Bears4Ever_34

Low key concerned that our playoff matchup might end up being against TB at TB in the 1st round. I would rather play the Giants or any other team in the NFC South except the Bucs. Their defense is very good and Baker will probably be healthier the next time they play. A lot can change between now and then, but I would be surprised if the Bucs didn't win their division. The Panthers have fallen apart, the Falcons have a QB problem and just traded one of their best defensive players, and the Saints are not great on either side of the ball.

I haven't looked into it enough, but there's been a lot of talk recently about how bad teams have been coming off their 3rd primetime game in a row. I think the Bears are one of a few teams already this year that have played 3 in a row—the Seahawks being one of them, who the Bears just beat, and there was at least another team I'm forgetting, maybe KC the week before who lost to SEA? If the NFL could be done with that schedule gimmick, that would be great. Don't need to go through that ever again.

I didn't realize until later that it was helmet to helmet because I was so mad at the turnover. That's two game changing calls by the officials in this game that went against the Bears. The awful holding penalty on Zavion Thomas' kickoff return took 7 points off the board, and that Burden play gave the Bucs 7 points that they shouldn't have gotten. 14 point swing. Still waiting for the first game where the officials screw over our opponents instead of the Bears. It never happens.

Had a feeling this was going to be a painful night after seeing the Packers destroy the Patriots. Caleb choking the game away with the worst performance I've ever seen from him. Embarrassing.

The good: Caleb Williams - Had he not missed 3 games, he would be the MVP front runner. That's how good he's been. Should still be in the conversation anyways after tonight. Jeffery Simmons - Instant impact superstar. Defense can be scary if they add another DL/CB Austin Booker - Lowkey had two major plays, a blocked FG and a tipped pass that lead to a critical interception that allowed them to seal the game. The bad: Colston Loveland - Can't put the ball on the ground. Hands are not as reliable as they were last year. Needs to be better moving forward. Run game - They ran it effectively enough, but it's clear they miss Monangai. They're just not getting as many explosives and it's putting more of a burden on the QB to do everything. Need to get that fixed coming out of the bye. Special teams - Minus the blocked FG, they looked bad, again, last night. Coverage was bad, too many penalties, Tory Taylor's punts weren't particularly good, and Zavion Thomas is looking like a bad 3rd round pick through 8 games. No vision on his returns. Corners - Another atrocious ending to halftime, giving up another TD with hardly any time left after the offense had just scored. Johnson and Stevenson are the two literal worst cornerbacks in football. Can't allow that to happen anymore. Poles needs to find someone on the market. Final thoughts: What a statement game from this team. They were already Superbowl contenders before this game, but a blowout win like this, against that opponent, in the hardest stadium to play at, was a thing of beauty. They just might be the best team in the NFL. There's nobody they can't beat now with Simmons. They need to finish off Tampa Bay and go into the bye at 7-2 before hopefully getting some more guys back, and who knows, maybe another player or two via trade? If I were Ryan Poles, I am going to be even more aggressive than I was planning to be before after watching that game.

Love this move by Poles. It's definitely an overpay, but a smart overpay. I will never fault a GM for being aggressive for the right guy. It's one thing when you overpay for Chase Claypool, but Simmons has been the best defensive tackle in the NFL for the last two years. He is a complete game changer. He's basically first or top 3 in virtually every advanced category for his position, and keep in mind, he did all this playing for the Titans, who never have leads. Imagine how much better with an offense that can score? He's also on a very nice cost controlled contract for the next 3 years. I think there's a team option that perfectly lines up with Caleb's contract extension kicking in, so there's not a huge financial burden. Hats off to Poles. I'm beyond excited. No reason to stop now, though. If they could go out and get Khalil Mack and/or another corner, that would be the icing on the cake. LFG!

