Through three games this NFL season, the Chicago Bears have one of the league’s worst rushing offenses, bar none.
Chicago runners have combined for just 218 total yards while averaging an anemic three yards per carry. That’s good for 31st in the league on both counts. This utter lack of a running game has been a considerable detriment to Caleb Williams during his rookie season, as he’s been expected to put the Bears’ offense on his back much more often than the team initially hoped.
While it’s not necessarily all his fault, 2024 free agent addition D’Andre Swift might deserve the most blame for the Bears’ rushing offense’s struggles.
A new TikTok demonstrates how Swift continually ignores (or doesn’t see?) massive rushing lanes while running into defenders’ contact and … into his own teammates. It makes you reasonably think that if the Bears commit to another full-time starter, their rushing attack might not look this bad.
@joelvmoran D’Andre Swift is one of the worst starting RBs in the league. He might be the worst #chicagobears #dandreswift #nfl
To be fair to Swift, it’s easier to see these kinds of open rushing lanes from an overhead view on film. When it’s happening in real time, everything is moving lightning-fast. It also doesn’t help that the Bears’ offensive line, especially on the interior, has mostly been a net negative so far.
However, Swift is a professional in the NFL.
He’s expected to see these lanes and use them. It is the bare minimum of his job responsibility. Because it’s clear that even awful offensive lines can sometimes give their running backs a good chance to make something out of a play. Much less talented running backs do so all the time. Full stop.
The Bears host the Los Angeles Rams this Sunday. And they likely already knew about Swift’s issues before this TikTok came out. Here’s a good hunch that Swift will be benched before Chicago leaves September.