The Chicago Bears' running game was the driving force behind their turnaround this season. They got off to a slow start, but once the offensive line clicked, D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai combined to average 144.5 rushing yards per game, the third-most in the league.
Swift appeased all the trade chatter around him. Monangai, on the other hand, looked like one of the biggest steals of the draft, a seventh-round pick who could probably be trusted to be a starter next year. Now, after watching him fall off a cliff over the past month or so and in the first game of the playoffs, that may no longer be the case.
Has Bears RB Kyle Monangai Hit the Rookie Wall?
Monangai became a fan favorite because of his bruising, hard-hitting style. He was one of the main characters in the upset over the Philadelphia Eagles, turning 22 carries into 130 rushing yards and one score. Then, from there, he failed to reach the 60 rushing-yard mark in the following games.
The rookie out of Rutgers turned 48 carries into 192 yards over the last five games of the season, and while the 4.0 yards per carry average is actually pretty solid, those numbers aren't going to get it done in the playoffs. Unfortunately, Monangai didn't do much better in the Bears' wild-card round win over the Green Bay Packers, logging just 27 yards on eight carries. For contrast, Swift had 54 yards on 13 carries vs. Green Bay, so it wasn't a matter of the Packers' defense shutting down the run.
Of course, we're talking about a rookie. It's not easy to deal with the wear and tear that comes with a full NFL season, let alone for a seventh-round pick who's still learning the ropes of the game. That being said, this should be a concern for Ben Johnson moving forward.
A portion of the Bears' success on the ground was due to their ability to alternate between carries, giving opposing defenses different looks. Monangai is more of a downhill, bruising option, whereas Swift is more of a well-rounded back.
The Bears will now square off with the Los Angeles Rams and their stout defense. They gave up just 110.8 yards per game in the regular season, and they limited the Carolina Panthers' one-two running back punch to just 83 rushing yards. Chubba Hubbard averaged 3.5 yards per carry, and Rico Dowdle was even worse at just 1.8.
That's to say that Sean McVay's team isn't going to make life easy on the Bears, and they will need their rookie running back to step up and do what he already proved he can do. Otherwise, this might be a long night for Caleb Williams.