Ben Johnson sounds off on Bears' run defense vs. Patriots

The Chicago Bears made a statement against the New England Patriots, where things were ugly at times but offense, defense, special teams and coaching played key roles in the 30-24 win.

The defense was down several starters, including defensive end Montez Sweat, but there were some key players who stepped up. But the defense stepped up against the run, where they held New England to just 70 rushing yards (where Drake Maye was the leading rusher with 26 yards). For the fourth game in a row, the Bears held their opponent to 70 rushing yards or less. However, head coach Ben Johnson still wants to see the Bears improve up front as the season progresses.

“It starts with technique and fundamentals, and that’s something that we’ve been harping on up front from the springtime,” Johnson said. “I think we continue to improve in terms of our strike and our shed and our ability to bottle up and not create running lanes. We’re setting the edge a little bit better as a defense, better than maybe we were to start the season … And then we talked about the playstyle. I think that’s really what it comes down to. We want all 11 defenders in the frame at the end of the play. And when that happens, normally we have a pretty good run defese. We’re going to continue to harp on those things.”