Thoughts From the Cards Game

[AZ54]

I'm really glad I was able to go to this game.  Beforehand we stopped at a restaurant near the stadium (there is a mall in the complex) and from our table I could see about 4 Cards fans and the rest where Bears fans.   That carried into the game and almost the entire visitors side of the field where Bears fans, and I was down low at the 50yd line, row 24.   Looking across the field it was clear there were quite a few Bears jerseys on the Cards side too.  I don't know what was shown on TV but often the Bears players were looking right at us asking for more noise, especially late in the game.  And we were LOUD.  It's impossible to know but I'm confident as the 12th man on the field the Bears fans made a difference in this game.  

With a comeback win like this the place went nuts.  Cards fans largely walked out at 2min mark even though they had 3 timeouts remaining and would likely get the ball back.  No Bears fans left early.  When the clock hit 0:00 it was mayhem with high 5's everywhere.  That energy, non-stop high 5's, non-stop chants of "Da Bears" carried all the way out to the mezzanine as we were leaving the stadium and it lasted even outside the stadium.  We stole their stadium for a day and let 'em know it.  

No Bears fan's left that game bitching about Trubisky, or the blown coverages, nor anything else.  We were celebrating the win.

On to the game. 

If Taylor Gabriel is fast it doesn't really show up on the field.  At least I didn't see it.  I'm not saying he's slow but he's not Tyreek Hill.  Trubisky's overthrows of him can be just bad throws but they also make me wonder if Gabriel is dealing with some nagging injury that's slowing him down just a bit.  Or he's just not going to be the WR we thought we had.  I was upset when Gabriel quit on the route in the 4th quarter with the game on the line.  IMO Trubisky's pass was on target if Gabriel continues through without the hesitation.  Gabriel took the big hit anyway which got us 15 yards.  We've seen Robinson hesitate or give up on a route late in a game too so I wonder how much of this Trubisky is dealing with among the WRs corps early this season.    

Cards D did just as I expected and stacked the front all game long with a multitude of blitzes and coverages.  They have a good defense just not as good as ours.  Patrick Peterson looked like he was coasting covering our WRs and they moved him all over in coverage to disguise where he was.  He even covered Burton on at least one play.  

Nagy stuck with the run game putting up a total of 114 yards between Howard and Cohen on the Cards D.  We might be wanting more but Cards fans were complaining about their run D especially the few big gains we had.  (It's always interesting to hear the other side)   

I'm likely stating the obvious but Trubisky is still not comfortable with this offense.  His reads are slow to develop.  Whether that's a result of deciphering the defense or just getting the timing down on the plays/WRs it's hard to say.  Likely a combination of both.   The illegal shifts on plays also tell us other players on offense don't quite have it all down either.  This is why we struggle in the redzone in particular.  Throwing windows are tight and short lived.  It will take time but there's a lot to be said for Trubisky's composure in the last two games after early mistakes.  Chase Daniels was often on the field in timeouts and the last man talking with Trubisky.  

Khalil Mack and the defense struggled a bit early but afterward locked it down.  They were feeding off the fans energy too.  Losing Prince was a big loss and they clearly went right at Tolliver, who was giving up a big cushion, immediately afterward.  Rosen/ford (not sure who was in when) looked his way immediately and got some easy receptions.    Somebody got in Tolliver's ear and reminded him he has a very good pass rush protecting him and his coverage tightened up late in the game.   

Roquan took a bad angle on a play in the 4th quarter and gave up 12 yards.  He was often taken out and we went with just Trevathan as the sole LB on the field quite often.  I'm confident Smith will learn but it shows he's still adjusting to the NFL.    

In the game thread someone said Trubisky is the worst player on the offense.  I wonder if they saw Kush play?   Kush doesn't have anywhere close to the same responsibility as Trubisky.   

Nagy wants to be aggressive and it's showing not just on deep passing plays but his timeouts and desire to go for it on 4th downs.  His players aren't ready for all this yet.  I was glad when he backed off and settled for a couple FGs.  That's always easy to say when you win but on the flip side I really wish we had those two timeouts late in the game.  Watching them on the field during timeouts it seems obvious the coaches work together well in these moments and there's a lot of discussion.  I don't get a sense of arrogance or desperation in these calls, just guys working together to sort out some of the special plays we have with personnel and against the defensive look they hope to get.  I expect more of these plays will be successful later in the season as the various pieces come together.  

