Football

3 Things We Learned From Week 2’s Win

By Sam Fels 1538 0

As an introduction, this was something they had me doing at FanSided last year, but FanSided is evil and stupid so I’m going to do it here in my own playground. This is not meant to be serious football commentary in the least, but just one cockeyed fan’s view. 

Matt Nagy Might Think Mitch Trubisky Sucks As Much As You Do

Before entering whatever they call Not Mile High these days, I was discussing with Fifth Feather that as a giant middle finger to everyone after criticism of the Packers loss, Nagy might run the ball 40 times. Well, he did, and the punk rock portion of my soul wants to believe that it was a middle finger to all the press and fans that have been calling for a fullback to somehow enter this offense, it felt like more likely Nagy was terrified of letting Mitch do anything.

Mitch attempted one pass down the field all day until the final, this’ll-never-work-holy-shit drive, and that was on the first drive of the day and after a third down scramble that he nearly hit Tarik Cohen on. Had he, perhaps the whole complexion of the game changes and Nagy feels more comfortable with a lead and a more confident Trubisky. Alas, from there Mitch average 4.4 yards per attempt the rest of the day.

It was particularly galling on the Bears second-to-last drive, protecting a pretty slim touchdown lead. Four minutes left, a chance to salt it all away. The Bears did get a first down with an actual pass, if you can believe it, but then stalled out. Two consecutive plays with eight yards to gain and Mitch barely threw over the line of scrimmage, much less anywhere in the area code of the sticks.

That’s the game. You can take it right there. If your QB can’t make the throws to ice a game, then you might have a problem. This isn’t about constructing a drive for a score to win from behind (which to his credit, Mitch did). You just need a first down. Surely there’s a 10-yard route you feel Mitch can make in his sleep.

You understand on one level why Nagy wanted to trust his defense. The problem is a scalding hot day at altitude are the exact conditions that might wilt a defense that had already been asked to do a lot thanks to the offense’s conservatism/balloon handedness. And so it told. If the game’s there, take it. Don’t wait.

Perhaps it’s just going to be a process. Maybe Nagy got spooked by Vic Fangio on the other sideline, salivating to take advantage of more Mitch dumbness (there’s an image for you). Either way, this bumpy ride is long from over.

NFL Rules Don’t Make Any Sense Because They Can’t

Before any Broncos fan comes in here to start tearing up the furniture while lambasting their lot in life after that roughing the passer call, let’s be clear that Eddie Goldman got one just as soft and Leonard Floyd’s unnecessary roughness wasn’t much better.

The spirit of the rule I agree with. Protecting QBs is a good idea not just because they are the faces of the league, a team’s season goes in the shitter when one gets hurt pretty much automatically, and they are the unique player that is eligible to be contacted when they don’t have the ball, at least for a short time.

Accepting all that, it’s nearly impossible to have rules that are going to navigate that perfectly .The whole “full body weight landing” clause to roughing the passer calls is clearly meant to avoid broken clavicles, but how exactly can defenders adjust how they’re landing in half a second or less? I think we all know an intentional body splash when we see one and what’s just a normal tackle.

The officials may tell defender to aim for “half” of the QB, thus being able to spin off to the side. But that’s only going to make getting any mobile QB near impossible to wrangle, which is what I guess the NFL wants.

The NFL already has a “did it count?” problem, with every play not really official until we see no flags or reviews. We’re getting close to every drop-back by a QB needing to be vetted as well, which makes it feel like everything you’re watching isn’t happening and then questioning what truly is reality.

Football Jerseys Do Not Do Well In The Heat

There are currently three undiscovered life forms in my Tillman jersey today after a day in the sun and heat with it. I’m afraid they will eat my suitcase in the overhead compartment as I travel back tonight and will be left with nothing but a rapidly growing organism with no sense of social graces.

