The goal: Contain Colin
Bears in serious trouble if Kaepernick runs wild like he did last week
The Bears are more concerned about Colin Kaepernick’s wheels than they are his kneeling.
“He’s exciting to watch,” linebacker John Timu said, “if you’re not on his highlight tape.”
There’s a good chance the Bears will be. Kaepernick’s feet figure to provide a rare jolt of electricity in Sunday’s matchup between the onewin 49ers and the two- win Bears.
A week after rushing for 113 yards in Miami, Kaepernick enters Soldier Field as the best running quarterback in football. None can top his 53.3 rushing yards per game. His 8.1 rushing yards per attempt are the most of any player — quarterback, running back or otherwise — with more than eight carries this season.
That’s enough to give Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio nightmares. Fangio spent four seasons in San Francisco with Kaepernick. Since claiming the starting job in Week 6, Kaepernick is again resembling the player who took the NFL by storm in 2012 and 2013, Fangio said.
Linebacker Pernell McPhee said the Bears have to use their heads against Kaepernick.
“You can’t give him too many rush lanes as he throws the ball,” McPhee said. “You just have to know how to contain him.”
The Bears preach a teamoriented approach to keep rush lanes from opening.
“It’s not an individual effort as far as, ‘ One guy’s got to dominate this guy in order for us to win,’ ” Timu said. “Everybody’s got to be on the same page as far as rushing. And then we’ve got to be able to contain him, keep him in the pocket and finish. That’s the big thing: Finish.”
The 49ers’ no- huddle offense will stress the Bears’ inside linebackers. Timu is making his second start of the year, rookie Nick Kwiatkoski his third.
Leonard Floyd, drafted ninth overall this year to help neutralize athletic quarterbacks, still wasn’t cleared from concussion protocol Friday. Fellow outside linebacker Willie Young missed practice with a knee injury.
A weakened Bears defense might look worse after Sunday. The Bears will spy Kaepernick to limit his running threat — “Everybody does,” coach John Fox said — but not on every play.
“The advantage is that we saw it last week with Marcus Mariota,” Fox said. “So I think our guys understand what we are talking about when we say ‘ rush lanes,’ and then plastering on receivers if it’s a pass. Now it’s just a matter of executing.”
Mariota gained 46 yards on four rushes last week for the Tennessee Titans — the most he’d posted in seven games — but the Bears seemed pleased with their containment of him.
The 49ers will use planned quarterback runs more. Coach Chip Kelly’s offense is predicated on running play- action and bootlegs off the threat of the run.
“Very mobile guy in the pocket — a lot like the quarterback we just faced,” Young said of Kaepernick. “A little bit more antsy to run, to take off and run with it.”
Knowing it and stopping it are two different challenges, though.
“We need to do a good job of keeping the quarterback in there,” Fangio said.
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