It's the 3rd week of the NFL season and winless teams are desperate.  Roster talent levels are always closer than fans think and so this was a big upset weekend.  Fortunately two of those upsets were the Packers and Vikings.  It's important to learn how to win on the road in the NFL and despite early mistakes the Bears did just that.  It wasn't pretty but I think to come from behind like this was a big deal for the players confidence going forward.  Look at the progression:  Against GB we blow a big lead on the road.  Against Seattle we protect a lead at home.  Against Arizona we come from being down 14pts to win late on the road. 

We're still working on integrating Mack (hits easy button) and Smith into the D along with the new offensive scheme and new WRs.  Absolutely NOBODY predicted we'd be in 1st place in the NFC North going into week 4.  Enjoy it. 

[Connorbear]

We're still working on integrating Mack (hits easy button) and Smith into the D along with the new offensive scheme and new WRs.  Absolutely NOBODY predicted we'd be in 1st place in the NFC North going into week 4.  Enjoy it. 

Exactly.  We are in a great place right now.  

Peace

 

[madlithuanian]

6 hours ago, AZ54 said:

I'm really glad I was able to go to this game.  Beforehand we stopped at a restaurant near the stadium (there is a mall in the complex) and from our table I could see about 4 Cards fans and the rest where Bears fans.   That carried into the game and almost the entire visitors side of the field where Bears fans, and I was down low at the 50yd line, row 24.   Looking across the field it was clear there were quite a few Bears jerseys on the Cards side too.  I don't know what was shown on TV but often the Bears players were looking right at us asking for more noise, especially late in the game.  And we were LOUD.  It's impossible to know but I'm confident as the 12th man on the field the Bears fans made a difference in this game.  

With a comeback win like this the place went nuts.  Cards fans largely walked out at 2min mark even though they had 3 timeouts remaining and would likely get the ball back.  No Bears fans left early.  When the clock hit 0:00 it was mayhem with high 5's everywhere.  That energy, non-stop high 5's, non-stop chants of "Da Bears" carried all the way out to the mezzanine as we were leaving the stadium and it lasted even outside the stadium.  We stole their stadium for a day and let 'em know it.  

No Bears fan's left that game bitching about Trubisky, or the blown coverages, nor anything else.  We were celebrating the win.

On to the game. 

If Taylor Gabriel is fast it doesn't really show up on the field.  At least I didn't see it.  I'm not saying he's slow but he's not Tyreek Hill.  Trubisky's overthrows of him can be just bad throws but they also make me wonder if Gabriel is dealing with some nagging injury that's slowing him down just a bit.  Or he's just not going to be the WR we thought we had.  I was upset when Gabriel quit on the route in the 4th quarter with the game on the line.  IMO Trubisky's pass was on target if Gabriel continues through without the hesitation.  Gabriel took the big hit anyway which got us 15 yards.  We've seen Robinson hesitate or give up on a route late in a game too so I wonder how much of this Trubisky is dealing with among the WRs corps early this season.    

Cards D did just as I expected and stacked the front all game long with a multitude of blitzes and coverages.  They have a good defense just not as good as ours.  Patrick Peterson looked like he was coasting covering our WRs and they moved him all over in coverage to disguise where he was.  He even covered Burton on at least one play.  

Nagy stuck with the run game putting up a total of 114 yards between Howard and Cohen on the Cards D.  We might be wanting more but Cards fans were complaining about their run D especially the few big gains we had.  (It's always interesting to hear the other side)   

I'm likely stating the obvious but Trubisky is still not comfortable with this offense.  His reads are slow to develop.  Whether that's a result of deciphering the defense or just getting the timing down on the plays/WRs it's hard to say.  Likely a combination of both.   The illegal shifts on plays also tell us other players on offense don't quite have it all down either.  This is why we struggle in the redzone in particular.  Throwing windows are tight and short lived.  It will take time but there's a lot to be said for Trubisky's composure in the last two games after early mistakes.  Chase Daniels was often on the field in timeouts and the last man talking with Trubisky.  

Khalil Mack and the defense struggled a bit early but afterward locked it down.  They were feeding off the fans energy too.  Losing Prince was a big loss and they clearly went right at Tolliver, who was giving up a big cushion, immediately afterward.  Rosen/ford (not sure who was in when) looked his way immediately and got some easy receptions.    Somebody got in Tolliver's ear and reminded him he has a very good pass rush protecting him and his coverage tightened up late in the game.   

Roquan took a bad angle on a play in the 4th quarter and gave up 12 yards.  He was often taken out and we went with just Trevathan as the sole LB on the field quite often.  I'm confident Smith will learn but it shows he's still adjusting to the NFL.    

