AZ54

I forgot ... Charles Leno is their LT. https://www.si.com/nfl/bears/news/top-individual-matchups-for-commanders-and-bears The Bears run up against their longtime starting left tackle and he is still fooling the people at Pro Football Focus, who for years have loved his production even while Bears quarterbacks had to watch their backs. He is rated currently as the 10th best tackle in the league and the NFL's third-best pass blocker at tackle. Overall, PFF puts him two behind Washington right tackle Samuel Cosmi.

I haven't watched or even noticed a thing the Washington Football Team has done this year. It appears their HC blames the QB for their 1-4 record so that's cool: https://commanderswire.usatoday.com/2022/10/10/ron-rivera-on-why-other-nfc-east-teams-are-ahead-of-washington-commanders-quarterback-carson-wentz/ Of course he's backpedaling as fast as he can but on a short week there is no better way to get your 1-4 team fired up to go on the road for a nationally televised broadcast where every single player has to answer the "QB" question. WFT offense: Passing 6th in yds but they are bottom 4 in Rushing. but they've tossed 6 INTs. WFT defense: Passing middle of the pack, Rush middle of the pack They have a few injuries including Jahan Dotson who likely won't play. Their starting RT missed practice with a finger injury so if he has to wear any kind of a cast or even tape on his hand it could affect his ability to block. Starting TE Logan Thomas also can't practice. https://commanderswire.usatoday.com/lists/washington-commanders-week-6-injury-report-vs-chicago-bears-tight-end-logan-thomas-didnt-practice-tuesday/ I don't like TNF because I don't think it's enough rest for the players and these games are often chaotic. Our defense, in particular our pass rush finally needs to show up in this game. Get on the QB early and often and make everyone think, like their HC, that they are losing because of Wentz.

I’m guessing That’s Braxton Jones run blocking or blocking for a screen with everyone else pass blocking. After the screw up Mustipher just decided it would be best to block nobody.

I'm going to pretend I didn't hear what he said because I don't really want that much hope for my Bears future.

Until I see him quit throwing weak arm passes off his back foot under pressure I won't be a Goff fan. That was his issue in college and so far in the NFL. Beyond that he's a terrific and accurate passer. Maybe he has overcome that issue.

Yes, you need desperate HCs and GMs of playoff eligible teams to get a good deal.

Late in the game his read of the Vikings blitz and the hot throw to Kmet was as good as any I've seen from any QB this year. I think it went for a 1st down too. 15/21 for 208yds. That's a 71% completion rate and there were at least 2 clear drops by Pettis, maybe 3 IIRC (2 Pettis, 1 ISM). Also the TD pass to Mooney late in the game was pass interference as Harrison Smith hit his arm early. I would have liked to see Mooney be more emphatic about it and urge his coach to challenge it. At a min with the 2 drops we saw Fields throw well enough for an 80% comp rate. There wouldn't be anything significant in the yards for those dropped passes, maybe another 15yds but we can call it 220yds. He added another 47yds rushing. That's a productive day and to he looked the most comfortable I've seen him in the pocket despite a lot of early pressure and some players getting a free run at him. It appears Whitehair means a lot to our running game. Patrick and Mustipher not so much. Lots of folks don't like Kmet but he had a good day too. Velus' speed (his coach calls him V12) showed up on the TD run. I didn't think he could get in that gap fast enough to score. He'll help as he gets more involved in the offense. Either this week or the MNF game a week afterward we'll have N'Keal Harry. He's good enough to get ISM off the field. Hopefully Jaylon Johnson returns too. Two prime time games in a row.

1. I still like Justin Fields and think he continues to play better each game. He made some really good quick reads this week, the sort we've been asking to see. He could use a couple WRs who can hold onto the ball. 2. Kyler Gordon had a good game. Everyone will go after him on a play he missed but he's starting to make positive (negative) plays too. Patience with rookies is needed. 3. I'm really heartened by this team coming back from being down 18pts to take the lead. It would have been easy to throw in the towel and wait for next week. There's a lot of goodness here with the coaches and the young players. A lot more talented players are needed to close the gap, however, just having Jaylon Johnson on the field might have been enough to sway this one in our favor. 4. Welcome back David Montgomery. He's still the RB I want to see with the ball in heavy traffic at the LOS where he often fought just to avoid a loss on a play. His big plays were nice to see too. 5. Hurry back Cody Whitehair, we miss ya!

Our OTs usually don't get blown up early and typically are just giving up edge pressure deep in the pocket. That's a weakness for both OTs but it's also the pass rush being done to contain Fields. If Fields could or would step up in the pocket most of that pressure, not all of it, would disappear. Fixing the interior blocking is key and after watching Patrick get pushed around I don't know if we have the players to make that happen regardless of where he lines up.

