Week 6 for the Chicago Bears was supposed to be a win – a comfortable win even for a team that is as talent deficient as the Bears are. They faced a Washington Commanders team that ranked in the bottom ten in total yards per game, rushing yards per game and points per game. This was supposed to be the game where the Bears feasted on what was perceived as inferior talent. What transpired was quite possibly the worst football game ever played in the last 50 years – a game the Bears lost 12-7.
Fans who watched this farce of a football contest had to wait until midway through the 3rd quarter before a touchdown was scored when Justin Fields hit Dante Pettis on a pretty 48-yard over the shoulder pass. The game’s only other TD came when the Commanders recovered a muffed punt from Velus Jones, Jr. and a play later scored on a Brian Robinson 5-yard run into the end zone. The Bears would have one last chance to win and that was only because of an unreal 40-yard run by Justin Fields to get the Bears inside of the Commanders’ 10-yard line for the 3rd time in this game. A dropped pass from Pettis and then a dropped pass from Darnell Mooney at the goal line ended the night.
If you never saw the score and just looked at the stat sheet you would swear the Bears had this game well in hand. The Bears out-gained Washington 392-214. They held the Commanders to just 86 yards passing. The Bears won the time of possession, they had 69 total plays to the Commanders’ 53. The Bears forced Washington to just 2 for 11 on 3rd down conversions and they out-rushed Washington 238-126. So… what went wrong? The Bears are what went wrong. They are their own worst enemy.
The Good, Bad, Ugly
The Good: Justin Fields’ toughness was on full display as he kept getting back up from getting hit and continued to fight. Whether he should do that at all times is certainly up for debate but this kid has what it takes to play in this league. He singlehandedly kept drives alive either with his arm or his feet. His 40 yard run late in the game set the Bears up to potentially win the game. People who want to solely blame the Bears’ misfortunes this season on him had to see that this is not the case at all. Yes… he still has to be better at not holding the ball so long and trust what is NFL-open but this young man is tough and he has the tools to be a really good quarterback. This game also can’t be blamed on the defense as they held Washington to 12 points and only 214 yards of offense. You continue to see the progression of their young secondary of Jaquan Brisker, Kyler Gordon and Kindle Vildor. It also helped getting Jaylon Johnson back. Roquan Smith, minus the play where Carson Wentz blew up his soul, had a good game as well with 12 tackles(9 solo) and a sack.
The Bad: Has anyone seen Robert Quinn? Anyone? Anyone? Through six games, Quinn has only 5 tackles and 1 sack. That’s not going to cut it. Justin Fields left some plays on the field. There were some underneath throws he should have targeted. The interception on the Bears 2nd drive came when instead of lofting the ball over the lineman’s head to get it to Cole Kmet, Fields tried to sidearm it and it hit the defender’s helmet. On the Bears’ 3rd drive Fields missed a wide open Ryan Griffin in the end zone. That should have been a touch pass, a pass Fields knows he has to make. The Bears’ WR corps are just not good enough. Dropped passes can kill a quarterback’s confidence and Thursday night was no exception. On a critical 4th down play, Ihmir Smith-Marsette drops a pass that hits him in the numbers. On the last Bears’ drive, Pettis, though he was held on a PI call that was missed, simply couldn’t bring in a potential game winning pass that hit him in the hands. On the very next play, Darnell Mooney drops what should’ve been the game winning pass. Your “#1” receiver can’t drop that pass. Justin Jefferson makes that catch. Cooper Kupp, Stefan Diggs, Devante Adams and any other true #1 receiver you can think of makes that catch. Mooney is talented. He’ll make the wow catch but your #1 receiver is also your fail safe. He’s your “go get it” receiver, the guy that’s going to get the crucial grab when you need it most. Mooney is not that guy.
The Ugly: This offense is terrible. There is no excuse for an NFL team to get inside of the opponent’s 10 yard three times in a game and come away with no points. That is inexcusable yet that’s what the Bears did on Thursday night. Even more unforgivable is the play of the offensive line in pass protection. Justin Fields was sacked 5 times, hit 12 times and pressured 18 times. According to ESPN Stats & Info, Justin Fields has been pressured on 46.8% of pass drop backs, the most of any QB in the NFL through 1st 6 games of a season. The 23 sacks given up by this offensive line so far this season is the most in the NFL. Sam Mustipher, Lucas Patrick and Braxton Jones were continuously manhandled on Thursday night. If you are trying to develop a young franchise QB then why on earth do you put him behind the worst OL in the league? The QB position is the most important position in the game yet this Bears franchise has given Justin Fields the worst OL in the league and the worst WR corps in the league. How in the world do you expect to justifiably gauge his abilities when you have absolute trash around him. The front office has failed in trying to protect its future franchise QB… and people are taking notice:
Up next: After this national embarrassment, the Bears’ next game will be against the Patriots… on Monday Night Football on October 24th. Ugh….
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