Usually, quarterbacks become targets when losing. In Jim Harbaugh’s case, the bull’s-eye is getting larger as the Bears win.
Suddenly, they find themselves in a stretch drive instead of stretching for the offseason. Losing Thursday to Detroit might put them out of it and it might not, because the NFC Central Division looks like it will remain tight until the end.
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The team that wins will be the one with the quarterback who makes plays. At the moment, all six quarterbacks in the division, including injured Jim McMahon, are bunched within 10 points in passer ratings. Not one team has thrown more touchdown passes than interceptions, the benchmark for good quarterbacking.
Minnesota’s Sean Salisbury leads the NFC Central, but the Vikings are 1-3 with him starting. Tampa Bay’s Craig Erickson can affect the division only in the spoiler role, as he did in beating the Vikings last Sunday.
While Harbaugh was the only quarterback in the division to have a shovel pass intercepted last week, he is not the only quarterback around who struggles. Green Bay was on the way toward blowing out Detroit until Brett Favre threw two interceptions. Detroit got only 100 yards passing from Rodney Peete.
But the pressure on Harbaugh suddenly is magnified because the Bears are unexpectedly ahead of their timetable. Instead of gamely surviving in a new system in a transition year, Harbaugh must start producing more now or jeopardize his future.
Coach Dave Wannstedt and his staff don’t make threats. They don’t even hint at displeasure, especially at the sensitive quarterback position. They say only positive things. But they also are decisive judges of talent.
Wannstedt was convinced before the season that Harbaugh could get the job done. With a crippled, makeshift offensive line, a subpar running game and injuries to high draft choices Curtis Conway and Chris Gedney, Harbaugh’s performance was so inundated with good excuses that it was unfair and premature to evaluate him.
But the running game is improving. The offensive line is settling. Harbaugh finishes more plays upright than prone. Conway and Gedney are slowly developing. The defense is playing at least as well as any other in a good defensive division. And the Bears are in a race. Their quarterback can’t overthrow people in the end zone from close range.
The Bears’ woeful 28th-ranked offense even climbed out of the cellar to 27th last week, but Harbaugh’s passer rating of 37.1 for the game was his lowest of the season.
Coaches are more patient than fans because they understand the complexities and interaction of the game. But Wannstedt also points out: “My bark is not as bad as my bite.”
If changes are necessary, Wannstedt will make them. Two days after saying William Perry had a future in Chicago, Wannstedt cut him. After praising Anthony Morgan all summer, he cut him not once, but twice.
The problem at quarterback is supply and demand. Wannstedt could have pursued former Dallas quarterback Steve Beuerlein in free agency, but decided against it after comparing Harbaugh’s skills with what he had seen in practice every day in Dallas.
The Bears gave Harbaugh a $13 million contract because the Raiders and Vikings were interested in him before signing Jeff Hostetler and McMahon, respectively. Harbaugh got $5 million of the contract this year and the rest of it is not guaranteed. It might not be what quarterbacks are worth, but it’s what they cost. If the Bears decide Harbaugh isn’t worth his $3 million salary in 1994, they will end up paying somebody else $3 million.
The “somebody elses” aren’t yet obvious. A look at available free agents at quarterback reveals an ordinary lot. According to last month’s NFL Players Association records, 23 quarterbacks will be unrestricted free agents Feb. 1. The number could change if quarterbacks are released or their contracts are extended. At the moment, the names do not jump off the page.
Wannstedt has made it clear he wants Harbaugh to be his quarterback of the future. Harbaugh’s work ethic and durability alone make him more valuable than most. His mobility may be third only to Steve Young and Randall Cunningham. But his future is approaching faster than you can say, “Now what?”
Harbaugh is one of only nine quarterbacks who has started every game. He joins Buffalo’s Jim Kelly, Denver’s John Elway, San Francisco’s Steve Young, the Giants’ Phil Simms, the Jets’ Boomer Esiason, Green Bay’s Favre, and New Orleans’ Wade Wilson on the select list. Now, it’s who finishes.
Last year, Mike Ditka benched Harbaugh in four of the last six games, grasping at straws more than anything. Harbaugh started the only victory in the last nine games. This year, the last six games mean much more.