I didn't say or even imply that he should tell them. In this case it's more why tell them your taking your biggest weakness off the field?

Eberflus on Mon: We will have Patrick at LG with Whitehair out. Today reporter asks him what changed now that Getsy said we're trying out different combinations. Eberflus on Fri: "Nothing changed." Then he ran on about always having competition etc. and tossed in a quick Freudian slip about wanting Patrick at Center. He doesn't like to disclose anything he feels can give us an advantage especially personnel changes but this change seems like a done deal.

I think so but I also think that happens in the 2nd half of the season.

Swift kicks in with some good All-22 breakdown on Fields and the Oline. I listened to Getsy today and I think this staff is done with Mustipher. That doesn't mean we have good options but IMO they should be thinking after the first 4 games we haven't seen the improvement we expected. If we were to give someone else 4 games experience would we be in a better spot? Teven Jenkins doesn't even have 4 games experience and he's improved. He's not perfect as he gets beat on the very last play in this review but more often than not he's blocking his man the furthest away from Justin as compared to everyone else. Patrick continued to practice some at Center so that means he's not a lock at LG as Eberflus said on Mon. If he was they wouldn't take away valuable LG reps from him. That also means someone else, maybe Carter, got snaps at LG.

More good feedback on the offense as a whole.

Sorry Adam, I've been waiting but we gotta get this in gear. I don't expect much with Whitehair and Montgomery out this week. Things will only be tougher on Fields in the passing game and without Montgomery this week we'll struggle again to get the tough yards (3rd and short) where Herbert struggles. However the Vikings, despite being 3-1, are bottom third in both pass and run defense so they don't appear to be as good as they were in years past. They are also going through a transition to a new scheme under our former coach Ed Donatell. Just like us there are likely some growing pains. On offense they are 21st in rushing yards, but 12th in passing yards. That tends to play into our strength as a passing defense but we'll likely be missing Jaylon Johnson again this week since he didn't practice today. Jaylon is the perfect antidote to a WR like Justin Jefferson because he's consistent in his technique and you want to get Jefferson's head out of the game if at all possible. He's already shown this year some tendencies to break off his routes if he doesn't win early. The only way I can see us winning is if we have a few surprise big plays.

No doubt Mooney needs a sidekick but I'm happier (relatively speaking) watching ESB and Pettis trying to sort that out than if we had re-signed ARob in desperation.

https://www.profootballrumors.com/2022/10/lions-waive-k-dominik-eberle-to-add-k-michael-badgley

I thought about that too. I think Borom is a better fit at OG anyway. https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bears/justin-fields-was-under-pressure-50-percent-his-dropbacks Very interesting stat: Justin Fields was under pressure on 51.4% of his dropbacks against the Giants. On plays where he was kept clean, he went 10-of-14 for 168 yards, with a PFF grade of 90.3 Justin Fields’ average time to throw on plays where he was kept clean was 2.84 seconds, according to PFF We'd all like to see some quicker throws in there but we'd also like to see some WRs win early on the route. Add in that we had 5 drops and it's not hard to see Fields putting up an average statistical game if he had an average supporting cast. I'm not giving up on him.

It's so bad I just can't stop laughing: PFF scores for Bears Oline in wk 4 and they weren't all horrible, weren't all good either, but that one below for Mustipher is something I didn't think was possible. https://bearswire.usatoday.com/lists/bears-pff-grades-how-the-offensive-line-fared-in-week-4-loss-to-giants/ "Pass protection: 1.5"

Actually that might not be a bad option but if Patrick can snap he needs to play Center. It's just too pivotal a position both for the line calls and performance. I'd be ok with Eiselen from a physical performance standpoint he's a bit more stout but I don't think he'd handle the calls very well at this stage. That's where Patrick at Center helps even if you have a rookie like Carter next to him. I hope what Eberflus said Monday about Patrick staying at LG was just early week chatter because I haven't been impressed with him at RG. I can't see that getting better with a position switch to the other side. Monday is all about grading out the previous game with the players, then they start game planning. Tue should be when the coaches reconvene and hopefully they decide to experiment a bit with the LG spot: Reiff, Schofield, or even Carter. At least then if it's Patrick we can know it's the best option.

