Some wanted to put it all on Julius Peppers for not taking advantage of a rookie. Others figured Lance Briggs’ absence simply had an adverse effect on the defense as a whole, including the front four.
Whatever the case, the Bears failed to record a sack — or cause a turnover — when they faced the Seahawks in October as quarterback Matt Hasselbeck completed 25 of 40 passes.
Defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli refused to point the blame at Peppers, who saw his share of chip blocks while up against first-year left tackle Russell Okung. And Marinelli wouldn’t attribute the ineffectiveness to injury, although Briggs missed the game with a sprained ankle and fellow linebacker Brian Urlacher labored with a groin pull.
Marinelli gave credit where credit was due.
“It’s a very good offensive line,” he said. “I’ve seen them grow all year. When we played them, they played extremely well … I mean really well.
“The two offensive tackles can really pass block. The quarterback gets the ball out quick and has great play-action boots.”
So front-four pressure will be crucial in taking pressure off the defensive backs Sunday as quarterbacks such as Hasselbeck can find holes in the zone when not under duress.
But there’s an antidote.
“Really shut the run down,” Briggs said. “Make them one-dimensional. Make (Hasselbeck) beat us. These are things we’ve needed to do all year long.”
Marinelli was pleased, for the most part, with what he saw from his pass rush throughout the season. Other than stellar seasons from Peppers and fellow defensive end Israel Idonije, reserve Henry Melton evolved as a threat in nickel situations and Tommie Harris made a late surge after regaining his starting job.
“The consistency of the pressure has been pretty solid,” Marinelli said. “But we have to get better. And we will.”
Peppers, who has two sacks in eight career playoffs games, is capable of dominating at any stage, and that simply could mean causing a false start or two. With Urlacher and Briggs refreshed and rejuvenated, don’t count out one of them coming on a blitz, as the two have combined for six sacks this season.
But the X-factor might be Idonije, who had seven sacks over an eight-game span but finished the season with just one sack in his last five games.
“It’s not all about getting sacks,” he said. “We just have to do a better job of disrupting their timing. We didn’t do a good job of that the first time.
“Hasselbeck’s good. Ultimately, you have to get him out of a rhythm. If we let him get into a rhythm, you have problems.”
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