses. The remaining 52 were thrown in only 22 games outside the division. Still, there were significant changes in NFC Central defenses this season. Besides the rules restrictions, personnel switches and injuries have provided convenient targets.
None of the defenses are ranked higher this year than they were last. The Vikings, seeking more speed in their secondary, jettisoned three of their four starters and are now giving two rookies, Orlando Thomas and Corey Fuller, considerable playing time. They also lost defensive tackle Henry Thomas to Detroit.
The Lions hired defensive line coach John Teerlinck from the Vikings to help install the four-man front. Now Thomas is Detroit’s best pass rusher.
The Packers got rid of tiny cornerback Terrell Buckley and improved with rookie Craig Newsome, who nevertheless is a rookie. The Packers also lost pass rusher Bryce Paup, who leads the league in sacks for Buffalo.
The Bears retooled their defense by letting go of Trace Armstrong and Shaun Gayle. The transition is slow because of injuries to cornerback Donnell Woolford and others and the failure of a dominant pass rusher to step forward.
More offense is what the league voted to get in 1994 by allowing linemen to set deeper off the line of scrimmage and by emphasizing the no-chuck-beyond-5-yards rule.
All the passing at the expense of defense is unfamiliar to the erstwhile Black and Blue Division, but is it a better product?
“I don’t know about that,” Colts director of football operations Bill Tobin said. “I remember Jim Finks saying if you want to protect your quarterback, keep the tight end in to block. Don’t be throwing every play. Hand it off. How many quarterbacks get hurt handing off?”
Wolf, whose team and quarterback are ahead in the race, has a different opinion. “It probably is a better product. The rule changes have really liberalized the game. It brings about more scoring and makes it more exciting.”
