Chicago Bears: 5 Ways To Fix Their Sinking Ship

The Chicago Bears are 2-3, and are four games behind the undefeated Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions with a head to head losses to each team. 

This is not the position that the defending NFC North champs thought they would be in. It is only Week 6, and their season is effectively over.

They do have a slim chance at making the playoffs, but the Bears will not get to the postseason unless they can win 11 games, which means finishing the season 9-2. With their offensive line woes, and the way the defense has been playing, I doubt this is possible. 

The Bears' only chance at making a playoff run is making some changes and shaking it up. 

Here are five ways the Bears could try and fix their season. 

Fire Mike Martz

Lovie needs to sit down and tell Martz, "Listen, Mike, it was a good try, but it's not working out. You are doing nowhere near as well as expected, and your crazy system is causing the downfall of our team. Thanks for trying."

Martz's offense just isn't panning out. In his first season as the Bears offensive coordinator, the Bears were 21st in points and 30th in yards. This year they are not much better ranking 18th in points and 21st in yards. 

Martz has also managed to run the Bears' best receiver, Greg Olsen, out of town because he didn't fit in Martz's system. He also brought in the Bears No.1 wide receiver Roy Williams who has been a predicable bust. 

Mike Martz had a great run in St. Louis, but that was with a Hall of Fame quarterback, running back and two wide receivers in Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Issac Bruce and Tory Holt. Anyone could have looked like a genius with those weapons.

Honestly Martz is a good offensive coordinator, but he just is not the right fit with the Bears' pieces. The Bears' front office set Martz up to fail by hiring him and not giving him the pieces to run his offense.   

But Martz still tried to force the Bears to be the players he had in St. Louis instead of using the pieces he inherited. He has not allowed the players to utilize their strengths, and it has failed horribly. 

If Lovie is smart he will get rid of Martz as soon as possible, because he is putting Lovie's job in jeopardy as well as his own. 

Let Cutler Roll out of the Pocket

This goes hand in hand as Mike Martz's fault. 

It is clear to everyone and their grandmother that Jay Cutler likes to get outside the pocket, and he excels outside the pocket. 

If the Bears want Jay Cutler to be the franchise quarterback that he is capable of being, then he needs to be allowed to have some more freedom to roll out of the pocket. 

Cutler does not have time to sit back in the pocket, plant his feet and make a good throw. There just isn't enough time with the Bears offensive line. 

This is quite an easy fix, Martz just needs to be a little flexible. 

Start Johnny Knox and Dane Sanzenbacher, Bench Roy Williams

Saying the Bears wide receiving core is weak is an understatement, but there is some (very limited) talent in the receiving core. 

Knox has slipped back into the starting lineup, but that is only because Roy Williams has been injured. The simple fact is Knox and Sanzenbacher are their two best receivers. 

A year ago Knox finished just under 1,000 yards receiving, and what do the Bears do? They bench him this year. 

Despite the benching, Knox is still second on the team in yards behind Forte and third in receptions. 

The rookie Sanzenbacher has been a pleasant surprise this season. He has 16 catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns. These numbers are not great, but they are good enough to get this first-year player the starting job in Chicago. 

The Bears need to start Knox as the No. 1 receiver, Sanzenbacher as the No. 2 and have Hester in the slot. 

Unleash Kellen Davis

Kellen Davis is an animal, and has the potential to be a top five tight end in the NFL. He is 6' 7",  267 pound beast with soft hands and a 36-inch vertical. 

Davis is primarily used for blocking, which is understandable because because the Bears need so much help from the offensive line, but he is capable of so much more. 

They should be running more two tight end sets like the Patriots, with Matt Spaeth blocking and Davis running routes. Cutler rolling out of the pocket looking for Davis could be a dangerous combination.

This season Davis only has 6 catches for 80 yards, but he has two touchdowns, and has been a red-zone threat.

Cutler likes to throw to tight ends, and he has a giant weapon right in front of him. The Bears are crazy for not using Davis more in the passing game. 

Pay Matt Forte

This is so obvious that it is pathetic that we need to keep discussing it.

For some odd reason the Bears front office refuses to pay Matt Forte. In his three seasons in the NFL, he has never had less than 1,400 total yards, and is on pace for 2,500 total yards this season. 

I think Forte will cool down a little bit, but 1,800 total yards is probably going to happen, and 2000 yards is not out of the question. 

Matt Forte is a top 10 running back, he is a leader in the locker room and has been nothing but an owner's dream. Not to mention the fact that he and Jay Cutler are carrying the entire team right now.

Forte could have sat out and demanded more money prior to the season, but he owned up to his contract. He understand that he signed a deal, and he choose to be a man and honor that deal.

Now it is time for Bears GM Jerry Angelo to lock up Forte with a nice fat contract. If the Bears let this go much longer I fear Forte will test the open market and leave Chicago, and he has every right to if the Bears don't give him the great deal he deserves.

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