Thread: Bears Analysis; Special Teams........

Bears analysis: Turnover takes toll on special teams

Corey Graham forces a fumble by the Eagles' DeSean Jackson during the Bears' win in November. (Jose M. Osorio/Tribune Photo)

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By Brad Biggs, Tribune reporter 8:54 a.m. CST, January 20, 2012

Last in a 10-part series

Before the end of the 2011 season, Chicago Bears special-teams coordinator Dave Toub didn’t hesitate calling it the most challenging year he’s been through.

Consider that Toub started the season relying on a completely made-over unit that featured a handful of undrafted rookie free agents in prominent roles. By the end of the year, the Bears had placed 10 players on injured reserve and released two core special-teamers, Brian Iwuh and Sam Hurd. Iwuh was leading the Bears with 14 special-teams tackles when he went out with a season-ending hamstring injury at Oakland on Nov. 27.

But Toub kept plugging in new and inexperienced parts and the Bears continued to excel, finishing third in composite special-teams rankings. In 13 of the 22 categories, the Bears placed in the top six. They were first (or tied for first) in six categories: punt return, opponent gross punt, extra-point percentage, giveaways, points allowed and kick security. They placed second in punt coverage and tied for second in points scored.

So, it was a no-brainer for the Bears when Toub became the coaching equivalent of a free agent. He turned down a token one-year extension last offseason to work to the end of his contract and the gamble paid off. On Tuesday, the Bears made him one of the highest-paid special-teams coordinators in the NFL with a two-year deal that keeps him in place.

The crowning achievement was Corey Graham being named to the NFC Pro Bowl team as a cover man, an honor that was probably a year late. The breakout season by Arizona Cardinals rookie Patrick Peterson was the only thing that prevented Devin Hester being selected to another all-star game after Hester scored three touchdowns.

Adam Podlesh was the free-agent pickup the Bears invested the most in financially, signing him to a $10 million, five-year contract. He earned $4.5 million of it in the first season and delivered, becoming the first punter in franchise history to finish with a net average better than 40 yards. He rewarded those who aided him on the coverage team with bottles of champagne after the season.

Kicker Robbie Gould remained consistent in his seventh season. He converted 28 of 32 field goals, the third-best season he’s had in terms of accuracy at 87.5 percent. The four misses came between 40 and 49 yards and he was a perfect 6-of-6 from 50 yards and further out, a testament to how he’s improved. His leg strength, once a concern on kickoffs, is no longer an issue. He had 16 touchbacks in 2010 and with the new kickoff rules from the 35-yard line, Gould hit touchbacks on 43 of his 81 kickoffs (53.1 percent). His total ranked ninth in the NFL and two of the kickers ahead of him play in a dome home stadium and another enjoys the altitude in Denver.

Roll call: Robbie Gould (signed through 2013), Adam Podlesh (signed through 2015), Pat Mannelly (signed through 2012), Chris Massey (unrestricted free agent), Devin Hester (signed through 2013), Corey Graham (unrestricted free agent) (This must change)

2011 review: Hester continued to break his own records as a return man. He got his first score in Week 4 with a 69-yard punt return for a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers. He had a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings two weeks later and missed an entire week of practice before taking a punt back 82 yards to the end zone against the Detroit Lions on Nov. 13. But an ankle sprain and shin injury hindered Hester in the second half of the season and he wasn’t nearly the dangerous threat that is feared leaguewide.

But the most electric special-teams play of the season was the return touchdown that didn’t count. Trailing the Green Bay Packers late on Sept. 25, Toub called for a fake in which Hester would draw the coverage unit toward him with Johnny Knox peeling back and catching what Toub figured would be a sky kick to the left corner. Sure enough, that is where Packers punter Tim Masthay aimed. Knox made an over-the-shoulder catch that looked like the football version of Willie Mays in the Polo Grounds. He raced untouched 89 yards up the sideline. But officials called a holding penalty on Graham -- it was just a brief tug away from the play -- and it wiped out a return that would have been on highlight reels for ages. (Bad call)

The captain of special teams, Mannelly, was lost for the season with a torn ACL against the San Diego Chargers on Nov. 20. He had played in 147 consecutive games and his 215 career games stands as a franchise record. Mannelly is expected to be recovered in time for training camp and be the snapper for a 15th season. Massey filled in for him and while he didn’t have any errors, not all of his snaps were on the money like Mannelly typically is. In his short stay, Massey turned in one rare feat with four tackles at Denver Dec. 11. That’s a feat no long snapper is going to replicate soon.

Gould connected on two 50-yard field goals in a loss at Oakland Nov. 27 and two weeks later he made a franchise-record 57-yarder at Denver. He’s now 11 for 15 from 50 on out in his career.

Graham finished as the leader with 22 tackles, 15 of the them solos with one forced fumble. Linebacker Dom DeCicco, one of the undrafted free agents, filled in nicely making 17 tackles, 13 of them solos. He looks like he could be a four-phase standout moving forward, and he blocked well too with some crushing hits throughout the season. Safety Craig Steltz made 12 tackles and cornerback Zack Bowman had 10. Rookie safety Winston Venable made nine tackles in a shortened season and linebackers Patrick Trahan and Jabara Williams had five each in limited duty, creating an opportunity for expanded roles moving forward.

Free agency/draft priority: Graham is a free agent once again and the odds of him returning are probably slimmer than they were a year ago when the loss of the offseason contributed greatly to him returning on a one-year deal. He made three interceptions in limited time on defense and will probably find a club willing to give him a little more of a serious look on defense. Steltz is also a free agent that could return and be a veteran influence for Toub. The key to filling out special teams is finding hungry, smart young backups at key positions. (Maybe somebody can explain to me why we don't give him a serious look on defense. We need help at CB and SS and my guess is he could potentially play either. He looked great subbing for DJ Moore. What in the hell more does the guy need to do to get Lovie's attention?)

Looking ahead: Toub probably will make a strong push to keep Graham as he’s lost other special-team stalwarts in their prime like Brendon Ayanbadejo and Tim Shaw. We’ll see if he’s heard.

Bottom line: One way or another, the Bears likely will remain one of the league’s best special-teams units. That’s why they gave Toub a substantial raise.

bmbiggs@tribune.com

Twitter @BradBiggs