It took Ben Johnson, then the Lions’ offensive coordinator, a few years to get the combination he needed in the backfield. Once he got it right with speedster Jahmyr Gibbs and bruiser David Montgomery, the duo started to dominate as “Sonic and Knuckles.”
Along the way, Johnson and the Lions offloaded D’Andre Swift, only for Johnson to end up with Swift again as Bears coach. And after several draft targets slipped away, the Bears settled for Rutgers running back Kyle Monangai in the seventh round with the 233rd pick out of 257 overall.
They aren’t Sonic and Knuckles, but they’ve made it work. The ground game has been essential in the Bears’ turnaround. They’re second to the Bills in rushing at 152.1 yards per game heading into their game Sunday at the 49ers, who rank eighth in run defense.
Swift is closing in on his best season. He’s 13th in rushing at 993 yards and would set a career high with 57 against the 49ers. After a career-worst 3.8 yards per carry last season, he’s up to 4.9.
“This is the player I’ve always thought he could be,” Johnson said Friday. “He’s just being very consistent. He’s very deliberate with what he’s doing. He’s doing a great job lowering his pads, playing physical [and] continuing to make guys miss at the second and third level.”
Monangai had much to learn, but at least his introduction to the NFL came under Johnson and running backs coach Eric Bieniemy. He clawed his way into a share of the carries — he has gotten 155 to Swift’s 204 — with a strict adherence to hitting the holes rather than darting and shifting.
The 22nd running back drafted, Monangai ranks fifth in his class with 731 rushing yards and sixth with five touchdown runs. At 4.7 yards per carry, he’s a full yard ahead of No. 6 overall pick Ashton Jeanty of the Raiders.
Swift and Monangai have taken advantage of several upgrades.
The Bears reloaded their offensive line with the additions of left guard Joe Thuney, center Drew Dalman and right guard Jo-nah Jackson. They landed the hottest head-coaching candidate in Johnson, then he hired Bieniemy, who was wildly overqualified for the position with six seasons as NFL offensive coordinator on his résumé.
Bieniemy accepts nothing less than airtight precision from his running backs. There’s no dancing around. It’s vertical running or the bench.
“This is a very demanding coach, and he’s always on those guys,” Johnson said. “They might not like it at times. You can’t let up when you have a coach like that.”
A productive rushing attack will be essential in the playoffs, and the ripple effect already has been huge.
The Bears have averaged 4.9 yards per carry on first downs, up from 3.6 last season, which opens the entire playbook on second and third.
They’ve run the second-most play-action plays, averaging 11 per game, more than double what they did last season, and quarterback Caleb Williams has benefitted greatly from it.
The signature moment of his season, and his career to date, was his 46-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore to beat the Packers in overtime. On the preceding plays, Swift ran for seven yards and Monangai for 13. The Packers were fixated on that threat when Williams took the snap under center.
When he faked the handoff to Monangai, all but two defenders were heading toward him or at least watching him, and by the time Williams dropped back to throw, Moore was behind everyone but cornerback Keisean Nixon and had a good angle to beat him downfield.
Play action creates space in the secondary and sets up favorable one-on-one matchups; the Bears have been creating opportunities on it all season.
They couldn’t do it without Swift and Monangai.
