Future Looks Bleak

 

October 3, 2022

The Bears blew a golden opportunity to start their season with three victories in four games. The New York Giants, mediocre at best and riddled with injuries, beat the Bears 20-12. There were not many positives in this game. The Bears looked dazed and confused.

I used to always complain about Matt Nagy’s team offense never scoring 20 points. Take away the Houston game and the Bears are averaging 10 points per game. Quarterback Justin Fields was better but still not good enough. He completed 11 of 22 passes for 174 yards. He was sacked six times and I imagine he got hit on almost all of his passing attempts. The offensive line gets most of the blame. However, the fact that the receivers don’t get open is a bigger problem as Fields holds on to the ball too long. GM Ryan Poles made no attempt to improve one of the worst offenses in the league. Fields isn’t given much of a chance with Darnell Mooney being the only competent receiver.

New offensive play caller Luke Getsy said he would tailor his plays to Fields strengths. However, there were no roll-outs, bootlegs or play-action passes. Fields sets up in the pocket and gets pressure on almost every play. The play calling in the red zone left a lot to be desired as the Bears settled for four measly field goals from replacement kicker Michael Badgley. It’s time to get more creative when in position to score.

The defense looked out of sorts in the first half. They bit on a faked hand off to Saquon Barkley.  Giants quarterback Daniel Jones rolled out and with no one near him, ran 21 yards for the TD. The Bears got fooled by this play repeatedly and Jones scored a second touchdown from eight yards out. The defense continued their trend of not giving up a touchdown all year in the second half.  It’s too bad they didn’t make in game adjustments. Before you get excited, the Bears gave up 262 rushing yards on only 44 runs. The defense was supposed to be Coach Matt Eberflus forte, yet they rank near the bottom of the league in stopping the run.

The Bears offense will need to greatly improve. Even the best defense in the league can’t win games for teams with no offense.  The Bears will have trouble getting any victories on the road. Three of the next four games are on the road.