Wednesday, Oct. 13, 20109:17 AM
By John MullinCSNChicago.com
One thing the Bears defensive players of 2005 and 2006 became utterly sick of was the incessant comparisons of them with past great defenses, most frequently the 1985 bunch. Both 05 and 06 defenses finished in the top five in yardage allowed while the 05 defense allowed just 202 points, third-best in franchise history and bettered by only the 85 and 86 teams.
But now, standing sixth in the NFL in yardage allowed and fifth in scoring, the 2010 Bears are being compared instead to themselves of just a few years ago. They are on pace to allow fewer points than the 2006 Super Bowl team; they are allowing 20 fewer rushing yards per game than the sixth-ranked 2006 defense; and they have allowed only 6 more points through five games than the 2005 did to this point of the season.
More important, while no one was noticing, they have developed a swagger and a personality.
They had that back in those last two playoff seasons. But that was when Lance Briggs, Tommie Harris, Charles Tillman and Brian Urlacher all were young pups in a sport where four and five years of age makes a difference.
Absolutely, said safety Chris Harris, a member of both the 2005 and 2006 defenses. Guys are still vibrant.
Were big kids, really big kids. The energy is still there. Regardless of the passage of years. Yeah, it was 4-5 years ago but guys are still playing at a high level and guys are playing with the intensity we had back then.
Urlacher returning and Julius Peppers arriving are the two biggest elements in the personality formation. Along with Harris, the Bears effectively added a major figure in each of the three levels on defense: line, linebackers and secondary.
And while Peppers had 91 million reasons for choosing Chicago, he had similar money potentially elsewhere. But Briggs and Urlacher are unbelievable, Peppers said. Thats one of the reasons I came here, to play with those guys, to play on a team like this.
Bears opponents have had 64 possessions; the defense has ended 24 of those in three-and-outs, 37.5 percent, the most in the NFL.
No team has more takeaways than the Bears 14 (tied with Detroit). Through five games last year the Bears had eight.
The Bears are the only team to hold two opponents under 170 net yards this season (Carolina, Detroit). Last year without Peppers, Urlacher and Harris, the Bears didnt do that even once.
In the 16 games of 2005 they accomplished that exactly once, and then not until Game 9. Same in 2006, once.
Comparisons can be dangerous and misleading. But these comparisons are to the Bears themselves. And those are worth noting. The Bears defense is not getting older; it is getting better.
The notion of Lovie Smith and the coaching staff holding players more accountable conveniently ignores recent history. But where accountability is happening, and where it arguably matters even more, is inside the defense itself.
We all hold each other accountable, Peppers said. Its not one person or one coach. We all get on each other. We all know we have a job to do and we have to go out and do it and if we dont, certain things happen.
Trade redline?
The question of Bears trades keeps coming up and probably will for the next week, until the trade deadline of Oct. 19 is passed. Minnesota picking up Randy Moss from New England and the Patriots turning around and dealing to bring back Deion Branch, for instance. And its tempting to look at Moss being acquired for a third-round pick and Branch for a fourth and reflect on why the Bears werent players in the market.
They have a definite interest in New England guard Logan Mankins, as do more than a few teams. And GM Jerry Angelo has shown repeated willingness to deal for talent (Jay Cutler, Gaines Adams, Chris Harris in the last 18 months). But it has made sense for him to sit out some of the recent goings-on and the Bears will surprise the NFL if they make any substantial move within the upcoming week, including for a talent like two-time Pro Bowl guard Mankins, an obvious huge upgrade on the offensive line.
Branch is 31, owed $5.5 million this season and will make nearly $6 million next season, and has played 16 games just once in his career. Moss is 33, coming off another excellent season with Tom Brady, but brings issues and really controlled his own marketability with his willingness to negotiate a new contract.
One of the biggest reasons Branch and Moss were dealt was because their previous teams simply didnt want them. That is anything but the case with Mankins, who is 27 and never missed a game in his first five seasons. That means that’s where the Patriots were willing to dump Moss for any small bit of value in return, they will be demanding nothing less than a first-rounder for Mankins, who has had an acrimonious contract taffy pull with New England.
Colleagues at CSNNewEngland cite sources who say the Pats will not let Mankins shoot his way out of town. That means expensive in every way.
And heres the full picture: Teams, including the Bears, are rightly nervous about committing to a long-term deal that sets the market in a universe where the salary cap could be headed down depending on the resolution of the collective bargaining situation.
Giving up high-round draft choices seems eminently reasonable for a Pro Bowl player in his prime. But as difficult to find as elite offensive linemen are, high draft choices are almost as much so. The Bears sat out this years rounds 1 and 2; theyre not inclined to do the same next year.
John “Moon”
Mullin is CSNChicago.com’s Bears Insider, and appears regularly on
Bears Postgame Live and Chicago Tribune Live. Follow Moon
on Twitter for up-to-the-minute Bears information.
Article brought to you by Comcast SportsNet