Whatever they do, they need to come out of it with at least 1 DL and 1 CB, and it better not just be a Joe Tryon-Shoyinka type of move. Mack is fine, but he needs to be a complimentary piece to a larger acquisition, in my opinion. They should aim as high as possible for someone like Crosby or Jeffery Simmons, and then work your way down the tier ladder. Mack is a rotational piece, not an every down DE/LB anymore. I'd still be excited for nostalgia reasons, but he's going to be more of a tier 3 pass rusher, not a major needle mover. If Simmons and Crosby aren't getting traded, Chase Young and the other guy from the Chargers, Tuipulotu, would be the next highest upside moves at pass rusher because of their youth and productivity. However, there's a decent chance they also may not be available for that same reason, even though their teams are terrible. Those would be the tier 2 guys. The most realistic options are your Khalil Macks, your Deforest Buckners, and your Riq Woolen's. I'm leaving out a few guys, but like I said, aim as high as possible, but give me at least two players, and I'll be satisfied.

If they don't shit the bed against TB or N.O, they should be 7-3, at worst, before rolling into DET for Thanksgiving. Normally, you need 10 to get in. 8-2 would virtually guarantee them a spot, but even at 7-3, they'll be in great position to make the playoffs. Given MIN's 6-0 start and Detroit's easy schedule, if they want to repeat as NFC North champs, they're almost certainly going to need a better than 2-4 record inside the division to do so. Those games still remain a major issue for Ben Johnson.

Good: Williams- looked like a young Aaron Rodgers these last two games Gordon- elite football instincts, continues to look exceptional rushing the passer Burden- starting to look like a #1 receiver, no idea why he got 0 targets in the second half, though 4th quarter redemption for Santos & Odunze- as frustrating as Odunze can be, he does seem to make critical catches in big moments Bad: Jaylon Johnson- totally unplayable, have to find a replacement before deadline Defensive execution- atrocious end of half tackling, followed by a near repeat of the Packers game in the 2nd half, allowing 1st downs on nearly every pass completion. Quick notes: Absolutely huge win going in to the SEA game. 2 of their next 3 are against TB and NE, meaning there's no excuse not to be—at least—7-3 or better heading into the Thanksgiving game. SEA has to play KC this week, and their offense doesn't look very good right now. It'll be tough, but the Bears could absolutely beat them next week with the way the quarterback is playing. Ryan Poles MUST make trades as soon as he possibly can to fix this defense before it loses them a game. The Bears were up 27-14, but it should have been 27-7 before the Patriots touched the ball again in the 2nd half had it not been for that horrendously executed end of half sequence by the defense, which completely ruined the momentum the offense had been building with that touchdown by Burden. Those are plays that will get them beat at some point if Poles waits too long to make something happen. This offense is too good, and this QB is too good to not be in all-in mode right now.

I think his offensive system is hard to prepare for if you don't get to see him often because more than half the league runs some variation of the Shanahan/McVay concepts. Ben's offense is unique. Teams in the division have played against him for years. He's not able to catch them by surprise. I also think it comes down to talent. The Bears don't have the same top end, elite players that Ben had in Detroit. We don't have an Amon Ra, a Jamison Williams, or a Gibbs. Few do, which is why the Lions are still as good as ever on offense, because they've had more talent than anybody over the last half decade. The Bears skill position players are inexperienced and inconsistent.

Good: Caleb Williams: accurate, took care of the football Kyler Gordon: single handily wrecked the game on defense, major impact player when healthy Tory Taylor: another banana ball forced fumble Bad: Ben Johnson in the 4th quarter: can't rest starters with that much time left Run game is non-existent without Monangai: Swift is either not healthy or just bad right now Too many fumbles by our ball carriers: Every week someone else takes their turn putting the ball on the ground in a critical moment. Enough! The officiating, took away at least 70-80 more passing yards from phantom penalties. The OPI on Loveland on 4th down was atrocious. Quick thoughts: Gordon's blitzing makes this defense dangerous with a lead. Caleb Williams took a few bad sacks, but otherwise played smart football. Didn't have to do too much. The short stuff was working today. Atlanta had to respect Caleb's arm. Next week's game is big. There's an opportunity to stack some wins with Tampa Bay and New Orleans coming up in 2 out of the next 3 games after next week. Have to get this one first.

