LAKE FOREST, Ill., — It hasn't been a banner year for the Chicago Bears' special teams unit, coming off another tough game in Week 9 against the Cincinnati Bengals. Kick coverage was a disaster once again, allowing a 97-yard return for a touchdown to open the game and then an average of 37 yards per return on the day for kickoffs.
That's been something that has plagued the Bears all year, also allowing 30 yards per return to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 8. After nine weeks, the Bears have allowed the third-most kickoff return yards this season at 1,158.
Sunday's big return from Charlie Jones was a mixture of things that went wrong.
"First of all, on the kickoff coverage, to start the play the kick location is not where we wanted it, OK. So, that's No. 1, and I am telling you exactly what I told the players," Richard Hightower said. " So, the kick location is not where we want it, and the lane integrity is not what we are used to doing and what we want to do. So, lane integrity is out of whack and that's what happened on the play."
But it wasn't just kick coverage.
The Bears also had a field goal blocked, missed another attempt, but were bailed out by a penalty and allowed the Bengals to recover an onside kick. It was an ugly day for Hightower's group, to say the least. Now, he and the players have to find a way to fix this, something he says he's committed to doing.
"Nobody in that room, alright, wants to get it corrected more than the players, alright?," Hightower said on Thursday. "And we are going to work night and day to get it all cleaned up. I can promise you that. I will bust my ass and they will too, alright, to get it cleaned up."
While Sunday felt like a disaster for the special teams unit, their struggles have shown up throughout the season. Whether it's been missed kicks, poor coverage on punts and kickoffs, or penalties, those are all magnified on the unit.
Hightower's message is clear, and he's taking the responsibility.
"The message to the group is, 'Hey guys, obviously that is not our best brand of football and I take responsibility for it.' That is what I told the group," Hightower said. "Obviously, they look in the mirror and take responsibility for what they do, but I tell them, I take responsibility for it and there's gotta be better, but - guess what guys - we found a way to win. We've found a way to win several different ways this year, and going forward if we want to be the team that we want to be, we've got to get those things cleaned up."
He's right.
Chicago is 5-3 at the midway point of the season and has found ways to win games. If they truly want to be a playoff team, they can't afford mistakes like this from any phase of the game, let alone special teams. That starts with him correcting these mistakes.
"I think for sure it was a bad game. I think everyone can see that," Hightower said. "But it's my unit, I always take responsibility for it. So, I've always done that and I am always going to do that."
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