Bear Digest

Short week and key matchups work in Eagles' favor against Bears

Jalen Hurts is a matchup problem for teams playing man-to-man coverage like the Bears, and there are several other challenges ahead for Chicago on Black Friday.
Gene Chamberlain|
Jalen Hurts' running proved huge the last time the Bears faced the Eagles.
Jalen Hurts' running proved huge the last time the Bears faced the Eagles. | Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The Bears barely have the time to refocus after a big game at home, with Black Friday’s matchup against the Eagles up in only a few short days.

It’s not a situation they handled well in the second week of the season, as they went to Detroit on a short work week and suffered a 52-21 blowout loss to coach Ben Johnson’s formr team,

"We know that it's a short week,” Johnson said. “This will be a different challenge here for our players. Just haven't had one five-day span like this, and so it'll be a race to get our bodies feeling as good as we possibly can. Get the game plan downloaded.”

The Bears don’t have a Thursday night game this season, so this is their shortest preparation time for the season and they have to do it against the defensive scheme of their former defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio.

"They force you to try to run the ball," Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle said. "Their whole goal is to eliminate explosives. Our goal offensively when we go in is really to be explosive.

"They’ve kinda modeled their defense to be the antithesis of what we’re trying to get done."

The Bears are also sure to have the Eagles’ full attention after they were embarrassed by blowing a 21-point lead at Dallas.

There are some real matchup problems for the Bears in this game. Here are the major ones.

DE Austin Booker vs LT Jordan Mailata

Booker's pressure has been above average per Pro Football Focus, with seven since returning from IR but he's facing an entirely different problem here. Jordan Mailata is a massive, 6-8, 365-pounder who isn't anchored as he is mobile. A former rugby player from Australia, the Eagles took him in the final round of the draft and turned him into a football player through the NFL International Pathway Program. He went to Florida's IMG Academy for 10 weeks in 2017 before the Eagles selected him. It's a move that paid great dividends as he is graded seventh by PFF among all tackles, 12th as a pass blocker and 13th as a run blocker. Mailata's size is exactly why the Bears liked a stout, 283-pound defensive end like Dayo Odeyingbo on that side, but they no longer have him and their options are very limited when it comes to power off the edge.

CB Tyrique Stevenson vs. WR DeVonta Smith

There's no guarantee it will be Stevenson because of his hip injury, although he was able to shrug it off and play last week before aggravating it. If it's not him, it could be Nahshon Wright moving over from the other side if Jaylon Johnson has returned. Wright hasn't played that side since training camp as he's been Johnson's replacement. So the switch can be a problem. Also, Smith's good speed and route running have been problem areas for both Stevenson and Wright. Stevenson plays well when he can be physical, and Wright when he can use his 6-4 frame, but Smith has often gotten wide open for big plays and is Philadelphia's highest graded receiver according to PFF. He leads the Eagles with 55 catches and in yards gained at 754.

LG Jonah Jackson vs. DT Jalen Carter

Jackson had surged and rates among the league's better guards this season according to PFF and ESPN's blocking win rates. But Carter, a two-time All Pro, can obviously do more than spit on people. He's graded 11th among defensive tackles in pass rush and PFF gives him a whopping 34 pressures even though he has only one sack. Stathead gives him 16 pressures. One thing Jackson will need to worry about is engaging with Carter at the right time in plays. When Carter can't get to the QB or apply pressure, he has a real knack for playing off the guard and leaping to deflect passes. He batted down nine passes the last two seasons. Jackson is graded 15th among all guards and 16th at run blocking. It's his pass blocking (32nd) where the Bears can find trouble in this one against one of the league's most dominant interior players.

TE Colston Loveland vs. LB Zack Baun

Unlike many teams, the Eagles don't necessarily need to combat Loveland by pinning a safety to him. Baun is quite capable of covering taller, faster tight ends like Loveland.  Ranked 26th in the NFL top 100 before the season, Baun is currently the seventh-ranked linebacker according to PFF. He’s sporting an 83.6 passer rating against and has eight tackles. Loveland started picking up steam six weeks ago after a slow start due to injuries and hasn’t had less than three receptions in a game since then. He has three TD catches and a 73.7% completion percentage.

LB T.J. Edwards vs. QB Jalen Hurts

If Edwards is back playing middle linebacker, the biggest running threat the Eagles have had this year has been their QB, either on scrambles, planned runs or the loathed tush push. He had 33 yards rushing and two TDs last week as it’s difficult for defenses to cover everything, and man-to-man teams like the Bears find it especially difficult covering against a running QB. Tyler Huntley hurt them this way. Edwards might not even be healthy enough to man a spot in the middle but he been out three games, so it would be surprising if he had to sit once more. Edwards’ injury status makes defending against Hurts’ runs all the more difficult.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.