There are a number of problems with the Chicago Bears offense. Most would agree a lot of it starts up front. Blocking has been a real issue for this team for the past month and really dating back to last season. This year they are 31st in rushing and 25th in passing. Nick Foles and Mitch Trubisky have been pressured a combined 53 times and hit another 23. Panic already setting in for some. Yet one person has reasons for optimism. Former Bears Pro Bowl center Jay Hilgenberg.
Now those are not the sort of numbers that usually equate to a team that has Super Bowl aspirations. It's funny this team gets compared to the 2010 Bears. That group made it to the NFC Championship game. Yet they failed to beat Green Bay. Anybody with a good memory knows why. The offensive line couldn't control the line of scrimmage.
So why would someone like Hilgenberg have hope?
If anybody has high standards for offensive line play, it's him. The man was a seven-time Pro Bowler and anchor of the great Bears front in the 1980s. In his estimation, a lot of people are overlooking a key factor about this current line. Talent might explain some of the problems. However, there is also the forgotten reality that they switched blocking schemes this past offseason. Something that came when Matt Nagy replaced Harry Hiestand with Juan Castillo. Hilgenberg broke it down to Adam Jahns of The Athletic.“There are new fundamentals that these guys are playing with, not only hand placement but maybe their footwork,” said Hilgenberg, a two-time first-team All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler for the Bears. “It’s going to be process and they just got to come along quicker and faster. As soon as these guys come along and get their fundamentals where Juan Castillo wants them, that’s when the offensive line will start going. They’ll be more consistent.”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSwtSqMgPmo&ab_channel=ChicagoBears







