When the Chicago Bears take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday Night Football, they will be taking on a run game that just put up 324 rushing yards in their win last week against the Atlanta Falcons.
The Buccaneers are the top-ranked offense in the NFL through eight weeks, averaging 168.6 rushing yards per game with the duo of Bucky Irving and Kenny Gainwell. Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen laid out Chicago’s plan for attacking this run game.
“They’re running the ball better than anybody else in the league right now," Allen said. "I don’t remember the exact numbers, but it’s like 960 yards and 169 attempts in the last four weeks, so they’re running the ball extremely well. I think their offensive line is physical. I think this team
just plays really hard and they play a physical brand of football, so it’s going to take a lot of physicality. It’s going to take great, you know, eyes and eye discipline and making sure we’re in the right spots and then it’s going to take all 11 swarming the football. That’s really the key to being able to stop a running game like this. They block it well and I think these runners do an exceptional job of finding the right spots.”
Chicago has contained an elite run game before, holding the Falcons to just 63 rushing yards back in Week 6. The Bears could use the same strategy against Tampa Bay, who also happens to have the worst passing offense in the NFL.
After signing quarterback Baker Mayfield to a three-year, $165 million deal in the offseason, the Buccaneers have been largely disappointed by his performance. In the five games he has been able to play this season, Mayfield only has 679 passing yards and three touchdowns.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Dennis Allen understands challenge for Bears defense vs. Bucs run game
