I was a little late at seeing the Bears' first 2017 preseason game. I had meant to record it Thursday evening and watch it later that night. Instead, my DVR recorded two hours of A Football Life instead of the game. I don't know if this was NFL Network's fault for airing the wrong show, or if it was Century Link's fault for mislabeling the schedule. In any case, I had to wait to record the re-broadcast later Saturday morning and watch it Saturday night.
I've been pretty vocal about my confusion with the Bear's offseason quarterback decisions. While I wasn't sorry to see Jay Cutler kicked to the curb, I was very unsure about signing Mike Glennon. I was even more dumbfounded by the Bears' decision to trade up to draft Trubisky after having already spent all that money on Glennon.
Glennon didn't give fans reason to be optimistic, as his preseason debut went about as bad as it could possibly go. His second pass of the game was intercepted by Chris Harris Jr. and returned for a touchdown.
Mike Glennon's second pass was intercepted by Chris Harris Jr. and returned for a TD.
In Glennon's defense, the offensive line wasn't doing him many favors. He seemed to be getting hit every time he dropped back. While Chris Harris Jr. was high-stepping the pick into the end zone, Glennon was peeling himself off the turf. If the Bears want Glennon (or any quarterback they decide to field) to be successful, then they're going to need to beef up their protection.
Cody Whitehair, in particular made a key mistake by snapping the ball over Glennon's head during the Bears' second possession. The ball was recovered by the Broncos, but the Bears' defense managed to hold them from scoring.
Cody Whitehair snapped the ball
over Glennon's head.
The Bears' third drive was where they were finally able to move the ball for the first time in the evening thanks mostly to their running game. Jordan Howard only got a few runs, but rookie Tarik Cohen made some pretty good runs that may earn him some extra play-time and maybe a spot on the final roster. Down 10-0, Glennon ended his night in the early second quarter with only two completions on eight attempts, with the pick-six and a quarterback rating of 0.0 -- yes, that's zero point zero!
Mark Sanchez didn't see much playing time, but I think the coaches probably have a pretty good idea of what Sanchez brings to the team... [More]
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Tags:Chicago Bears, Chicago, Bears, NFL, NFL Network, football, Mike Glennon, Mitch Trubisky, Tarik Cohen, Adam Shaheen, Kadeem Carey, Victor Cruz, Rueben Randall, interception, preseason, rookie, Denver, Broncos, Denver Broncos, Century Link
The Chicago Bears confused analysts and fans Thursday night when they traded up with San Francisco to draft North Carolina quarterback Mitchell Trubisky 2nd overall in the 2017 NFL draft. Analysts, fans, and even myself thought that the Bears would likely take one of the elite defensive players such as Jamaal Adams (safety), Marshon Lattimore (corner), or Solomon Thomas (defensive end). It was unlikely that Myles Garrett would still be on the board at no. 3, but at least one or two of those other players would be.
The Chicago Bears traded up with the 49ers to draft NCU QB Mitch Trubisky no. 2 overall.
The Bears desperately need help in their defensive secondary, especially considering the elite passers that are in their division (Aaron Rodgers, Matt Stafford, and maybe even Teddy Bridgewater if he returns healthy). They did pick up Prince Amukamara (CB), Markcus Cooper (CB), and Quintin Demps (S) in free agency to add some depth, but they still need more help at those positions. If a safety or corner wasn't available, then an elite pass rusher that could pressure those rival QBs would be the next best thing. The Bears offense actually moved the ball pretty well towards the end of the season, scoring 20 or more points in 4 of their last 5 games. The problem was their defensive was giving up 30 or 40 points.
I'm not complaining about drafting Trubisky. I like the pick, and the Bears need a quarterback. I just think that the Bears have severely overpaid for it considering their earlier offseason moves, and that a defensive star should have been higher priority. Everyone seemed to think that the 49ers were going for Solomon Thomas -- or maybe Jamaal Adams. And, in fact, the 49ers did use their number 3 overall pick to get Thomas after all. So it seems (on the surface) that Trubisky would still be there for the Bears at number 3 if the Bears wanted him.
NFL analysts and fans were dumbfounded by the Bears' first round draft trade.
Maybe the Bears were tipped off that someone like the Jaguars were offering a trade with San Fran to get Trubisky? Maybe the Jags were worried about Chicago picking Trubisky at number 3 and wanted to leapfrog to get him? Or maybe the Jets were looking to trade up? That's the only way that this trade makes sense. Or maybe the 49ers outright swindled the Bears? The Bears gave up this year's third and fourth round picks, as well as another third round pick next year, so this was a pretty costly trade considering they only moved up one spot, and the 49ers got a super-sweet deal. They got the guy they wanted all along, and they get two more mid-draft picks to fill other needs or as capital to trade.
What this tells me is that the Bears still have no real clue what they're doing at quarterback. They already committed a huge amount of money to get backup quarterback Mike Glennon ... [More]
I haven't had much reason to talk about the Chicago Bears this year. Since the preseason, the team has gone from bad to worse. Injuries has been the story of the season, but injuries are no excuse for the abysmally poor play from this team. The Bears have used all three of their quarterbacks and at least four of their running backs this season, as they've been going through a revolving door of injuries.
Rookie Jordan Howard has been the bright spot of the season. With injuries to Jeremy Langford and KaDeem Carey, Howard has been the bell-cow rusher for most of the season. And he has performed well. Not as well as the Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliot, but still pretty good. Howard carried the Bears to 3 touchdowns in a 26-6 victory over the 49ers earlier today. It looks like the Bears have found a replacement for Matt Forte, assuming that Howard can continue to perform this well in the years to come.
The Bears look like they've found a replacement for Matt Forte. Jordan Howard has been excellent.
The quarterback situation, however, hasn't been as fortuitous. Cutler was out for a while, and Brian Hoyer played well in his stead. It looked like Cutler's career as a starting quarterback for the Bears was over (finally). Then Hoyer got hurt, and the untested Matt Barkley finished the game without much fanfare. The Bears weren't confident in playing a third-string quarterback, so Cutler came back the following week and lead the team to its second win of the season (a 20-10 victory over the collapsing Vikings in week 8). So maybe Cutler was back to form? Maybe he was going to save his job with a late-season rally?
Not so. The Bears were embarrassed the following week by Tampa Bay, and Cutler got hurt once again the following week against the New York Giants. Cutler will have to have surgery to repair the damage, which means that his season (and possibly his career with the Bears) is over.
In comes young backup quarterback Matt Barkley... [More]
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Tags:Chicago Bears, Chicago, bears, NFL, National Football League, San Francisco 49ers, Jordan Howard, Matt Barkley, Leonard Floyd, Jay Cutler, Brian Hoyer, Dallas Cowboys, Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott, Tony Romo, Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson, DeShone Kizer
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