Chicago Bears: Secret of Jordan Howard will be let out in 2018

It seems that Chicago Bears running back Jordan Howard is still an unknown around the NFL. That changes in 2018.

The Chicago Bears‘ play on the field is nothing to write home about. They own a 14-34 record over the past three seasons. While the team performed bad, there were some positives.

One of those positives is the running game.

The Bears’ running game has one of the top running backs in the game today. Jordan Howard ranks among the best in yards, touchdowns, average yards per carry and fewest fumbles. The problem is that not many people know about it. He owns the Chicago Bears rookie rushing record and has the most yards rushing for any Bears running back in his first two seasons, incredible considering how many great backs wore Bears uniforms.

Perhaps all the losing takes a prevents the attention Howard is due. He went to the Pro Bowl in 2016 but as a replacement. In 2017, he didn’t make it in any way. Also, in the NFL Network’s ranking of the top-100 players this year, Howard doesn’t appear on it.

All this will change in 2018.

New head coach Matt Nagy brings in a high-powered offense to Chicago. His offense when he was the Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator ranked 6th in points scored and 5th in yards. Now, he and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich want to do the same in Chicago.

Last season in Kansas City, Nagy had rookie running back Kareem Hunt. Hunt led the league in rushing (1,327 yards) and went to the Pro Bowl. Additionally, he was on the All-Rookie First Team.

As you can see below, Howard ranks second in yards compared to other well-known, “top” running backs. You also see how high his yards per carry average is. Anything over four yards is considered good. He’s also very dependable, fumbling only twice on 528 carries.

As good as Howard’s been, Nagy can make him better. With a better passing attack, Howard gets more space to work with. In the past, teams could load the line to try to stop him. Opposing teams completely disrespected the passing attack because former coach John Fox didn’t want to throw much and the receivers couldn’t create separation between them and the defenders.

This season that changes, however. With all the additions the Bears made, second-year quarterback Mitch Trubisky can go long, short or medium and find open receivers. Teams will have to respect the passing game now, and that means better numbers for Howard.

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Jordan Howard has been a Chicago Bears secret for the past two seasons. In 2018, all that changes and he’ll become a household name from now on.