December
17, 2018
A
recent trend in the National Football League is one team goes from worst to
first. In 2017 it was the LA. Rams. After three moribund years with Coach
John Fox, the Chicago Bears go from worst to first under rookie coach Matt
Nagy. The Bears clinched the NFC North Division with a 24-17 win over the Green
Bay Packers.
For the first time in 10 years the Bears are going to the playoffs!
At the start of the
season I was going off on General Manager Ryan Pace. I’m ready to eat my words.
He has made some very astute moves, putting the pieces in place for
the great Bears’ defense. Free agent signings of linebacker Danny
Trevathan and safety Prince Amukamara are now a big fixture on defense.
Linebacker Leonard Floyd has been fantastic. Playing like a No. 1
pick, he has made Pace’s moving up in the draft to get him a very good
move. This year’s first-round linebacker, Roquan Smith, has
turned out to be an outstanding choice; He has 107 tackles thus far.
I’m sure there are even veteran players who would like that stat. A great find
in the fourth round was safety Eddie Jackson, who has six
interceptions, two of which resulted in touchdowns. At this juncture
this is a very good defense. However, the shrewdest move was trading
for one of the premier defensive players
in the league, pass rusher extraordinaire Khalil Mack. What was a good
defense became a great defense.
The defense once
again was mainly responsible for the Bears’ victory over the Packers.
Any time you hold the league’s best quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, to 17
points, that’s a good game. The Packers only scored one touchdown. It seemed
every time the Packers were moving the ball the Bears would come up with a big
play and make them settle for field goals. The pass coverage was outstanding.
Not able to find open receivers, Rodger was frantically running around and was
sacked five times. Rodgers had thrown 402 passes without being intercepted.
With the Bears leading 24-14, his pass in the end zone was tipped by
Smith into the hands of Jackson, ending the streak
.
People have been
praising Nagy for changing the Bears’ culture. I don’t how
much credit he deserves when the defense is responsible for winning games. You can give Nagy
credit for the development of quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Prior to his injury
you could see he was improving. After his three-
interception performance against the Rams, he looked great
against the Packers, completing 20 of 28 passes for 235 yards and two
touchdowns with no interceptions. If he comes just close to
this performance, the Bears will be formidable in the playoffs.
I could go into
Nagy blunders but why spoil a good feeling? Just hope that the
defense keeps playing at a high level, making sure the Bears don’t have
play catch-up in the fourth quarter. The Bears are still in the hunt for
a playoff bye if the Rams stumble again after losing to the
Eagles. Otherwise, look forward to a home game
against the Minnesota Vikings.
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