In the game thread someone said Trubisky is the worst player on the offense.  I wonder if they saw Kush play?   Kush doesn't have anywhere close to the same responsibility as Trubisky.   

Nagy wants to be aggressive and it's showing not just on deep passing plays but his timeouts and desire to go for it on 4th downs.  His players aren't ready for all this yet.  I was glad when he backed off and settled for a couple FGs.  That's always easy to say when you win but on the flip side I really wish we had those two timeouts late in the game.  Watching them on the field during timeouts it seems obvious the coaches work together well in these moments and there's a lot of discussion.  I don't get a sense of arrogance or desperation in these calls, just guys working together to sort out some of the special plays we have with personnel and against the defensive look they hope to get.  I expect more of these plays will be successful later in the season as the various pieces come together.  

It's the 3rd week of the NFL season and winless teams are desperate.  Roster talent levels are always closer than fans think and so this was a big upset weekend.  Fortunately two of those upsets were the Packers and Vikings.  It's important to learn how to win on the road in the NFL and despite early mistakes the Bears did just that.  It wasn't pretty but I think to come from behind like this was a big deal for the players confidence going forward.  Look at the progression:  Against GB we blow a big lead on the road.  Against Seattle we protect a lead at home.  Against Arizona we come from being down 14pts to win late on the road. 

We're still working on integrating Mack (hits easy button) and Smith into the D along with the new offensive scheme and new WRs.  Absolutely NOBODY predicted we'd be in 1st place in the NFC North going into week 4.  Enjoy it. 

Great takes and thank you for being a great 12th man!

[AZ54]

Matt Nagy...  

"I want to start off by thanking the Bears fans for being there.  Wow.  That was unbelievable.  From the start when we ran out onto the field to that final play there was a 12th man here on the field on the road and not every team has that.  We have that and we're so thankful for that.  It was an unbelievable job and trust me, our players and our coaches appreciate that."   

Your welcome.  

https://www.chicagobears.com/video/nagy-on-victory-over-the-arizona-cardinals

[adam]

Super cool, thanks AZ. Great first person perspective. It is nice to get that "at the game" point of view.

Yeah, no way did I believe we would be in 1st place. 

[Alaskan Grizzly]

11 hours ago, AZ54 said:

I'm really glad I was able to go to this game.  Beforehand we stopped at a restaurant near the stadium (there is a mall in the complex) and from our table I could see about 4 Cards fans and the rest where Bears fans.   That carried into the game and almost the entire visitors side of the field where Bears fans, and I was down low at the 50yd line, row 24.   Looking across the field it was clear there were quite a few Bears jerseys on the Cards side too.  I don't know what was shown on TV but often the Bears players were looking right at us asking for more noise, especially late in the game.  And we were LOUD.  It's impossible to know but I'm confident as the 12th man on the field the Bears fans made a difference in this game.  

From the "TV" perspective, it was pretty obvious you guys (the Bears fans) were there.  Whenever they showed shots of the crowd it would seem there were more blue than red jerseys in the crowd.  And the loudness?  Well that confused both me and my wife a few times.  I kept having to look at the field or scoreboard to remind myself that the team was in Arizona and not in Chicago. Pretty impressive. 

10 hours ago, AZ54 said:

On to the game. 

If Taylor Gabriel is fast it doesn't really show up on the field.  At least I didn't see it.  I'm not saying he's slow but he's not Tyreek Hill.  Trubisky's overthrows of him can be just bad throws but they also make me wonder if Gabriel is dealing with some nagging injury that's slowing him down just a bit.  Or he's just not going to be the WR we thought we had.  I was upset when Gabriel quit on the route in the 4th quarter with the game on the line.  IMO Trubisky's pass was on target if Gabriel continues through without the hesitation.  Gabriel took the big hit anyway which got us 15 yards.  We've seen Robinson hesitate or give up on a route late in a game too so I wonder how much of this Trubisky is dealing with among the WRs corps early this season.    

Again from the TV perspective, a fair number of the mid to long range passes looked way and above the receiver's heads.  This is consistent with what we saw in games 1 and 2.  Perhaps Gabriel isn't as fast as we'd hoped or Robinson as tall as he appears.  But in one example, Trubisky was supposed to be throwing a back shoulder fade to Robinson in the end zone but it sailed about 5-10 feet above him.  This by itself wouldn't have been an issue but given we've seen this type play already, and consistently, its concerning.  You make light of this below in your own observations, among others. 

From your perspective, how did White look?  I could see that he was on the field for many of the plays but its like Trubisky never once looked at him.  Is he not getting open or Trubisky just not getting his progressions? 

