-
Martz, Smith always on same page
Martz, Smith always on same page
Offensive coordinator in total agreement with head coach when Bears switched from pass-first mentality to running team
INDIANAPOLIS — There was no mandate handed down, no need for either Bears coach to raise his tone.
As Lovie Smith and offensive coordinator Mike Martz huddled during the off week to save a sinking ship, they did so with mutual respect while pushing egos aside. Offensive line coach Mike Tice would follow suit but wasn't involved in this particular meeting, although he had a cordial powwow with Martz later the same week.
Smith and Martz knew their 4-3 team needed to change its pass-first mentality, particularly coming off back-to-back homes losses to the Seahawks and Redskins in which Jay Cutler attempted 79 passes and was sacked 10 times. The running backs had just 25 attempts over the same span.
Martz laughed at any suggestion his October meeting with Smith was a volatile one.
"He shared his concerns, and I agreed with him 100 percent," Martz said at the NFL scouting combine. "And then I went and got our offensive staff together and told them the approach we were going to take the second half of the season.
"I can't imagine this being a big deal to anyone."
Actually the story took on a life of its own and became a reference point throughout the season. People wondered aloud if Martz was furious about ditching his pass-heavy system in favor of old-school Bears smash-mouth football.
"We looked at our shortcomings which, at the time, were many, and we had to get better in certain areas," Martz said. "The only way you do that is step by step, patience. And so we went back into a much more patience mode on offense. We were ready to do some of the things that we would have liked to do."
Cutler was still trying to absorb Martz's complex scheme. The offensive line had yet to come together, with four different starting lineups through the first seven games. The jury was still on the receivers, and running back Matt Forte was just getting warmed up.
So the Bears became more reliant on Forte and the run game, and Martz scaled back certain elements. Cutler's drops were shortened to cut down on sacks, and some hot routes with eliminated to cut down on confusion. Tice continued to implement between 18 to 24 pass-protection schemes per game, although the emphasis on the run meant less use of those schemes.
"This wasn't about Jay, it was about everybody on offense and what we could do well at that time," Martz said. "And one of the things that we did well is that we knew we could run the football. We felt that if we could get in those third-and-manageable situations … we just took a whole new approach. We had to get better on third down because that was our biggest issue.
"We didn't change the plays or anything like that. We just put a different emphasis on things. We just understood that we had to be more patient and let guys develop, and not put them in stressful situations that they can't handle."
Martz firmly believes Cutler and others are ready to take the next step, but that doesn't mean he'll revert to airing it out once the 2011 season begins. Altering the offensive philosophy helped the Bears win seven of their last nine regular-season games, walk away with an NFC North title and reach the NFC title game.
The Bears were the sixth-most balanced team over the last nine weeks of the regular season, with 258 rushing attempts and 276 pass plays.
"There are times to rely on the pass, and that's part of being a play-caller," Martz said. "You just have to get a feel for it and play off that defense and special teams. And when you have a defense like ours that allows you to have patience, it's a lot of fun."
vxmcclure@tribune.com
-
-
Smith and Martz knew their 4-3 team needed to change its pass-first mentality, particularly coming off back-to-back homes losses to the Seahawks and Redskins in which
Jay Cutler attempted 79 passes and was sacked 10 times. The running backs had just 25 attempts over the same span.
Martz laughed at any suggestion his October meeting with Smith was a volatile one.
"He shared his concerns, and I agreed with him 100 percent," Martz said at the
NFL scouting combine. "And then I went and got our offensive staff together and told them the approach we were going to take the second half of the season.
"I can't imagine this being a big deal to anyone."
this is the kind of stuff that never gets talked about- just because someone is quiet, doesn't mean they don't carry a big stick and get their way.. Lovie didn't need to go to the press, didn't need to throw a tantrum on the sideline- but got his message across and got the team back to a 50/50 run/pass behind closed doors and w/o the media blowup and fights that 'could" have torn a team apart, instead got a 5 game win streak and 7 of 8 game wins...I know some will never like Lovie and his style- things like this are a benefit for the "quiet" coaches..
Personally do not care if a "fire breather" or A "stoic coach", think both have been can and do win the NFL, as long as bears respond and win , i'm fine wth either style
-
The bottom line is for the Bears to win the SB, the offense can't be ranked in the bottom 3rd of the league. The defense and ST's are there, the offense has to get alot better, if the offense gets better the defense will get even better also as the offense will take more clock away. Get the OL better and that will be a great start.
-
Originally Posted by
JustWinBaby 
The bottom line is for the Bears to win the SB, the offense can't be ranked in the bottom 3rd of the league. The defense and ST's are there, the offense has to get alot better, if the offense gets better the defense will get even better also as the offense will take more clock away. Get the OL better and that will be a great start.
agreed, and that's why think will be a "O" F/A and "O" draft to shore up that weakness.. in addition do expect a big jump in year 2 under the same system from the current players on "O"
-
The full title should read; 'Martz, Smith always on same page ........... but reading from different books'. 
Lovie is always reading 'Run To Glory" while Martz is always reading 'Pass To Win'.
I think they should just use the Lombardi philosophy of running fewer plays but mix them up and run them extremely well.
-
High Fives / Like - 1 BEAR DOWN!, 0 Dislikes
-
Originally Posted by
soulman The full title should read; 'Martz, Smith always on same page ........... but reading from different books'.
Lovie is always reading 'Run To Glory" while Martz is always reading 'Pass To Win'.
I think they should just use the Lombardi philosophy of running fewer plays but mix them up and run them extremely well.
after the bye week BOTH READ from same book " eat, drink, balance is good, 50/50 run pass" and i was happy for that
-
Originally Posted by
soulman The full title should read; 'Martz, Smith always on same page ........... but reading from different books'.
Lovie is always reading 'Run To Glory" while Martz is always reading 'Pass To Win'.
I think they should just use the Lombardi philosophy of running fewer plays but mix them up and run them extremely well.
Alright lovie call a time out, No wait, i have a play to run, Ok call it now. Ahhh you dolt I ran the ball up the middle for a first down and you call a time out.
-
I dont care what page or book theyre reading on, Offense is going to struggle until that OL gets fixed, so perhaps they need to read something like this.
-
Originally Posted by
dabears54 this is the kind of stuff that never gets talked about- just because someone is quiet, doesn't mean they don't carry a big stick and get their way.. Lovie didn't need to go to the press, didn't need to throw a tantrum on the sideline- but got his message across and got the team back to a 50/50 run/pass behind closed doors and w/o the media blowup and fights that 'could" have torn a team apart, instead got a 5 game win streak and 7 of 8 game wins...I know some will never like Lovie and his style- things like this are a benefit for the "quiet" coaches..
Personally do not care if a "fire breather" or A "stoic coach", think both have been can and do win the NFL, as long as bears respond and win , i'm fine wth either style
well it usually comes out when not winning...... I think Lovie soured on the masses when he let apathy set in. Now that two of his biggest pets like Harris and Anderson were cut and we are seeing more of a lets move on policy opionions could change.
on another note that quiet Lovie and the org being too quiet hurt their qb in the press. Sometimes too quiet is a detriment. That speech Lovie gave on Cutler last week should have been right after the game
-
Originally Posted by
Jimmors I dont care what page or book theyre reading on, Offense is going to struggle until that OL gets fixed, so perhaps they need to read something like
this.
Good one! 
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote
