When a person with skills sees a contemporary who has an impressive skillset of their own, the phrase “game recognize game” is often said in reference to when a person sees “it” in another.
Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky said it more eloquently during his Wednesday meeting with the media at Halas Hall regarding fellow rookie Tarik Cohen:
.@Mtrubisky10 on utilizing Tarik Cohen's play-making abilities: "We just need to find ways to get him the ball and I know we will. That’s an emphasis for us."
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 15, 2017
Mitchell Trubisky said of Tarik Cohen: "He's a dynamic playmaker. That's pretty obvious. We need to find way to get him involved, and we will."
— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) November 15, 2017
Trubisky says the Bears need to get Cohen more involved in the offense, and why wouldn’t he endorse that kind of move?
Cohen leads the team in catches and is second in targets, receiving yards, and scrimmage yards. Bears quarterbacks have a 94.3 passer rating when targeting Cohen out of the backfield. He is also the Bears’ highest-graded running back and has the eighth-best receiving grade among backs by Pro Football Focus’ standards.
Unfortunately, Cohen’s time on the field has been slashed in recent weeks and his production has taken a tumble with it. The latest example of Cohen’s diminishing presence on offense came in Sunday’s loss against the Packers when he played just 13 snaps and was on the field for just 5 of 41 passing snaps – that’s 12.2 percent if you’re keeping count at home.
Offensive Coordinator Dowell Loggains called Cohen the team’s best player in October and the fourth-round pick from North Carolina A&T received praise from Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner for his prowess as a pass-catching running back. And it’s clear Trubisky wants to see more.
While Trubisky said he doesn’t keep track of snap counts, he seemed confident the team would find time for Cohen moving forward. There might not be any better time than Week 11 against a Detroit Lions defense which has allowed the ninth highest average receiving yards to opposing running backs this season.
Of course, it won’t be that easy.
Cohen will have to pry away some playing time from fellow running back Benny Cunningham, who out-snapped Cohen 28-13 on Sunday.