11 hours ago, AZ54 said:

I'm likely stating the obvious but Trubisky is still not comfortable with this offense.  His reads are slow to develop.  Whether that's a result of deciphering the defense or just getting the timing down on the plays/WRs it's hard to say.  Likely a combination of both.   The illegal shifts on plays also tell us other players on offense don't quite have it all down either.  This is why we struggle in the redzone in particular.  Throwing windows are tight and short lived.  It will take time but there's a lot to be said for Trubisky's composure in the last two games after early mistakes.  Chase Daniels was often on the field in timeouts and the last man talking with Trubisky. 

 

11 hours ago, AZ54 said:

In the game thread someone said Trubisky is the worst player on the offense.  I wonder if they saw Kush play?   Kush doesn't have anywhere close to the same responsibility as Trubisky.   

Yes...he (Kush) looked like hot garbage.  Might be time to seriously consider getting Daniels in somehow (provided he's as good as advertised).  Either he at Guard or Center and Whitehair in wherever they don't put him.

11 hours ago, AZ54 said:

We're still working on integrating Mack (hits easy button) and Smith into the D along with the new offensive scheme and new WRs.  Absolutely NOBODY predicted we'd be in 1st place in the NFC North going into week 4.  Enjoy it. 

Yes its nice to see the team where it is. If they can keep 'stacking wins' then things will be just fine.  Could they contend deep into the playoffs right now?  No.  But there's still a lot of season left and 2-1 is a heck of a lot better than 0-3.

[AZ54]

2 hours ago, Alaskan Grizzly said:

 

Again from the TV perspective, a fair number of the mid to long range passes looked way and above the receiver's heads.  This is consistent with what we saw in games 1 and 2.  Perhaps Gabriel isn't as fast as we'd hoped or Robinson as tall as he appears.  But in one example, Trubisky was supposed to be throwing a back shoulder fade to Robinson in the end zone but it sailed about 5-10 feet above him.  This by itself wouldn't have been an issue but given we've seen this type play already, and consistently, its concerning.  You make light of this below in your own observations, among others. 

From your perspective, how did White look?  I could see that he was on the field for many of the plays but its like Trubisky never once looked at him.  Is he not getting open or Trubisky just not getting his progressions? 

 

 

I'm not an NFL QB but if Taylor Gabriel is not wide open and I were throwing to him he's so small the only chance you have with him on a deep pass is to drop the ball in over the top of defenders.  I understand now when the media talk about him as being listed a generous 5'8".   

I didn't watch what White did at all.  I saw him enter the game several times but just as often saw Bellamy.  I was hoping we'd see some production from him, if only a few catches, here and there but this just doesn't bode well for him.   I expect Bellamy to get the bigger role with Miller's injury.  

One more note:  Floyd played without the big cast on his hand.  Very early in the game he did something to injure that hand and I was concerned.   He stayed in the game but seemed to play a more limited role.  I don't think he re-injured it but it might be a case where he just stretched out the tendons a bit since it's been so long not using his hand.  He generally looked more effective what little I saw of him.  

 

[BearFan2000]

Thanks for posting the experience of being there live.  It wasn't a pretty win by any stretch.  And the offense has a ways to go and that begins with Mitch.  The D gave up two quick scores but then shut the Cards down.  It was good to see them dig in and stop the bleeding and start making plays to keep them off the score board till the offense could claw us back into the game and take the lead.  Huge, huge pick to effectively end the game.  The Cards were starting to move the ball slowly closer to FG range and I can remember thinking here we go we're going to let them get a FG to take a 1 pt lead and we'd come up short of regaining the lead.  To think that if Fuller makes that INT we'd be 3-0.  An ugly win but a win nonetheless.  We are 2-1 above 500 for the first time since what forever???  And we are in first place in the NFC north, which even if that is short lived it's nice to be in first.  One thing that I keep thinking after this game, is we are 2-1 and haven't played our best ball or a complete game on either side of the ball yet and we're finding ways to win.  Creating a winning culture is a process. After 3 years of Fox where we would fight hard, come close, but more often than not find ways to lose games we should have won.  This is a young team that that is trying to find it's identity and learn how to play winning football.  I'd love us to be playing at a higher level for 4 quarters every week but we're a work in progress.  It'll take time, but grinding out wins along the way is encouraging knowing we haven't played our best or to our potential.  Doesn't mean we won't get frustrated and upset at play calling, individual players, units or the team as a whole.  We're all passionate fans as proven by the shear amount of Bears fans in AZ for an away game.  We want our team to dominate every play every down, every game all year.