Football

Week #2 – Bears vs. Broncos Preview: A Calming Trip to Denver? I Mean, That’s Where Everyone Else Goes…

By Wes French 1734 0

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Records: CHI 0-1 DEN 0-1

TV: 3:25 pm FOX 32

Radio: WBBM 780 AM/105.9 FM

Joe Flacco joined the mile high club before you: Milehighreport.com

Ah, there it is. That sinking feeling. The one that rushed in as you saw Adrian Amos come down with the back-breaking interception last Thursday night. All those lofty expectations and National media criticism crashing down at once.  All the sudden, a Week 2 trip to Denver and former Bears DC Vic Fangio that looked like a mildly challenging test in August is now a near must-win road game against the guy that probably knows your playbook better than your QB. Luckily, Fangio has many a mess of his own to clean up to make this game look more winnable than it did on Monday Morning.

Denver limps home after failing to come all the way back to beat the rival Oakland Raiders late on Monday night in what was a decent upset, all things considered. The 24-16 scoreline is misleading, as Oakland thoroughly dominated this one, pitching a first half shutout (14-0) and withstanding some late garbage time scores to prevail. The Broncos were bad in just about every phase of this one, lowlighted on defense where they gave up a 98-yard drive for a TD to open the 2nd Q and EDGE savants Von Miller and Bradley Chubb were credited with a combined ZERO pressures. Fangio was also without his former Bear FA signing Bryce Callahan, having to to watch second year DB Isaac Yiadom get picked apart play after play by guy-liner aficionado Derek Carr.

The offense and new QB Joe Flacco did little to provide bright spots, settling for FG attempts through three quarters on 215 for 6 points. Flacco led two scoring drives late, but with Oakland holding a 24-6 lead they were happy to give up completions to keep the clock going. Flacco is not going through a renaissance in Denver if he keep on the path from Week 1, especially if the Chicago secondary can take away Courtland Sutton and Emmanuel Sanders. Those two accounted for 12 of 21 completions and nearly 3/4 of the team passing totals. The ground game is very much a work in progress, with Royce Freeman and Phillip Lindsay spitting carries and combining for under 100 yards. As stated, the Broncos have a long journey to figuring this thing out.

Matt Nagy drags his bag of tricks, or lack thereof, to the Mile High city with plenty of answers of his own to provide. The focus for over a week has been on the abysmal offensive performance and how exactly they go about getting to average, let alone progressing to the top of the NFL’s offenses like many had hoped for in year two of Nagy-ball. Mitchell Trubisky is continuing to be coddled, with the Bears brass opting against him even speaking about his failures from Week 1. Trubs has plenty of his own work to do with reading the plays and not panicking into awful throws or abandoning pockets in half a second. His offensive line, a major strength of 2018, needs to get their shit together as well after they gave up a near league-worst 19 QB pressures to start the season. It’ll be interesting to see what tweaks, if any, are made with the stable of RBs and what that usage looks like. The major disparity of runs to pass plays will no doubt be better than 15/50, but many were confused by the usage in general of Tarik Cohen, Mike Davis, David Montgomery and Cordarelle Patterson. Unlock the backfield, and things could start to fall into place for the offense as a whole. Trey Burton‘s mystery groin injury doesn’t seem set to heal just yet, and his full participation could also be a key to opening up this offense.

The Chicago defense is hoping it won’t be wasted like many of the stout Bear D’s of the recent past. This unit looked as good as advertised, even with a few new faces and new coordinator in Chuck Pagano trying not to bungle the gift Fangio left him. The Broncos only gave up sis QB pressures in Week 1, but the Oakland rush isn’t exactly what you’d call “remotely passable” for an NFL team, and that was before Denver lost the best RT in football in Ju’Waun James. Khalil Mack and co. have to be more than eager to get after the swiss cheese right side of the line and statuesque Flacco. Eddie Goldman will be a game time decision, but with the emergence of Roy Robertson-Harris last week that may be a moot point.

Neither of these teams probably expected to come into this game with this much uncertainty, and how it plays out for the victor will be very telling of where their seasons go from here. Can Nagy sort out his shortcomings to the point the offense runs smoothly and becomes watchable, possibly even…exciting? I’d settle for boring and good for now. Can Fangio tighten up his defense enough, with so many young/new players and a new system, on a short week?

