Bye Week Assessment: Highlights

Which has been the most surprising?

After four weeks there have been quite a few pleasant surprises that helped the Bears win three straight when many thought they would be hard pressed to enter the bye week at 2-2.

During the offseason, many within the Bears organization claimed to have complete confidence in this receiving corp. I assumed their claims were just to boost the confidence of the inexperienced group of pass-catchers, but it appears I was mistaken. Earl Bennet leads the team with 15 catches for 200 yards. The stats of Johnny Knox and Devin Hester are almost exactly the same. Knox has 14 for 190 yards and 2 TDs; Hester has 14 for 189 yards and 2 TDs. I think it's safe to say they have exceeded the expectations of most. After the Green Bay debacle, the receivers have really impressed me.




Another common offseason theme this year was the idea that Rod Marinelli was the Bears biggest Free Agent acquisition. Players have been raving about Marinelli's ability to teach and motivate, and it looks like they may not have been exaggerating. While the Bears may not be back to '06 form, they are third in the NFL in sacks. And they Bears have seen improvement in their pass rush across the board while the teams ahead of Chicago in that category each have a clear cut pass rushing threat. The Broncos' Elvis Dumervil boasts eight sacks while the team totals 15. Jarred Allen accounts 6.5 sacks of Minnesota's 16 sacks, over 40 percent. Ogunleye is the Bears' sack leader with 4.5, which is less than one third of the teams total. This tells me that Marinelli has indeed improved the overall pass rushing prowess of the Bears.

We all new that Chicago had good depth at linebacker, but did anyone expect the defense to perform this well without two starting linebackers? I know even know one fan who declared the season over after the loss of Brian Urlacher and the loss to the Packers. (he was suffering from a case of 'the chicken littles') Nick Roach, Hunter Hillenmeyer, and Jamar Williams have performed admirably and were a big part in helping their team reach 3-1. I think it is now safe to say that the Bears have some of the best backup LBs in the league.

Answer the poll above to share what has surprised you the most about the Bears so far.