National Football League

The Day After: Bears have an identity crisis

Published Oct. 19, 2009 8:53 p.m. ET

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It wasn't that long ago in the NFL that if you were a very good running team, you tended to be good against the run. It was a sign that your team had toughness. You practiced what you preached on Sundays.

And if you lived in cold-weather cities, coaches made sure their teams could run in order to deal with the snow and cold come the winter months. Chicago, Pittsburgh, Green Bay and Baltimore were historically known as tough cities with hard-nosed defenses and stubborn running games.

Well, that identity stereotype has changed. And it's been a rather startling transformation as offenses have become pass-happy in today's NFL. Just consider the importance of knowing yourself, such as ...

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Running Team: Drew Brees has now thrown for 13 touchdowns in a 5-0 start and Coach Sean Payton is proving to be some magician. One would think the Saints are a pass-happy bunch, spreading the ball to seven different receivers against New York. But Payton's team has actually run the ball 14 more times this season than Brees has attempted passes thus far. Explain that!

Passing Team: Everybody has been questioning the lack of a running game by the Arizona Cardinals, especially when they have a big lead, but as they demolished the Seahawks in Seattle on Sunday they reminded everyone that Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Breaston and Anquan Boldin may be the NFL's best receiving corps so why shouldn't Kurt Warner put the ball in their hands?

Identity crisis: There is no question that Jay Cutler has a great arm, but Lovie Smith said he wouldn't allow his Bears to become a passing outfit. Well, they proved Sunday night that they can't run a lick anymore. Chicago's pass-run ratio is now 61 percent in favor of throwing the ball and a huge reason why the Bears failed three times in the red zone in Atlanta.

First look forward

This week's buzz will be all about the growing legend of Brett Favre.

But before he returns to Green Bay in Week 8 as the hated enemy, Favre must first face Dick LeBeau's defense, Pittsburgh's zone-blitz scheme, next Sunday. The defending champs vs. the unbeaten Minnesota Vikings.

And how about Jared Allen chasing Ben Roethlisberger for four quarters?

The fascinating aspect to next Sunday's showdown is that Big Ben throws a lot more than Brett. The wild card to this game will be Adrian Peterson, who finally got untracked for 143 rushing yards against the Ravens yesterday. Is his ankle all right? Peterson appeared to be in serious pain and then minutes later he was walking it off. The guy just may be Spiderman.

As good as the Vikings are up front, they surrendered over 400 yards of offense for the third consecutive game, meaning there are plenty of holes on defense. Allen refrained from calling it a meltdown, but it was pretty close to one.