My money is on Nagy, Mitch and the offense doing enough to lean on another stellar defensive performance to get Chicago it’s first win of 2019. Fangio might know how to solve Nagy, but the personnel doesn’t seem like it’s ready to execute as needed. Remember, it took three full years for the Bears to go from bottom third of the league to top five in DVOA under Vic.

Prediction: Bears 22, Broncos 13 

Football

Week #2 – Bears vs. Broncos: Matchups to Watch- Trench Battles Are Cliché, But They Matter. A Lot.

By Wes French 1448 0
This week the major matchups seemed to be the same on each side, so Tony Martin and I split the work for your reading pleasure. He wanted to be called “DJ Yung Milwaukee”. Please, ask him about it. 
Tony on the Broncos Defensive Front vs. Bears Offensive Line:
I’ll be spending this guest verse breaking down the Chicago offensive line and how they line up against the front 7 of Denver. I think most of us will have our eyes on this matchup but on the other side of the ball (no pressure, Wes), but honestly the Bears offensive line was a wet fart last Thursday night so there’s a real concern there for me.
Our boys came out and got blown up by Green Bay in week one. Lorin Cox @TheBearsWire has an outstanding All-22 breakdown, but the TLDR is that it’s fucking bad out there. Missed assignments, poor communication, and an overall inability to read the scheme that Green Bay was running plagued the offensive line all night. The Packers literally rushed three men and still got pressure because the Bears had no idea what they were looking at pre-snap.
Cody Whitehair looked lost when the Packers started running stunts, and James Daniels looked over-matched all night (see: that 3rd and 1 FB dive with Patterson). Pressure came from all sides of the pocket, and Mitch struggled to even set his feet or make his second read before the line was getting pushed back.
It’s not easy to think about these problems, especially paired with the fact that Vic Fangio knows this team already and has an idea of what sort of looks or schemes will work against the Bears’ offensive line. Derek Wolfe might have a huge game, but he has the potential to underwhelm if last week was any indication.
You don’t need me to tell you that Bradley Chubb and Von Miller are gonna wreck shit. Expect a lot of chips, extra blockers, and a reliance on whatever back they feel gives them the best pass protection on 3rd and long.
This one might get ugly, gang. The silver lining is that it’s still early and those tweaks can happen as the line gels, with 40% of them moving back to their “original positions”. I’m expecting this to be an area where Denver is stronger than the Bears, but I’m hoping the offense can still establish some consistency and give the skill position players opportunities to shine.
Wes on the Bears Defensive Front vs Broncos Offensive Line:
Thanks, DJ Yung Milwaukee. I feel zero pressure (as I’m hoping Mitch will as well on Sunday) since you actually asked to be called that. Anyway….
Denver Offensive Line coach Mike Munchak is likely as nervous as he’s ever been, given he’s got at least one, possibly two, starters on the shelf as he preps for Khalil Mack, Leonard Floyd, Akiem Hicks, Roy Robertson-Harris and the rest of the vaunted Chicago pass rush. No pressure, Mike.
The parts of the Denver OL that were able to stay healthy in Week 1 actually graded out really well (per PFF’s metrics), with steady LT Garett Bolles leading the unit to allowing only six QB pressures all night. Rookie LG Dalton Risner was actually graded the highest, likely getting a slight bump from playing between the veterans Bolles and C Connor McGovern. But you have to factor in that Oakland’s defensive front will never be mistaken for the Bears (unless it’s 2016-ish), so take those grades with a small pile of salt.
Now, those injuries. RT Ja’Wuan James is rated (and paid) as a top tackle in the league, so missing him will be a massive blow for this unit. Add in that starting RG Ronald Leary could also miss the game and Mack, Hicks, et al have to be fighting over who gets to line up over the right side all Afternoon.
Third year pro Elijah Wilkinson will take over for James, and while he filled in capably enough in a losing effort on Monday, facing the Bears is a whole other level of Hell he’s never seen. If Leary is even a partial participant we’ll see a steady dose of rookie Austin Schlottmann at Guard on the right side as well, meaning 2/5 of the line and 2/3 of the interior will be essentially starting their careers. The emergence of Roberson-Harris last week is not looking like it’ll slow down in Week 2.
The top unit was also stymied for the most part in being able to run block efficiently, helping the team to one rush of 26 yards but only producing 69 (nice) on over 20 other total carries. Chicago allowed only 47 yards to Green Bay on 22 carries of their own last week, so Denver could find the sledding quite difficult in Week 2.
Overall, this appears to a glaring mismatch, one that could potentially put the Bears over the edge so long as they can protect the football when they have it. Chicago’s edge and interior, not to mention the improving Roquan Smith and highly intelligent Danny Trevathan behind them, should have their way with the battered Denver OL all day.
I expect a lot of posing and maybe a spike or two if the Bear defense can get into the end zone on Sunday.
https://twitter.com/AdamHoge/status/1171856309454540807
Football

