Glennon’s Struggles, White as a Non-Factor, Cohen’s Stock on the Rise, and Other Bullets

Well done, @ChicagoBears. Well done:

Now, if the moon could get to blocking out some of our memories of poorly quarterbacked Bears teams of the past…

  • Over at The Athletic, Dan Durkin’s film study reveals Glennon’s struggles through two preseason games. The first-team offense has failed to sustain positive momentum on its nine offensive drives (56 plays, 3.9 yards per play, 10 points scored) and has as many punts as it does third-down conversions. On top of that, Glennon’s accuracy has been poor and his ball placement has left much to be desired. Add it all up and you get a quarterback who is playing poorly, without much confidence, and to very little success. Things can turn for the better on Sunday against the Titans, but what happens if they don’t?
  • Kevin White, one of the targets Glennon could be throwing to with the first-team offense, has been hard to find on the field. White is healthy and has started both games, but Hub Arkush of Pro Football Weekly notes the third-year receiver from West Virginia has been a non-factor so far. After being shut out in the preseason opener, White caught two passes for two yards against the Cardinals. He’ll continue to get some benefit of the doubt, as well as the first crack at being the starter … but things aren’t off to a good start for a player picked seventh overall in 2015.
  • The offense hasn’t been a total dud this summer. Tarik Cohen’s stock continues to climb, especially with his performance working with the first team in place of injured backs Jordan Howard and Jeremy Langford. Mike Imrem of the Daily Herald writes Cohen is in a position to contribute in multiple facets of the offense, though he’s probably not going to take Howard’s job as starter any time soon. There aren’t many (if any positions) deeper than running back on the Bears, which is a good thing because of the volatility and turnover at the position. Despite the struggles at quarterback, the strength of the offense has always been the interior of the offensive line and the running game. With depth and production at both, the quarterback’s job should be a bit easier when the regular season rolls around.
  • The history of Bears quarterbacks is littered with so many poor players, you’d do anything to avoid being compared to one. Unfortunately, Mike Glennon has drawn an unfortunate comp, just two games into his Bears career. Dan Bernstein of WSCR 670-AM writes about flashbacks he’s getting while enduring the Glennon era to what he experienced as a beat reporter for the station when Rick Mirer suited up in Chicago. Yikes. The Bears traded a first-round pick in 1997 to acquire Mirer from the Seattle Seahawks, and the Notre Dame product disappointed at every turn and never looked the part of a professional quarterback despite being propped up as one. Mirer played in just seven games (three starts) for the Bears, who released him after just one season with the team.
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookies took some shots at former kicker Roberto Aguayo on his way out, writes Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. Then again, who hasn’t. Just take a look at this tweet from recently released Bears kicker Andy Phillips:
  • Wide receiver Anquan Boldin announced his retirement after a splendid 14-year career split between the Cardinals, Ravens, 49ers, and Lions. Fun fact: Boldin caught his first and last career touchdowns at Ford Field. A three-time Pro Bowler, Boldin had seven 1,000-yard seasons. He played only six games against the Bears, catching 32 of 61 targets for 320 yards, and two touchdowns.
  • The Tennessee Titans provide the opposition in Sunday’s all-important third preseason game, and the team that missed the playoffs despite a 9-7 record believes it has the recipe for success heading into 2017. A balanced attack with power running and precise passing, along with an ability to create turnovers led the Titans to a 34-27 win against the Panthers over the weekend. Quarterback Marcus Mariota believes the team showed a glimpse of what could be in store. “I think that was the blueprint for how we can be successful this year,” Mariota said. “All three phases played really well. We just got to kind of follow that course and continue forward.”
  • Quarterback Mitch Leidner, who played his college football for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, signed with the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune writes Leidner becomes the fifth quarterback to be added to the Vikings’ mix at camp this summer, joining Teddy Bridgewater (who is still on the PUP list), Sam Bradford, Case Keenum, and Taylor Heinicke. Leidner has worked out previously with the Ravens, Lions, and Jaguars, but never latched on.
  • Aaron Rodgers’ backups are making things interesting at Packers camp. Neither is going to overtake Rodgers, but Brett Hundley completed 9 of 10 passes, threw for 107 yards, and posted a 144.6 rating against Washington on Saturday. Not to be left out of the picture, Taysom Hill ran 23 yards for the game-winning score. If Rodgers was to go down with an injury and miss a signficant amount of time, either of these options could be relied on. Good for them.
  • written by

    Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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