Likely Defensive Struggle Against Saints Awaits Bears
So much has been said or written about this Bears game against the New Orleans Saints, you'd think it was the final episode of Game of Thrones.
This is what happens when there are two weeks between games, and the last distasteful loss is taking longer for the Bears to get over than the Brits are taking to get out of the European Union.
"For us, five games into it, we could be in a lot different scenario and we're not," Bears coach Matt Nagy said.
- It's a landmark game.
- It's a statement game for the defense after the way the Raiders beat them up.
- It's a crossroad game between being in the division title hunt and hoping for a wild card.
Come up with any two- or three-word phrase of hype and there's a good chance it's been spun this way.
"Especially for us at home, you know, coach Nagy set a standard for us last year that we want to be undefeated at home and we already lost once so right now," safety Eddie Jackson said. "Like I said, we just came off a loss and we've been off for a week so right now it's for us to get back into a routine, get back to Chicago Bears type football."
The truth is, it's simply the next game for the Bears.
It's one they need to win for confidence, but more than that it's a rare opportunity to catch a 5-1 team at its most vulnerable state with five starters out including Drew Brees, Alvin Kamara and Jared Cook.
In a schedule full of playoff contenders and in a division where everyone seems capable of winning, the Bears can't afford to pass up chances like this.
In the grand scheme, though, it's probably no more important than any other game.
Sure, they wouldn't want to drop back another game behind the Green Bay Packers and the other top teams in an NFC with a glut of winning records.
Yet 3-3 teams do regularly go on to make the playoffs.
The Bears know this better than anyone, since they did it last year by winning nine of their last 10.
It's just much easier to make a run by staying in the mix at 4-2. With games coming up against two suddenly vulnerable opponents, the Eagles and Chargers, the Bears could go a long way toward setting themselves up for the critical November and December push.
To make all of this happen, quarterabck Mitchell Trubisky has to rebound from a three-week hiatus due to a shoulder injury at a much higher level than he did last year's three-week hiatus due to a shoulder injury. That Rams game last year with three interceptions marked the low passer rating for his career, 33.0.
Coming off of byes hasn't been the quarterback's issue alone. The Bears haven't won the week after their bye since Marc Trestman was coach. It's five straight post-bye defeats.
It might be six if they don't start eliminating penalties.
"I think the biggest thing when I reflected on the bye week looking where we're at, for us it's staying ahead of the chains but where we struggle is if we have a penalty and we ended up getting first-and-20, there's a lot of times where we get third-and-8, third-and-9, third-and-10," Nagy said.
Are you listening Charles Leno Jr.?
Beyond improved quarterback play and eliminating penalties, there are so many other situations the Bears need to solve before they can beat the team that only a referee could kept out of last year's Super Bowl.
They need to spring running back David Montgomery when their blocking simply hasn't been there on running plays.
"So far there hasn't been a whole lot of opportunities," Nagy said. "But the chances that he has had, we know what he can do."
They have to remember what Tarik Cohen can do when he's involved in the offense. And it would be good for Trubisky to remember there are other targets besides Allen Robinson on occasion, because Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore usually doesn't need assistance in shutting down a team's top receiver.
"The main thing we’ve got to do is definitely show consistency," Trubisky said. "But we had some plays where we had some big-play potential, or we had some drives that we had some good plays. And then we kind of sputtered out and didn't finish the drives."
The defense has to become physical, like before the Raiders force-fed them footballs in London. And they have to do it without possibly their most physical player up front, injured Akiem Hicks.
"We lost one of our best D-tackles in this league," safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix said. "We've got the depth for guys to step up. It's just an opportunity for those guys to make plays and make an impact on this defense."
To be sure, the Saints will be difficult even without five starters. Teddy Bridgewater has been more than adequate as a replacement quarterback with four straight wins. And they still have receiver Michael Thomas and pass rusher Cameron Jordan.
And the defense has to solve this little habit of blowing fourth-quarter leads.
"There's been a little bit of that where it's extended drives," Nagy said. "But yeah our guys understand there's parts to the game and finishing, fourth quarter-wise. And then how can that help.
"Well, offensively, we can help the defense by having the ball a little bit longer in the fourth quarter."
If the Bears on Sunday evening can replace what they could do with what they did, they could be looking good at 4-2.
Otherwise, it's likely going to be slugging it out week by week with little margin for defeat the rest of the way.
Twitter@BearsOnMaven