The Vault: Bears/Broncos

By Tony Martin 1668 0

Today we’re going to look at another moment in timeless Bears lore, and since I’m a sadist AND a masochist, we’re going to flash back to one of the most depressing games I’ve ever seen: Bears-Broncos 2011. Week 14, each team coming in at 7-5 with playoff aspirations. Well, maybe that’s saying too much since the Bears were starting our recurring Vault QB Caleb Hanie. When I watched the NFL Throwback video of the game, a majority of the offensive starters were a who’s who of players I never want to think about again: Hanie, Roy Williams, Lance Louis, Kahlil Bell. It’s amazing that this lineup had any juice left at this point. I missed Jay Cutler a lot, don’t fucking @ me. He broke his thumb trying to tackle a DB on an interception return, and I blame all the meatball fans who called him soft from the NFC Championship the year prior (last week’s Vault). Jay had to MAN UP and tackle a streaking Antoine Cason even though the Bears had an 11-point lead in the 4th quarter and Matt Forte was also rushing back to knock him out of bounds, which he eventually ended up doing anyways.

Maaaaaan lemme tell you: 2011 was a heady time. I was seeing this really nice lady at the time, but she was not even trying to pretend to be interested in football so I went to watch the game with some friends at an apartment in downtown DeKalb, Illinois. I drank like three Thai iced teas and probably took too much adderall and talked through the entire game. I had finally found some friends in the local DIY scene who liked sports and weed just as much as I did, so while I’m not 100% sure of it I could reasonably assume we were all listening to Replacements records during commercial breaks and trying NOT to complain about our dads. Like I said, it was 2011. I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time.

Anyways, this game happened during Tebowmania, which is like Linsanity but mixed with Russell Wilson levels of Jesus-infused comeback wins in improbable fashions. Seriously though, he had five comeback wins in less than two months! The Chicago one would be his last in the regular season, and the last of his heroics until he would torch Pittsburgh with one decently thrown slant in the Wild Card round that season. Imagine being Eric Decker or Demaryius Thomas and having to catch passes from this goober, who scrambled around like he was being controlled by an 11-year-old playing Madden.

As a natural-born edgelord, I HATED Tebowmania. Why was it that he could beat a defense featuring all those 2000s Bears icons (Urlacher, Briggs, Tillman, Peppers), but would go 0-21 with eight picks if the other side just read Richard Dawkins books instead of hitting or covering? I was all about keeping religion out of football, because for some reason I cared what this dude believed in like it affected me in any way at all.

Naturally for me, I’ll always remember this as the Marion Meltdown. Marion Barber was thrust into the starting role when Matt Forte got injured the week before against Kansas City (which was the actual worst game of Bears football I’ve ever seen in my life), and Marion the Barbarian carried the ball TWENTY SEVEN times that day. He was a beast and I was so glad that the Bears had him as an insurance policy when Forte went down, until the Broncos game. The Bears were up 10-0 with 2:08 in the 4th and lost this game in overtime, no thanks to Marion Barber running out of bounds during the Bears last possession of regulation and as a result keeping precious seconds on the clock for Tebow’s miracle comeback.

