Sept. 24--When Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said Wednesday that cornerback Kyle Fuller must execute better, ball awareness came to mind as a recent struggle for the former first-round pick.
Fuller has had two pass interference penalties for 76 yards, which coach John Fox alluded to when asked why Fuller was replaced last Sunday against the Cardinals.
On both penalties, Fuller did not turn his head and locate the ball when trailing the receiver on a deep throw. As a result, premature contact drew a flag.
Fuller has said he sometimes tries to read the receiver's eyes in order to know when to try to attack the catch point. That can be effective, and it has been for Fuller in the past. But Fangio said that's not the technique he prefers, and Fuller's penalties support that.
"We'd rather our guys get their head around, be in a position to get our head around and to make a play on the ball without having to resort to that," Fangio said. "And that involves staying on top of the guy in the route."
Let's look closer at Fuller's two penalties.
On the 42-yarder against the Cardinals, receiver John Brown ran a go route down the right sideline. Fuller did not impede Brown at the line of scrimmage, opting to open his hips to turn and run with him. Brown has exceptional speed and separated from Fuller by a couple of steps. There wasn't a lot of space between them, but it was enough.
From a trailing position, Fuller kept his focus on Brown's eyes and never found the ball.
"Sometimes you can get some false information," Fangio said. "Just like maybe getting looked off by a quarterback, a receiver can kind of look you off sometimes, too. So you've got to play fundamentally. That's part of it, looking where he's going, where he's looking at but also just playing the route and playing the hip, etc."
As you can see below, Fuller played the catch point too early, raking his left arm across Brown's arms before the ball arrived. It was an easy decision for the official.
In the Packers game, Fuller jammed James Jones at the line of scrimmage and was physical as Jones pushed up the field. But Jones separated with a double move, putting Fuller in a trail position.
Again, Fuller didn't find the ball despite having time to do so. Early contact garnered a flag.
Fuller is going to have chances to make this adjustment as he continues to transition from last year's defense, which was heavy on Cover-2 zone, to Fangio's preference for man-to-man.
Teams are going to test him until he stops them. Such is life for an NFL cornerback, especially one playing for Fangio. The Bears' new defensive coordinator asks a lot of his cornerbacks in man coverage, regularly isolating them on the perimeter.
"It's tough, but that's what we get paid for," cornerback Alan Ball said. "Part of your job of playing man-to-man is each play knowing what routes you have to eliminate, knowing where your help is, knowing how things are going to play and being aware of what's coming at you. I think that's what we've got to clue in and do a better job of."
