As the Chicago Bears enter into year two of their rebuild, there are a lot of decisions to be made on who will be part of the team moving forward. 2015 was a rough season for the Bears, but despite a 6-10 record they were more competitive than they were in 2014 and some players stepped up and became possible building blocks for the future.
At the post-season press conferences head coach John Fox identified rookies Adrian Amos and Eddie Goldman as future building blocks on defense and also mentioned the offense being built around Jay Cutler next year, but who else is part of the Bears plan for the future?
With the announced release of RB Matt Forte earlier this week, the Bears have just two former 4th round picks from their last two drafts on the roster at the running back position. It’s unlikely the Bears go into the season with out adding at least one more back who is capable of sharing the rushing duties.
I’ll break down the RBs currently on the roster below and then the free agent and draft options at the position later this week.
2016 Bears Position Preview: Running Back
Building Blocks:
Jeremy Langford – As sad the release of Matt Forte was for Bears fans, it’s a clear sign of confidence in Jeremy Langford from the Bears coaching staff. They will almost definitely add more depth at RB via the draft and/or free agency, but the starting gig is Langford’s to lose.
The rookie back was impressive at times last season, despite a sub-four yards per carry and some high profile drops in the passing game. For the season Langford had 537 rushing yards (3.6 YPC), had 7 total touchdowns, and caught 22 passes for 279 yards.
At times Langford showed both toughness running inside and the burst to break big plays. Langford had the Bears 2nd longest play of the season with an 83-yard screen pass touchdown. He also didn’t fumble in 170 touches and was a solid pass blocker for a rookie.
It’s going to be a big jump for Langford to go from one or two series a game to carrying most of the workload, but the fact that the Bears didn’t even try to negotiate the discount deal that Matt Forte seemed willing to sign, makes it pretty clear the Bears brass think Langford can handle it.