Because there is nothing happening in professional football and because I wanted to put something on the site, I started breaking down some passing game statistics this morning.  Why?  I wanted to see in what specific areas of the passing game the Chicago Bears struggled and what separated them from the elite teams in 2008.  My verdict?  I’m not sure I have one.  So how about I give you the numbers and you figure it out.

Note: I took total passing stats.  Not just starting quarterbacks.  I compiled them here.

Let’s take the best in the conference…

ARIZONA CARDINALS
418 – 630, 66.3 %
4,875 yards
75 completions to running backs
11.7 yard per catch
31 touchdowns
Kurt Warner: 30 TD / 14 INT
26 sacks

Let’s take a middle of the road passing game…

NEW YORK GIANTS
298 – 491, 60.3 %
3,353 yards
52 completions to running backs
11.3 yards per catch
23 touchdowns
Eli Manning: 21 TD / 10 INT
27 sacks

Let’s take the Chicago Bears Football Club…

CHICAGO BEARS
304 – 528, 57.6 %
3,229 yards
71 completions to running backs
10.6 yards per catch
20 touchdowns
Orton/Grossman: 20 TD / 14 INT
27 sacks

Jay Cutler was sacked only eleven times, behind a mediocre offensive line.  Aside from that, where does he make the passing game significantly better?  In what areas must the offense focus?  What do all the damn numbers mean?