"Embearessment"

November 28, 2017

For the second time in Bear history the Bears go win-less in November. You have go all the way back to last year, the first time it happened. This game was reminiscent of a Bulls blowout loss. You knew going into it they weren’t going to win. The Eagles had three fumbles and 11 penalties and the Bears still managed to lose 31-3.

The Bears were bad in every aspect of the game. Rest assured, lame duck coach John Fox lent a helping hand. Before we look at the players, here are 2 more reasons Fox has to go. When your season is spiraling down the drain, you don’t send in the field goal unit in on fourth and two yards for a first down. On top of that, it was a 54 yard attempt in a tough stadium to kick in. The field goal try was not even close, giving Philadelphia a first down starting at their own 44. Dumbness number two. Third down at the Bears' one yard line. Sends in the punting team. Realizing he has one more down then needs to call a time out to set up next play.

The Bears' punter had his worst game in what has been a pretty good year. He had a punt for 34 yards and one tipped. The punter is not the biggest problem on special teams. Although he had a kick return for 40 yards, Tarik Cohen should not be the return man. It seems to me that he runs smack in the middle of his opponents then tries spin out and loses six more yards. This is usually compounded by the Bears continuously dumb block in the back or holding penalty on almost every return.

The defense, which I thought would keep them competitive in games, disappeared. Led by this season’s best quarterback Carson Wentz, the Eagles carved the Bears up like a Thanksgiving turkey. He threw for three touchdowns. There were many culprits that contributed to this debacle. Rookie Eddie Jackson who has looked good, missed a tackle and the runner hurdled him. As usual for this team, he also missed on 2 interception chances. Cornerback Prince Amukamara had a couple of nice break-ups along with 2 holding penalties on third down. I guess that’s better than the long gains over him. The Bears' defensive line and linebackers gave up 176 yards on the ground.

The offense just stunk. A key for the Bears to have any chance of winning is running the ball. With the Eagles daring the Bears to pass with nine men upfront, the Bears stubbornly called running plays for a measly total of eleven yards. Trubisky probably had his worst game. He was off the mark on many passes, sailing balls high and wide. He threw 2 interceptions and the Eagles dropped two other chances. He will get better. He needs better protection from the offensive line and receivers who can get open. Dontrell Inman officially became a Chicago Bear. Although he caught four passes he dropped three. Outside burner receiver Markus Wheaton played 5 snaps.

What was once looking to be a nice turn around, the season has turned into a nightmare. At the beginning of the season I predicted 5-11. When Trubisky replaced Glennon I changed it to 6-10. You may be interested to know that the Bears weren’t the biggest turkey of the holiday weekend. The Bulls lost to Golden State by 49 points.