Ryan Poles Deserves Some Blame in Loss
Bears coach Matt Eberflus definitely believes in Occam's razor.
Maybe believes isn't the right word. He lives it.
That is the theory that the simplest explanation is usually the best one.
Asked whether Sunday's 49-29 loss at Dallas was a matter of needing more talent, he spat out his answer.
"I don't believe that," he said. "I believe that it comes down to guys doing their job, coaches getting them to do it the right way together and us playing the way we're supposed to play.
"That's what I believe."
Then again, Eberflus isn't without belief in some intangibles.
He was asked by reporters after the loss if maybe the short work week after a big Monday night road win and the tumultuous emotional days when Robert Quinn was traded simply caught up to a young team. He had to admit there was something to this.
"When you ride the wave of momentum like this, it can be a tricky thing for a young football team," Eberflus said.
Eberflus definitely thinks practice and routine will get them back on track, like against New England.
That doesn't help the grades for Sunday's game, though.
Here is Sunday's Bears report card for a tough loss in the Big D.
Running Game: A+
This is pretty much a rubber stamp every week now. A 240-yard game and only 60 came from Fields' running, so the backs and also wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. were very active again. They find a way to run it no matter what, it seems. This one had all the makings of a game when the running attack would get shut down because they were starting backups Riley Reiff and Michael Schofield on the line. It didn't matter. They ran anyway. It was their third straight 200-yard game and fourth of the season. They are mirroring the Philadelphia Eagles offense of 2021, in Nick Sirianni's first season. That team had 200 yards or more rushing five times. Look at what they are a year later.
Passing Game: C+
This could have been an A as well, if not for a dropped Velus Jones attempt to reach out for a beautiful deep ball from Justin Fields, and a Fields underthrow to open Equanimeous St. Brown early in the game. Four sacks isn't good, either, but considering the subs on the offensive line and how Dallas led the league in sacks coming in, the line deserves some credit for Fields remaining intact. Fields had another career best for passer rating at 120, but his yards per attempt did drop in this one because they couldn't connect on some of the deep throws. Fields only had 151 yards passing.
Run Defense: F
It all starts here. They were out of their gaps up front, got blocked, and gave up 6.9 yards per carry even though Prescott only ran it six times. They allowed Tony Pollard to match a career high at 131 yards. This was the kind of run defense they showed early in the season. Each time they believe they have their run-stopping issues solved, something pops up. What has happened is they get dissected in the air by veteran passers and then when they make adjustments they leave their run defense exposed. It happened against Minnesota and in this one, as well as a few others to some extent. Roquan Smith had a terrible game, with five tackles, a season low by three and his fewest since making three in a Thanksgiving Day game against Detroit last year.
Pass Defense: D-
Michael Gallup had been struggling to regain his footing after an injury last year but facing the Bears helped as he had four catches for 49 yards. Kindle Vildor had enjoyed three straight strong efforts but the Cowboys exposed him, and they capitalized on Jaquan Brisker's inexperence sproadically throughout the game. Tight end Darren Schultz found plenty of room to run routes and hurt them for a team-high six catches, a sign Brisker, Nick Morrow and Smith had trouble in coverage. The pass rush only materialized when they blitzed. Eddie Jackson's interception props this up from a total failure.
Special Teams: C+
Neither team had a chance to do much in the kicking, return or coverage game as it was basically a wash. They kept KaVontae Turpin in check with two returns on punts at 7.5 yards average, and he also misplayed one into a downed punt inside the 10. Dante Pettis had one 9-yard punt return and neither kick return team had much chance to get going. The Cowboys' 83-yard punt was pretty spectacular and Cairo Santos hit his only field goal try.
Coaching: D
Luke Getsy props up the grade with a brilliant scheme for getting the ground game going again against a very fast defense, and for getting the ball downfield in the passing game. It wasn't as much Fields running this time, like against the Patriots, but he was still effective when he did do it. He has the defense's eyes moving laterally all the time and hits them with the running game. On the other hand, Alan Williams needs to come into games against veteran quarterbacks with something more than he has so far. More deception is necessary, more ways to get pressure on them early is necessary, whether it's blitzing or stunts. They came into games against Aaron Rodgers, Dak Prescott and Kirk Cousins and looked entirely predictable and vulnerable. Against Carson Wentz, the Patriots' young QBs, Trey Lance and Davis Mills they looked formidable. Against Daniel Jones, they couldn't figure out how to stop a bootleg.
Overall: D+
Finally, because there is no GM category, we close by issuing part of the blame for this disaster to GM Ryan Poles and assistant GM Ian Cunningham. They made the trade of Robert Quinn on a busy Wednesday at Halas Hall, leaving the next two days for young players to absorb all the emotion of losing a well-liked teammate and figure out how to pick up the slack after losing his presence. Smith was totally jolted by it in the middle of a press conference. They should have finished this trade on Tuesday or even Monday during the afternoon prior to the Patriots game, if not the prior week. Eagles GM Howie Roseman could have made that trade anytime as he was only giving up a fourth-rounder next spring. They need a better sense of timing. In this case, it could have cut down on the emotional wallop or allowed more time to recover from it.
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