Shane Waldron, Matt Eberflus and the Bears offense have caught a lot of heat heading into today’s game against the Colts and with good reason. In the 1st games of the season the Bears have amassed a robust 349 net yards of offense and one offensive TD. Today’s game against the Colts did nothing to beat those allegations as the Bears dropped to 1-2 following a head-scratching 21-16 loss in Indianapolis today.
Once again the coaching staff is going to take center stage and it will be for all the wrong reasons. Mistakes were a plenty today during the game thanks to poor play calling, poor execution, game mismanagement and some really boneheaded decisions.
The first boneheaded decision came in the 1st half with the Bears trailing 7-0. The Bears had 1st & goal at the IND 4-yd line and could not punch the ball in for 3 plays. Instead of taking a sure fire FG, Eberflus & Shane Waldron decided to go for it on 4th down and Waldron chose an pistol option play. That’s right – an option play that ended up losing 12 yards. The second boneheaded play came after Bears would finally score their 1st TD of the game, in the 4th quarter, only to burn a timeout because of confusion by the coaching staff on whether to go for 2 or kick the extra point. The 2-pt conversion failed spectacularly. The third came as the Colts were inside the 5 yard line after a Bears turnover and the coaching staff burned another timeout because the defense wasn’t set. The Colts were going to score anyway so why burn the timeout?
The offense did its fair share in giving the game away to the Colts. 3 turnovers doomed the Bears as the Colts were scored 14 points off of those turnovers. The 1st turnover came on a 3rd & 4 play in the 2nd quarter when Caleb Williams threw a sideline pass too late & Jaylon Jones read the play and picked it off. The 2nd INT came in the 3rd quarter as Caleb tried to hit Rome Odunze near the sideline. The ball was broken up and fell into the hands of Jaylon Jones. The 3rd, and back breaking turnover came late in the 4th quarter. The Bears had the ball with the chance to take the lead but DE Laiatu Latu strip sacked Caleb Williams and the Colts recovered. What was particularly disheartening was Cole Kmet was left one-on-one with Latu. The offensive line continues to show they are not capable of blocking. They gave up another 4 sacks and 6 QB hits. The running game was nonexistent again as the team rushed 28 times for a paltry 63 yards for 2.3 ypc average. Deandre Swift had another game to forget with 13 rushes for 20 yards. Roshon Johnson led the Bears with 30 yards on 8 carries. Why hasn’t he used more?
Caleb Williams did have more passing yards today than the 1st 2 games combined. He finished 33 of 52 for 363 yards, 2 TDs and 3 turnovers (2 INTs, 1 fumble lost). He had trouble with some reads, some miscommunication on some pass plays, held the ball too long on some plays and continues to run backwards to try and escape sacks.
The defense once again did all they could to keep the team in it before simply running out of gas late in the 2nd half. Montez Sweat had 4 tackles, 2 TFLs and a sack. Jaylon Johnson & Tremaine Edmunds each had an INT. The defense did give up 150 yards on the ground for a 4.5 ypc average.
Grading The Bears:
Offense: Another disastrous go for the offense despite the fact they racked up 395 net yards of offense. The Bears didn’t score a TD until 8 minutes to go in the 4th quarter. The 4th & Goal play was atrocious. The run game continues to be the worst in the NFL and the OL continues to not do Caleb Williams any favors. Grade: D+
Defense: Sure they gave 150 yards on the ground but the defense was the only reason the Bears even had a chance in this game. Thanks to the offense not being able to take care of the football, the defense was left to try and cover up for the offense and this time they simply ran out of gas. Grade: B-
Special Teams: Cairo Santos missed a 56-yard FG on the opening drive but also made 53-yard FG. Tory Taylor had a decent day punting but a crushing offsides play on 4th & 2 allowed the Colts to continue a drive that led to a TD. Grade: C
Coaching: The 4th & Goal call. The confusion of whether or not to go for 2 after the 1st TD. The offensive play calling. Time clock mismanagement and the burning of precious timeouts. Not getting in plays quick enough. Leaving a non-blocking TE on a DE. All of these errors are on coaching. With each passing week, this Bears front office looks dumb for keeping Matt Eberflus and picking up Shane Waldron. Grade: F
What’s Next: Matt Eberflus’ comments about liking the 4th & Goal play call but not execution by the players will definitely ruffle some feathers in the Bears’ locker room. A sure fire way to start losing the team is by throwing them under the bus on what was obviously a bad decision to go for it on 4th down and an even horrendous play call.
The Bears will welcome the Rams to Soldier Field next Sunday and will look to bounce back against a Rams team reeling with injuries and struggling on offense as well.
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