TAKEAWAY TOPIC
Bears know they must start doing better job of forcing turnovers
Adrian Amos and Cre’Von LeBlanc missed the Bears’ only chance for a fumble recovery last Sunday against the Titans, perfectly illustrating the biggest flaw in what otherwise has been a season of progress for the Bears’ defense: They can’t capitalize on their opportunities for a takeaway.
The Bears are significantly improved on defense under coordinator Vic Fangio and coach John Fox. They rank 11th in yards allowed ( from 14th last season), 10th in yards allowed per play ( from 25th last season) and eighth in rushing yards allowed per attempt ( from 26th last season).
But they are 20th in scoring defense ( down from 17th last season), and a big reason is their inability to force turnovers. The Bears are in a three- way tie for 29th with only eight takeaways this season — five interceptions and three fumble recoveries. Only the Jaguars ( seven) have fewer.
The Bears’ failure to recover DeMarco Murray’s fumble inside their 5- yard line in the third quarter enabled the Titans to kick a field goal. The previous week, Amos dropped a sure interception on third down that gave the Giants a chance to kick a field goal.
‘‘ It’s a problem,’’ Fangio said. ‘‘ We’re not getting enough takeaways, that’s for damn sure. It’s one of the reasons we have the record we have. We have to do a better job of getting playmakers to make plays at the ball and get the ball out. We had one last week [ Tracy Porter’s strip of Murray]. We got it out, but we didn’t cover it. We gotta get more than that.’’ The big question is: How? ‘‘ A lot of times, it’s guys that have a knack for doing it,’’ Fangio said. ‘‘ They had one here a long time in [ Charles] Tillman. We need more guys to develop that knack and get it ingrained in them to get it done.’’
It’ll be interesting to see if Fangio and his staff can do that. Players often have a knack — Tillman, Lance Briggs, Brian Urlacher — or don’t. Then again, cornerback Tim Jennings, who had seven interceptions in his first five NFL seasons, had nine in his third season under Lovie Smith in 2012. So playmakers can develop under the right circumstances.
That 2012 season — the one that got Smith fired — still casts a shadow over recent Bears defenses. That team had 44 takeaways, the most in the NFL in a season since 2007. In fact, the 2012 Bears defense had as many touchdowns off interceptions ( eight) as the 2015 Bears defense had interceptions. That team recovered more fumbles ( 20) than the 2015 Bears forced ( 18).
Fangio has a history of developing defenses that know how to take away the ball. In four seasons with the 49ers ( 2011- 14), Fangio’s defenses had 122 takeaways, the fourth- most in the NFL in that span.
‘‘ We’re hopeful [ Leonard] Floyd can do that,’’ Fangio said. ‘‘ Hopeful that both inside ’ backers [ Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan] can do that. And the better pass rush you have, the better chance you have for them at the quarterback. And, obviously, at the safety and corner positions, where you have to get closer to make it happen.’’ But first things first. ‘‘ We just need more opportunities,’’ linebacker Sam Acho said. ‘‘ What [ Porter] did was outstanding, ripping that ball out. That’s great. You’re not going to get them all. But the more opportunities you get, you have a better percentage.
‘‘ We had some guys around the ball. We’re close. We just have to do a better job of forcing those turnovers and making the most of those opportunities.’’