A few things that are abundantly clear after today's embarrassing loss: - Tyson Bagent, Jaylon Johnson, and Roschon Johnson are not NFL players. - Ben Johnson is a really bad coach against teams in his own division. I'm not sure if Keenum starting would have made a difference in the result, but he certainly would have been a better option than whatever that was from Tyson Bagent. Reminded me of watching Todd Collins in 2010. No power or conviction in any of his throws. Took so many bad sacks, and somehow looks even slower and less athletic than he did as a rookie. The Bears never had a chance with him at quarterback. Ben sticking with him as long as he did was a joke. Speaking of Ben, it's time to have a serious conversation about how good he really is. We have scored 10 points this year COMBINED against the Vikings and Packers. The guy who boasted about breaking the NFL scoring record in the offseason. Last year, it was a similar story. They can't get anything going until it's late in the game and they're in a hurry up situation. 3-6 now in divisional matchups (including playoffs). 2 of those were because of Caleb's 4th quarter heroics and 1 was from a special teams return that set them up for a last second FG in another low scoring affair. Not good enough. I wish he'd stfu and focus on fixing this rotten offense in the redzone instead of telling reporters about how many points he WANTS to score. He should be embarrassed, because that was an absolute disgrace.

You never know, but it's probably just gamesmanship. I actually think there's a higher likelihood he doesn't play until the Patriots game. They'll only have 3 days rest between the Falcons game and Patriots game. Might be a little risky to have him return and play two games that quickly without allowing a chance for him to recover. Part of me thinks the outcome of the game tomorrow might factor into the decision of whether or not he plays next week.

Bears caught a break most of Bagent's picked were nullified by penalty. He was terrible out there. Jets came in not having had an interception in over a year and Bagent nearly gave them 3. He also took a bad sack and fumbled the ball to the ground, but it bounced right back up to him. Almost another disastrous play. He had a few nice throws on 3rd down to move the chains, but overall, it was not a good day for him. The Jets are a bad football team. It's clear now that this defense is starting to legitimize themselves as a good unit. Dennis Allen deserves some praise for the job he's done after week 1. I still don't like the DL sticking to blocks and getting pushed around in the run game, but they are battling, and the secondary has been getting better, too, minus Stevenson. We are going to need them to dominate GB next week to come out with a W. Put these pieces of shit out of their misery.

Keenum was absolutely sensational tonight. I was totally wrong about my keys to the game. I thought the only way the Bears could win was by running the ball. Keenum was making some incredible plays against pressure all night. The floaters he had that were dropped perfectly into the receivers hands as he got it out just before taking the hit was elite quarterback stuff. If Caleb ever adds that to his game, he's going to win MVP. Can't say enough good things about that gutsy performance from Keenum. Hats off! The defense was not good in the 1st half, but did a complete turnaround in the 2nd half, pitching a shutout. Dennis Allen finally brought pressure and fooled Hurts a couple times in key situations. Reminded me of the Rams playoff game a little bit. Theineman might be a stud. He's made plays in every game so far. He's always around the ball, and seems to be the surest of tacklers I've seen in a while. I think we got a good one. Special teams continues to be a disaster this year. Sam Rousch is awful and continuously makes the dumbest mistakes. Tripped over his own feet on a wide open catch in the first series, then, for some reason, decided to fall on the punt that was already lying on the ground at the 1 yard line and couldn't keep his foot from touching the goal line. Pretty sure he missed another blocking assignment on special teams and was benched later in the game. He needs to sit more than he is, because he is costing them big time. Also, Cairo Santos with his 4th or 5th kick that fell short of the landing zone already this year. Completely unacceptable. Return coverage was also quite bad. Kevin Hightower has somehow evaded a firing for years, but it's becoming really difficult to ignore with each passing week how poorly his unit has been playing. Last thing I'll say is that Keenum needs to start next week. I'm pretty sure Ben Johnson already hinted that it's going to be Bagent, and I think that is the wrong decision. Bagent has made 4 starts in his NFL career and none of them were particularly good. He got sacked on the last play of the game against Minnesota and threw a few hospital balls that were lucky to have been completed in that game, too. Keenum has over 60 career starts and is coming off maybe the game of his life against a really good opponent. I don't understand what we're doing here? Bagent has earned nothing. There's nothing wrong riding the hot hand, and if Keenum struggles against the Jets, you can go back to Bagent against the Packers. If Bagent struggles against the Jets, and the Bears lose, now you just gave away a game you should have won and immediately find yourself in a position to go back to Keenum and ruin Bagent's confidence. Maybe he'll be good and I'll eat crow next week, but I just don't know why you would mess with a good thing now. These next two weeks are so important.