Lance Briggs Return Will Provide Big Boost to Chicago Bears Run Defense

To help explain, let me give an example.  The Steelers came into the Week 3 matchup averaging just 37.5 yards per game.  When they faced the Bears, they rushed for 80 yards, a difference of 42.5 yards.  With Briggs, the Bears opponents were gaining about 39 yards ABOVE their average.  That’s the GOOD news.  Without Briggs, opponents are gaining over 86 yards MORE per game above their average.  That’s scary.  TO help visualize this, I put this chart together:

The blue bars indicate the games with Briggs, the orange bars show the Bears run defense without Briggs.  The red bars show what opponents had been averaging before meeting up with the Bears.  Look at the difference between the blue/orange bars and red bars and you’ll see the difference between average and actual performance.  The results are jaw dropping.  The Rams had been averaging 99 yards per game, but ran circles around the Briggs-less Bears to the tune of 258 yards.   But wait, there’s more…