Oh yeah, and the Bears get the ball to start overtime and actually drive down the field. On a 3rd and 7 on Denver’s 38 yard line, Marion gets a handoff and has a lane open up the size of a Texas megachurch. For one beautiful second, there was nothing stopping the Bears from winning this game and holding on hope that they could stay relevant until Jay returned. As he breaks through the line, green grass and a victory opening up before him, Wesley Woodyard’s right hand comes out and rips the ball out of Barber’s hands, and since the lord works in mysterious ways it lands right in front of Elvis Dumervil. Denver ball, Zack Bowman gets worked by Demaryius Thomas, Matt Prater is good from 51. The Broncos win, and Tebowmania hits its zenith. Seriously, watch any highlights from those weeks and Rich Eisen sounds like a preacher. It’s embarrassing.

2011 sucked. Fuck 2011.

 

Football

Opponent Spotlight: Denver Broncos

By Tony Martin 1477 0

Sunday at 3:25, our beloved and disappointing Chicago Bears travel to Mile High Stadium to face the Denver Broncos. The Broncos are one of those teams that seem like the boring background noise of the NFL at the moment, being roughly about as interesting as the Tennessee Titans, Cincinnati Bengals, and that Washington team. The Broncos don’t even have the luxury of being a flaming dumpster fire (Miami, the Giants), they just come out and play. Truth be told, if they weren’t on the late slate so often on Red Zone I’d forget they exist. Luckily, I got a chance to scout them on Monday and then promptly fell asleep on my couch at halftime.

However, I rewatched their loss against the Raiders and did a little bit of research on my own, so I’ll spend this article letting you know all you need to know about the Broncos so you can impress everyone at your watch party.

First off: this team does not pass the eye test. They have budding stars at WR (Courtland Sutton) and RB (Phillip Lindsay), with solid veterans to compliment them in Emmanuel Sanders and the also young but uninspiring Royce Freeman, respectively. So they go and invest in… Joe Flacco and Vic Fangio. Fangio is a brilliant defensive mind, and since Denver went defensive when selecting their head coach, they hopped on the new trend in the NFL and picked someone who once ripped bongs with Sean McVay in college to run the offense. Imagine being Rich Scangarello and getting a chance to FINALLY have an offense of your own and being gifted Joe fucking Flacco to run it. Oof.

The Defense is great on paper. Von Miller is going to be a problem and demand extra help almost no matter what, and Chris Harris Jr is an outstanding defensive back. Bradley Chubb is also a beast. Kareem Jackson is a decent corner, and it looks right now like Bryce Callahan might not play, which is a bummer. I hope nothing but good health for that dude because he is as close to a shutdown slot corner as there is in the NFL, and Bears fans appreciate good defense if for no other reason because we’ve been conditioned to expect defenders to be better than the offense. Unfortunately for this “wonderful” defense, they played terribly against Oakland. The Raiders went 10-14 on 3rd down last week and those defensive numbers don’t look good, no matter if you’re playing backyard football or in the NFL.

As for what to expect, look for a lot of slants, quick reads, and plays designed to get the ball out of Flacco’s hands as quickly as possible, he’s about as mobile as my Grandpa who candidly has never won a Super Bowl but did fight in World War II. Be on the lookout for 60/40 split between Lindsay and Freeman, for some stupid reason. Courtland Sutton will pop on screen when you watch, he’s dynamic. The Broncos sucked in the red zone last week and there has been a lot of talk about opening up the playbook, so we will see stuff we haven’t seen yet. Expect Flacco to air it out a few times, and for Vic to try to confuse Mitch into bad throws and poor reads. When the Bears offense is on the field, we’ll see exactly how much new creativity Matt Nagy has put into the playbook in the offseason, and it should be an entertaining chess match to say the least.

If the Bears are legit, games like this shouldn’t be close and we can all breathe calmly when we reflect on the what happened on Monday morning. If the Bears are truly hitting the regression button, this game could be a surprise loss. As of Wednesday the line is Bears by 3, and while my heart says that’s a good bet, recent data implies this game might be too close for comfort.

