John Fox’s strategy to fix the Bears is to score ‘more than zero points’

The Chicago Bears have started this season off the same way they ended their tumultuous 2014 season: on a losing streak. Despite bringing in a new coaching staff during the offseason, the Bears are 0-3, fresh off their worst defeat yet in 2015. In Week 3, the Bears were shut out for the first time since 2002 in a 26-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

On Monday, new head coach John Fox tried boiling the team’s problems down to find the simplest solution. “We need to generate more than zero points to win games,” he told reporters, via Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune. “There’s no doubt.”

It may seem like an obvious statement -- teams can’t win if they can’t score -- but with the Bears, their issues go beyond not being able to find the end zone. They can’t even move the ball right now. Their loss to the Seahawks was so bad that every drive ended in a punt, the first time in 35 seasons that a team punted on every possession.

Inconsistency at quarterback is a recurring theme for the Bears, and following Jay Cutler’s hamstring injury in Week 2, the problem has only worsened. Cutler is a mercurial quarterback -- he has battled the turnover bug throughout his seven seasons in Chicago, but he also completes a good percentage of his passes and throws for a high number of touchdowns every season. In Cutler’s absence, Jimmy Clausen has completed 23 of 40 passes for 184 yards, one interception and no touchdowns. Against the Seahawks, he threw for just 63 yards.

But it’s not just the quarterback position that has been an issue for the Bears’ moribund offense. So far this season, they have only gained 883 yards and scored four touchdowns -- and that’s a team that includes playmakers such as running back Matt Forte, wide receiver Eddie Royal and tight end Martellus Bennett.

Although Cutler could be out for at least another week, one possible cure for the offense’s ails is the Bears’ next opponent. In Week 4 they face the Oakland Raiders, who have given up 86 points in the first three games of the season. The Raiders rank dead last in the NFL in total defense, allowing 414.7 yards per game.

Wideout Alshon Jeffery was out against Seattle, but he will be back when the Bears face the Raiders. And even if Clausen is still under center, that’s an additional target to help him spread out the offense.

The schedule doesn’t get any easier after that, with road games against the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions up next. But before they look too far into the future, the Bears need to focus on finding ways to score points. After all, even last year’s team managed to get to five wins.