People can't understand how it's happening. By all rights, the Chicago Bears' defense should be a train wreck. They have been decimated by injuries most of the season. Their top four linebackers didn't play one game in Baltimore. Going into Sunday against Pittsburgh, they were down all three of their starting linebackers, along with three other starters. Not long into the game, Tyrique Stevenson also went down. It is the kind of situation that makes even the most seasoned defensive coordinators cry. Yet Dennis Allen somehow managed to make it work.
Nahshon Wright had his fifth interception of the season. He started training camp as CB5. Linebackers D'Marco Jackson and Amen Ogbongbemiga combined for 29 tackles. Emergency trade acquisition Joe Tryon-Shoyinka had three tackles and a couple of QB pressures. Deep reserve corner Nick McCloud had seven tackles. How? How is Allen doing this? Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune finally got an answer from various players after Sunday's win.
It is a combination of Marine drill instructor and college professor.
“For starters, it’s just the expectation that you know,” said special teamer Daniel Hardy, who gets time at defensive end and as an off-ball linebacker. “It’s not, ‘Well, you’ll play if somebody gets hurt.’ It’s, ‘You’re going to play, so you better be ready.’ There is an expectation that everybody in the room is ready to play at all times.”
Along those lines, Allen hits the players with pop quizzes every week, with questions that get to the smallest details. He’ll call on the highest-paid players on the roster to the most recent practice-squad additions. Talk about a situation with peer pressure to be on top of your stuff.
“You’ve got to know this because we’re a shoestring and whatever else away from you going in,” cornerback Josh Blackwell said of the spot players are in when called upon to deliver an answer. “That’s the reality of the NFL, right? It’s not that (Allen) has tried to embarrass anyone. But if you don’t know it, you could be the guy in that situation and we need you to make the play.”
Dennis Allen has a firm understanding of NFL reality.
It is a violent sport. Injuries are inevitable. The sooner you realize that, the better off you're likely to be. Praying for good health alone isn't enough. Smart coaches prepare for the eventuality that someone will go down. That means putting in the necessary effort to prepare the backups. You'd be surprised how many coaching staffs don't bother going that extra mile. They expect reasonable good health and focus their efforts on keeping the starters sharp. That is why backups look like such liabilities when they do come in.
Ben Johnson and Dennis Allen have made it their mission not to let that happen. They don't care where you came from or how much you get paid. You'd better be on top of your details. If you're not, don't expect to be on the roster long. The process is impossible to argue against. Chicago might be one of the most injured teams in the NFL this year, and they're still 8-3. Allen's efforts are a crucial part of why.
