Chicago Bears position battles to look for: Running back

Khalil Herbert — The heir appartent

Khalil Herbert has been a great asset for the Chicago Bears in his two seasons. In 30 games with the Bears, he accumulated 1,164 rushing yards, averaged 5.0 yards per carry, and had 6 rushing touchdowns.

In 2022, Herbert had 731 rushing yards, averaged 5.7 yards per carry, and had 4 touchdown runs. He likely would have eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark had he not missed four games due to injury.

Herbert is an explosive runner with good vision. He quickly sees the open hole and does not hesitate to hit it. He has the speed to outrun defenders and make big plays.

Herbert is also an elusive back so he can make one cut and run away from the defender. There have been plenty of times when the opposing defense thought it had him, only to see him gain more yards.

The prevailing thought was that Herbert would replace Montgomery. However, there are certain weaknesses to his game that some of the other contenders have. For example, he has not been a good pass catcher out of the backfield.

In this offensive system, it is imperative that the running back be able to be involved in the passing game. Herbert hasn’t been that yet. However, not a lot of people thought of Montgomery as a pass catcher yet he did a great job in that area.

Additionally, Herbert is a liability as a blocker. There are times when defenders got past him as if he wasn’t there. He is usually the last line of defense for Fields. If he whiffs on a block then it hurts Fields. Either he gets sacked or he has to run out of the pocket and take a big hit downfield.

Herbert now has a tough battle to take over as RB1.