Chicago Bears should exploit these areas against Green Bay Packers

Mismatch on linebackers

Head coach Matt Nagy and his offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich could have a hay day with tight end Trey Burton running all over the Packers’ linebackers. There is a reason they spent so much money on Burton this offseason, and Week 1 will prove the point immediately.

Blake Martinez is not exactly your ideal coverage linebacker — that’s putting things nicely. Jake Ryan is out. Oren Burks is out. James Crawford or Antonio Morrison will be on the field in place of Burks. The linebackers aren’t an area where Packer fans are particularly confident at the moment, and for good reason.

Burton is a mismatch on any one of the linebackers out there for the Packers. But specifically, if Martinez finds himself lined up and dropping into coverage on a guy like Burton, it’s game over. Last year, Martinez was last on the team in receptions per coverage snap at 7.1.

So, for every seven times he dropped into coverage, he allowed a catch. For clarity, here, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix led the Packers in this category at 32.8. Burton is faster, more athletic and plays quite like a wide receiver to begin with, so Martinez is in for it.

Side note: Cornerback Kevin King was also very poor in this category (8.6 coverage snaps per reception), so if Burton gets a chance to line up out wide — spoiler alert, he will — and happens to be shadowed by King, once again, it’s game over.