Football

Week #2 – Quarterback Spotlight: Average Joe

By Brian Schmitz 1437 0

When the Bears face Joe Flacco and the Denver Broncos on Sunday, you can’t help but think they will be looking into a mirror or sorts. See, Flacco is the one quarterback in the league whose skill set most resembles Bears QB Mitch Trubisky. Granted, being a Super Bowl champion makes Flacco a far more successful pro, but his own individual Ravens career could best be described as somewhere between meh and shouldn’t Joe Flacco be better? Sometimes, when you win a Super Bowl with an elite defense, all you really need from your quarterback is to be average – sound familiar?

Now, would the Bears love to have a mediocre Joe Flacco behind center this year? I would answer with a resounding YES! Flacco has been a very good game manager throughout this career, and with Vic Fangio taking over a very defensive minded Broncos team; the “game manager” nametag figures to stick to Flacco again this season.

As we look ahead to week 2, the Bears front 7 will take on the brunt of responsibility in limiting Flacco on Sunday. Based on what we learned about the Bears defense vs. Green Bay, as well as Flacco’s performance against the Raiders in the opener, I would expect the Bears defense to be extremely successful for the second straight week. The Bears made Aaron Rodgers look pedestrian last Thursday, and you Joe Flacco, are no Aaron Rodgers. Because of that, I do not envision a scenario where the Broncos QB is the reason why they win this Sunday. However, I also do not envision a scenario where the Broncos QB is the reason why they lose this Sunday.

Where Will The Broncos and Flacco Attack the Bears Secondary?

Going back to the 2016 season, the Charted Passer Rating results paint a very accurate picture of just how consistently inconsistent Flacco has been:

2016

Joe Flacco Qb-grid Chart

2017

Joe Flacco Qb-grid Chart

2018

Joe Flacco Qb-grid Chart

This chart shows a general lack of consistency in any given yardage or portion on the field. Almost every NFL quarterback has a throw that they know they can make in their sleep. Joe Flacco, based on these charts, is the exception to that rule. Watch for the Bears to match up based far more on personnel than they will on where Flacco is comfortable throwing the ball.

 

What Did We Learn From Flacco in Week 1?

In dissecting Flacco’s week 1 performance, there are a few things to be aware of as you watch the Broncos QB take on the Khalil Mack & Co.:

  • Week 1 was vintage Joe Flacco in almost every way:
    • 1 TD
    • 0 INT
    • 68% Completion Percentage
    • 8.6 Yards Per Attempt
    • 268 Passing Yards
    • Sacked 3X
      • Although this stat line screams “Game Manager,” it is also a game I’d take week in and week out from Mitch T.
      • It is also worth noting that Flacco put together a nice portion of his numbers when the game was pretty much decided. If not for ten 4th quarter points on scoring drives of 54 yards and 75 yards, Flacco and the entire Broncos offense could have been classified as Bears-esque.
  • Courtland Sutton, Emmanuel Sanders, and Noah Fant all averaged over 14.5 yards per catch. Would I trade the Bears receiving corps for this group? No. But for one week, their QB put them in a position to be successful, which is something we cannot say about the Bears QB in week 1.
  • Joe Flacco had 1 rushing attempt for 1 yard. As he is somewhat limited athletically, he must go through his progressions and look beyond his first option or 2. This is the opposite of the far more athletic Mitch Trubisky, who looks to use his feet almost immediately after his first read has been taken away. Listen, I love Mitch’s athleticism, and I talk about it often, but sometimes he’s simply too athletic for his own good.
  • The Bronco’s O-Line is an abortion. They quite honestly may be the worst non-Dolphins unit in the league. This could get ugly for Flacco on Sunday, who at this point in his career may be more about personal wellness than sitting in the pocket getting his crank kicked in.

As Such:

If the Bears can control the Broncos running game and their defense plays according to plan, then Joe Flacco isn’t going to be the guy who can put a team on his back and beat you – that just isn’t in his makeup. He has made a career by being a serviceable NFL starter and he has experienced a great deal of team success in that role, but I don’t see him becoming super human on Sunday against one of the best defenses in the league; which is why the Bears will earn their first W of the year in yet another low scoring, borderline unwatchable affair.

 

Football

NFC/North Week 1 Whip Around: September Football is a Beautiful Mess

By Wes French 1181 0

Welcome to the new weekly look at what’s happening with Chicago’s immediate rivals, and a look around the league of the who’s who of everyone’s favorite brutal shitshow of a vice, the NFL.

