One major reason why the Bears have looked shaky in the preseason is they have built an offensive foundation on quicksand.
In fact, the team has not scored a touchdown in the first quarter of their last nine games. That includes the last three regular-season games of 1994, their two playoff games against Minnesota and San Francisco and the four games this preseason. The trend is discouraging.
More Top Picks Best Upholstery Cleaners
Domino effect: Taking those early scoring problems a step further, coach Dave Wannstedt sees it affecting his pass rush, which has been negligible so far.
“No, I’m not happy with our pass rush,” Wannstedt said, “but the problem we’ve run into is we haven’t been ahead of anybody. And a lot of the good pressure on a quarterback comes when you can get him in a situation where they have to throw the ball to win. Then everybody becomes a good pass rusher.”
Job descriptions: Wannstedt said he is inclined to start the regular season with Michael Timpson, not Curtis Conway, as his primary kickoff return man and Jeff Graham bringing back punts. Timpson returned three kickoffs against Indianapolis Thursday for a total of 57 yards, his longest return a 27-yarder.
“Michael was a bright spot on kick returns,” Wannstedt said. “The one problem was he was trying to figure out where to go before he caught it, but he looks like he could be the kickoff return guy this week.”
Clean slate: The Bears had no serious injuries Thursday and, when the players come back to practice Sunday after taking off Friday and Saturday, fullback Antonio Carter and cornerback Dwayne Joseph are expected to come off the injury list. That means the Bears will be at full strength with their roster.
Stopping the run: “The positive that came out of Indianapolis, No. 1, was our first-team defense, other than that one long pass,” Wannstedt said. “The last couple weeks we have stopped the run pretty well, and we know that’s a priority after the last couple years.”
Getting kicked: “Field position killed us Thursday,” Wannstedt said, adding that punter Todd Sauerbrun will be pressed to improve. “The kicking game was very disappointing. Todd has got to kick better than he has. I understand he’s a rookie, but those 30-some-yard punts with a 3-something-second hang time . . . our defense has to start inside the 50 on their first two possessions. That’s tough duty.”