Will The New York Jets Bounce Back Against A Resilient Chicago Bears Team?
By Tyson Rauch
The New York Jets (1-1) enter Monday night's match-up against the Chicago Bears (1-1), a team searching for some answers on both sides of the football. On offense the Jets have to find a way to get their running game back on track while the defense cleans up their coverage and pass rush issues. Unfortunately for Gang Green, both of these units will be significantly tested by a talented Chicago Bears team under the bright lights of Monday Night Football.
Starts with Forte
The Chicago Bears offense features Matt Forte, one of the best running backs in the National Football League. Forte is a dynamic runner that can beat a defense as a ball carrier and a receiver. The New York Jets front seven must play physical at the line of scrimmage and prevent Matt Forte from getting into open space. If the Chicago back starts to make plays, the Bears passing game becomes ten times more explosive.
Confront Cutler
Jay Cutler is a strong armed quarterback that can pick apart any secondary if given time in the pocket. The New York Jets defense must get after the Bears quarterback and apply constant pressure. Muhammad Wilkerson, Damon Harrison, and Sheldon Richardson must disrupt the line of scrimmage allowing linebackers like Jason Babin and Quinton Coples to explode off the edge. If the New York pass rush is slow off of the ball the inexperienced secondary could get exposed.
Talented wide receivers
When healthy the Chicago Bears have one of the best wide receiver groups in the NFL. Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery, Santonio Holmes, and tight end Martellus Bennett can all make big plays in the passing game. The Jets secondary has to find a way to contain these playmakers and prevent excessive yards after the catch. Look for wide receiver Santonio Holmes to try and get some revenge on his former team as he will more than likely get matched up against Kyle Wilson.
New look Bears defense
The Chicago defense does not resemble the Bears' units of old, but it still has the ability to take over a game. Lance Briggs is the mainstay at linebacker while Jared Allen is the new pass rushing presence. Charles Tillman, Chicago's best cover corner, has been lost for the year due to injury, putting pressure on rookie Kyle Fuller to pick up the slack in the secondary.
In order for the New York Jets to have success on offense, the unit must play sound, physical, disciplined football. The offensive line, especially left guard Brian Winters, has to be strong at the point of attack allowing space to establish the running game. Geno Smith has to utilize all of his weapons, especially if Eric Decker is unable to play due to a hamstring injury. It would not be surprising to see Gang Green feature more two tight end sets to take advantage of the mismatches with Jeff Cumberland and Jace Amaro.
Tough match-up
On paper this a very tough match-up for the Jets as the Bears strengths are New York's weaknesses. Jay Cutler and company have to be licking their chops at a Jets secondary that was just torched by Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson. Defensively the Bears will sell out to stop the run in order to force Geno Smith to beat them. Now the question is whether or not Geno will be able to handle the Chicago pass rush and make some plays down the field.
This is not an ideal situation for the Jets, but a good team will find a way to win this game.
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Tyson Rauch is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