The WRs I see early in Rd 1 aren't that impressive. Ideally we can find a bigger WR to compliment Mooney and to help in the red zone. The other need IMO is a really good slot WR who can just help move the chains. 6th overall: Jordan Addison. 6'. 175lbs. Not very physical, might be touch faster than Mooney but not elite speed. Seems like a similar player as compared to Mooney. Not a bad thing to add to the roster at all but not at 6 overall where TDN has him. I'm not even sure he'll be a top 15 pick when it's all done unless he runs really fast at the combine. 10th overall: Jaxon Smith-Njigba. 6'. 198lbs. He's not fast but is very quick and a good route runner. He's a likely slot WR in the NFL but we need one. At 10th overall as a slot WR I don't quite see that on film. Having said that he's easily the best WR among this group IMO. 12th overall: Kayshon Boutte. 6'. 185lbs. More speed here but he's a head case (like many WRs). He doesn't like working inside routes and sometimes just gives up on plays. I don't see him as a culture fit for Flus but most of us grow up sooner or later. 22nd: Quentin Johnson. 6'4". 212lbs. Decent long speed, some burst in tight spaces but not very nimble and doesn't seem to have a great vertical. Route running is what he'll need to demonstrate this year to cement his draft position. Later in Rd 1 the value proposition is getting better and he fits a need or does he if N'Keal Harry returns and plays well enough? 36th: Parker Washington. 5'10". 207lbs. This is the first WR that's "different" and along with Smith-Njigba would really fit what we need as a slot WR. I'll just quote TDN: "Washington has experience in a slew of alignments but his best work and highest volume have come from the slot. He’s very savvy running MOF routes that sit down versus zone, break vertically on delayed attacks up the field, or work across the face of traffic when running the shallow and rubbing to come clean against man coverage. His ability to take throws in stride and play off contact for RAC is accentuated by how dense he is as a player—he’s built like Amari Rodgers from Clemson several years back and carries his weight like a running back. But the story with Washington that will garner the most attention is the ball skills". I'll be trying to catch a Penn St. game one of these weekends.

For the draftniks out there who are y'all watching on Saturdays? I'm guessing we'll land at 15 overall and could be as high as 10th. The top player I want is Jalen Carter DT but he'll be long gone before we draft. The next DT who might still be on the board is Bresee who can also play 3-tech and has the motor we want. He seems to be more 1-gap style vs. 2-gap so might still be around for us. Beyond that I'm not seeing anyone jump out at a position of need. I'm not that enamored with Jaxon Smith-Njigba, not that high anyway. Maybe Boutte but I can't watch these clips and say that's the WR I want 15th overall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Cda_oTnIBQ I'd grab an OT but the two in that range (Duncan and Skoronski) have questions marks and might be interior players. I'm just working off TDN's list right now, we don't have a list of early entrants, but if I can't get one those DTs I feel like it's time to trade back. https://thedraftnetwork.com/nfl-draft-rankings-tdn100-2023-september/

I'm pretty sure they did and the plan was if the rookies were talented enough they were going to play and learn on the job. It's a much better way to know what you have before going into an offseason with all that cap space but it does hinder Fields' progress.

I remember the Gardner Minshew hysteria too.

I'm not nearly as down after watching this game. I'm not that high either rather I just see this as the 6-8 win team I was expecting. One with some ups and some downs. I'm not sure I'd even want this team sitting at 3-1 and all the media noise that comes with it because they really aren't ready for that. However I really wanted to see Fields and the offense on that last drive opportunity. Keep fighting as the underdog, keep working, and if we get a better draft pick so be it. There are just different players making mistakes on different plays. Sometimes on the same play. One example in the running game: Both Herbert and Ebner too often stretched plays to the outside instead of taking the designed cutback inside. Those cut backs were open. One of those led to a holding call on Kmet who had a great seal block on the edge. Kmet's fault or RB? Lucas Patrick continues to look like the backup he was in GB. He has good plays and then plays where he just gets blown up. I'm not sure what Fields is supposed to do with Patrick in his lap. Our edges are still too inconsistent now that players have film on our OTs. Nobody in the protection figured out the dual LB blitz. That's on Getsy. Pettis dropped a perfect pass from Fields that would have been a 1st down. He's never been a contested pass type of receiver and that's why he's at best a backup. For his part Fields is still thinking too much even when he's outside the pocket. I could go on about those things but among the positives I saw were some good adjustments from the defense in the 2nd half. Again, this staff can help the players to adapt which IMO bodes well for the future. When these young players like Brisker get more experience those adjustments will happen quicker on the field. Mooney picked up 4 rec for 94yds so the monkey is off his back. Eddie Jackson had a pretty good day and Roquan made some good plays, mostly in the 2nd half as did Brisker and Morrow. Specials teams coverage was good. Our new kicker went 4-4, not bad for one day of practice.