Minnesota runs roughshod through Atlanta

The Vikings and Dalvin Cook ran wild out of the starting gate in 2019, posting 172 rushing yards en route to a comfortable 28-12 home victory. Cook was the star early, breaking off big chunks of yardage seemingly at will. He’d finish with 111 yards on 21 carries with two TDs. The Vikings defense was as good as Cook, blocking a punt on the first series of the game and frustrating the Falcons all day long. Four sacks, three turnovers and a shutout through three quarters gave this game a very efficiently boring feel, just what you want out of your team’s D.

This game was so well out of reach early that Kirk Cousins had a great, quiet day: 8/10, 97 yards, one passing TD, one rushing. He did fumble the ball twice and was lucky to keep both, but all in all a capable performance that won’t sound any alarms. The biggest takeaways are this defense is looking very strong, and if the offensive line and Cook/rushing attack can follow this blueprint most weeks Minnesota will be a very tough out all season. Now, if a team can stymie the run and make Cousins beat them….

Looking Ahead: 9/15 @ GB – Lambeau and the great equalizer Aaron Rodgers await. The GB Defense looked equally impressive against an odd Bears offense, so the matchup to watch is that front 7 vs Cook.

Detroit plays not to lose in the desert, somehow does worse than a loss

Matt Patricia was supposed to sort out Detroit as a defensively stout team, at the very least. They were gifted the first start of the Kyler Murray era in a road test to start the 2019 season, and for 3.5 quarters they looked pretty damn stout, ahead 24-6. Then, they somehow allowed the rookie Murray to DOUBLE his stat line in the 4th quarter alone. He went 15/19, 154 yds and 2 TDs, including the game tying toss to Larry Fitzgerald and two-pointer to Christian Kirk with 43 seconds on the clock to tie the game at 24.

Detroit was having their way for the most part on offense, especially in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Matthew Stafford is locked in with rookie TE T.J. Hockenson, who opened his career with 6-131-1 stat line. Stafford put up 385 yards and 3 TDs with no INTs, but a middling rushing attack (32 carries/111 yards) made things difficult late once they tried to burn up the clock. The defensive implosion and then lackluster OT have to be giving this team some concerns given their opponent. Credit to Murray/Kliff Kingsbury for the comeback, but that doesn’t happen without some help. Detroit has plenty to work on after a pretty positive first few hours to their season.

Looking Ahead: 9/15 vs LAC – The Lions head home in Week 2 and face a true test in the Chargers. They boast some exciting pieces on both sides of the ball, even without holdout RB Melvin Gordon. The same mental mistakes that lost a sure win in Week 1 could be a full on disaster against this much tougher opponent.

Packers do enough to hold off inept Bears

Many a word has been typed about this Chicago debacle, so I’ll spare you more of the same. The Packers defense looks very legit, and Mike Pettine is the mastermind there. Matt Nagy and his offense were not ready for the game plan in front of them, and with opportunity after opportunity handed to the Bears, Pettine’s group was there to stop them.

Green Bay did not look very strong on offense outside of a single drive, which was boosted by a wild deep ball and jump ball TD catch. Chicago’s defensive unit looked as advertised and while that’s not an easy puzzle to solve, Matt LaFleur has his work cut out to make changes ahead of another difficult matchup this coming weekend at home.

Looking Ahead: 9/15 vs MIN – LaFleur coaches his first game at home, but the task doesn’t get any easier against a Minnesota team that looked finely tuned in an easy Week 1 win. Let’s see if Pettine can keep the Pack in it late two weeks straight.

Around the NFC…

The LA Rams and Carolina Panthers played what might be a a very early preview of NFC Division winners, with the Rams leading the whole way and holding on late…New Orleans, looking to hold Carolina off, played a thriller of their own on MNF, coming from behind a few times to beat Houston at home on a walk-off Will Lutz 58-yard FG. The Saints get the NFC defending Champion Rams in Week 2…Carson Wentz and the Eagles looked awful for a quarter or so in Washington before seemingly scoring off deep pass plays at will…Not to be outdone, Dak Prescott found himself and the Cowboys down early at home to the lowly Giants before storming to a commanding 35-17 win that saw him account for four TDs.

