Thread: Who can we blame for Bears' 31 sacks?

Who can we blame for Bears' 31 sacks?

31 sacks so far -- who was at fault for each one

While their starting quarterback endures a beating, the Bears' pass protectors are breaking dubious records.

There's already the record for sacks allowed in a single half (nine against the New York Giants), and they're threatening the team record for sacks allowed in a single season (66).

The Bears have -- predictably and understandably -- declined to assign blame on specific players, including quarterback Jay Cutler, for the team's league-leading 31 sacks. Only coaches and players privy to every play call and protection would be able to determine the hows and whys of each sack. But two websites that specialize in NFL analysis provided the Sun-Times with their breakdowns.

Football Outsiders is wary of directing blame at specific players.
''We try to be humble about what we can and can't know given that we don't have coaches' film or a knowledge of what the line call was for blocking each play,'' said Aaron Schatz, editor-in-chief of Football Outsiders.
Yet their findings were alarming.

Six sacks were because of ''overall pressure,'' which FO defined as a ''total collapse of the line, where there seem to be a mix of untouched rushers and/or blown blocks by more than two guys.'' Eight sacks were because a rusher was completely unaccounted for. And another six were termed as coverage sacks, which FO determined when the quarterback didn't throw the ball despite what they consider a ''reasonable amount of time.''

Pro Football Focus pinned 25 sacks on 10 players, with left tackle Frank Omiyale leading the way with six and rookie right tackle J'Marcus Webb right behind him with five. PFF also credited Cutler himself for four sacks.

PFF also provided another analysis that was even more stunning. San Diego's Philip Rivers was pressured a league-high 86 times, but Bears quarterbacks were either hit or sacked a league-high 43 times. By contrast, New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez has been sacked eight times and hit five times.
''Bottom line for Chicago is not only are they allowing pressure, but they're allowing immediate pressure and it's getting home,'' said Sam Monson, a senior analyst at Pro Football Focus.

Schatz said what surprised him most was the Bears' inability to pick up blitzing defensive backs. By his count, the Bears allowed 6½ sacks to a safety or cornerback. Remarkably, in the six solo sacks, the defensive back was untouched.

''They don't even seem to have a plan to have a back pick one up if one comes,'' he said.

Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice has lamented the communication problems, particularly of young linemen like Webb and Edwin Williams, who started three games at right guard. But Tice said his linemen had a significant leap against the Washington Redskins in picking up blitzers.

''I really think we can build on that,'' Tice said. ''Hopefully, we can keep taking steps.

''You can see the film and the film shows that it was better, that we played faster, that we played aggressively. That stuff doesn't lie.''
Whether his unit -- and the protection overall -- can improve will be a key factor in how strong the 4-3 Bears finish this season.

So who's to blame? Take a look at the BEARS' 31 SACKS and see for yourself.