For all the roster turnover the Bears have gone through since the end of last season, management is spending more time evaluating what they have with returnees in one area: the outside pass rush.
The Bears overhauled their offense and spent their first two draft choices on defensive tackles. But if the Bears are to get a big year from a pass rusher, it will have to come from returning starters Alex Brown and Michael Haynes.
The Bears flirted with major changes at the position, but Haynes is in only his second season and Brown his third.
That puts Brown, especially, on the spot. The third season is when many players establish their niches. And Brown plays the classic pass-rushing position, right end.
General manager Jerry Angelo has identified Brown as one of the key elements of the defense. Brown knows it’s his time. “I have to make plays,” he said.
Last year there was some good news for Brown: He led the Bears in sacks. There also was bad news: He had only 5 1/2 sacks, and the Bears had a league-low 18. Only Arizona and Houston were led by anyone with fewer than 5 1/2 sacks.
After not changing personnel, the Bears are hoping that a change in philosophy will lead to more pressure on the quarterback and sacks from the defensive ends. New coach Lovie Smith has a number in mind.
“When you talk defensive ends, you start with 10,” Smith said. “If you say you’re a good pass rusher, you have to be a double-digit-sack guy.”
Said line coach Karl Dunbar: “The defense this year is more suited to defensive linemen. Last year they basically maintained blocks for the linebackers. We’ll do that, too, but we want them to be more aggressive, and that’s why we think he can do it. With the resurgence of Bryan Robinson inside, and the two rookies, he won’t be double-teamed.”
The Bears are counting on seeing a faster Brown after he recovers from a strained calf that is keeping him out of workouts. He has lost 20 pounds and is down to 262.
“He’s quicker just from getting those pounds off,” Smith said. “He knows a lot more with another year’s experience. He’s worked hard. It’s not just [losing] weight; he’s done a great job in the weight room. That’s why it’s disappointing that he got an early injury. But we think . . . he should have a better year.”
Brown became a starter midway through his rookie season in 2002 after slipping to the fourth round of the draft, something that will always bother him.
“I’ve told him he has to prove those naysayers wrong, because he has first-round ability,” Dunbar said.
Brown moved into the lineup midway through his rookie year, then started every game last season.
“I’ve worked my butt off this off-season,” he said. “Nothing’s guaranteed. All you can do is work as hard as you can and put yourself in position to make plays for the following year, and I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that.”
Still, he has to justify Angelo’s public faith in him. He will be a restricted free agent after this season, which often provides extra motivation. But, he insists, “I’m not thinking about that.”
The Bears aren’t completely sold. During free agency, they had an interest in Jevon Kearse, who signed with Philadelphia. And they inquired about Miami restricted free agent Adewale Ogunleye. He’s expected to eventually sign a long-term deal with the Dolphins. But if he doesn’t, he’ll be a prime free agent next spring.
The Bears would like to think they’ll be out of the market by then. If Brown and Haynes both were to reach Smith’s goal of 10 sacks, they alone would eclipse the Bears’ league-low total.
But two double-digit sackers may be asking too much. Last season only the Dolphins managed that, Ogunleye with 15 and Jason Taylor with 13.
Brown is all too familiar with the Bears’ flirtation with bigger names. Before Kearse and Ogunleye, he sat at a Bears draft party and watched as they took Haynes in the first round only a year after selecting him.
“I’m not worried about it because when they brought Michael in, they asked me what I was going to do,” Brown said. “I said, `I hope he can play left end.’ Everything has worked out. We’re going to be good. We’ve worked too hard not to be.”