 

Football

Sons Of Wilber Marshall – Convening After Week 1

By Sam Fels 1366 0

All right boys, how much of what went on Thursday night is the product of just a bad night at the beginning of the season, and how much of it is definitive going forward?

Wes French: I think there’s a little bit everything, feeling-wise, that’s acceptable here. Yes, it’s one game. Yes, there were positives, but basically all on the defensive side. Yes, the offense was appalling and it was basically all bad from Nagy/Mitch. Yes, it’s fixable…but Nagy is going to need to fix it in 10 days time after a summer of work that was supposed to have fixed this already.

The most glaring thing to me was the discrepancy between running/passing play calls and the lack of any kind of rhythm. Nagy earned the benefit of the doubt to handle the summer/preseason however he pleased with his 2018 and essentially had MONTHS to get this game plan ready. What came about was a slow start, followed by panicked, weird decision making thereafter. Mitch was all his bad qualities  as well – inaccurate, unable to read the defense, locking in on a lone route, giving up on a pocket/play within a second of the snap….it was like the preseason game he never got to play. So maybe he should’ve gotten a quarter or two after all.
Pagano gets some praise for some nice designs, especially the blitzes and how effective they were. The secondary looks like it’ll take some time to gel, but overall the defense is going to be fine. They did get a rookie coach that looked equally as inept as Nagy, but still a solid showing out the gate.
But, man. You tell me Rodgers gets 10 points all night and I’d think we’re all smiles and sunshine today. What a let down.
Brian Schmitz: Guys continue to disappear for entire games. But I don’t blame the players. The coaching staff and play calls are where you have to look to find fault. How can you spend 2 years talking about how gifted Cohen and Miller are, but then not get them the ball? 
Another huge takeaway is what opposing players think of Trubisky; and it’s not pretty. Mitch has a lot work to do; and while I am not giving up on him yet, you are what you stats say you are, and he’s just hasn’t been very good.
Tony Martin: Should be noted- the only Packers TD Drive was the one where Deon Bush was in for Clinton-Dix. Should also be noted that on the Rodgers deep ball they had Eddie Jackson playing close to the line and Bush playing centerfield, where he got beat deep. Just seemed like a weird call, not having BoJack do what he does best. Other than that, it’s good to see Pagano keep some aspects of the defense consistent. Roquan is gonna be a superstar. 
Nagy had a bad night and going for it on 4th and 10 is the classic “frustrated kid playing Madden” move. I don’t get the distribution of touches, either. They’re trying so hard to make Cordarrelle Patterson happen. Stop trying to make Cordarrelle Patterson happen. 
What would you guys like to see change against Denver, specifically?
Wes: I’m sure the balance of run/pass will differ significantly. Nagy was very adamant that he called runs, but they were RPOs that Mitch checked out of or decided to keep the ball and make a throw. Maybe there should be less that’s up to Mitch given what it all looked like last week.
There can’t be much that Vic Fangio would consider a surprise, but I wonder if Nagy and Co. were getting a little too cute and not wanting to show anything on tape to their former defensive coordinator. The type of plays need to change as well. The offensive backfield didn’t feel involved enough, on the ground or through the air. I feel like Davis/Montgomery/Cohen/Patterson are all interchangeable to a degree, and that could become a nightmare for the league in any of them can lineup in any play design. The key to unlocking the offense and shielding Mitch is going to be sorting out how they maximize those four in week 2 and beyond.

Brian: Aside from Cohen and miller getting more touches, I’d like to see if Allen Robinson can parlay his game 1 performance into a guy that can considered in the conversation as a top tier receiver. This of course, is a 3 way conversation and is contingent on if Nagy gets some things figured out and if Trubisky can become something more than below average. 

I also want to see if Khalil Mack can have a greater influence on the game. He’ll continue to draw doubles and chips on almost every play, so it’s hard to look at his performance form strictly a statistical view. His value in game 1 was opening up other guys to have a lot of success, which many did.