It’s Time For Chase’s Chance in Chicago and Other Bullets

Thanksgiving Wednesday was a total success at my house. We don’t even have any leftover turkey. The only “leftovers” we have is the cheesecake that I forgot to pull out of the fridge. It’s cool that I have cheesecake for breakfast, right?

  • It’s time for a feast:
  • https://www.instagram.com/p/BqfDVybHQ_h/

  • Happy Thanksgiving from the Big 12:
  • I’m totally ready to chow down:
  • Before Chase Daniel was a backup quarterback extraordinaire, he was one of college football’s most entertaining quarterbacks – particularly in his junior and senior seasons at Missouri. Daniel was the first quarterback in school history to throw for 3,000 yards in three straight years, highlighted by a 2007 season in which he threw for 4,306 yards, 33 touchdowns, and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy race. He followed that with a 4,335-yard, 39-touchdown season in which he completed 72 percent of his passes and was a finalist for the Unitas Golden Arm and Manning Awards. Despite putting up some awesome numbers, Daniel wasn’t selected in the 2009 NFL Draft, in part because his size (6-0, 218 pounds at the combine) didn’t measure up to traditional NFL standards. That, coupled with his experience as a quarterback being primarily in the spread formation kept him off draft boards. It almost makes me wonder how things would have turned out for him had he come out now rather than nine years ago.
  • Here is a snippet from Daniel’s NFL.com draft profile that I still think sums up his game:
  • Positives: Gutty, competitive field general. A virtual coach on the field. Reads defenses well and checks down effectively. Good accuracy to all levels. Shows enough zip in the short to intermediate throws when given a deep pocket. Good touch to place the ball between the linebackers and safeties down the seams. More elusive than often given credit for. Can buy time in and out of the pocket and shows good accuracy on the move.

  • There was a belief that Daniel was a product of playing in the spread offense and throwing out of the shotgun. Lucky for him, the Bears run plays out of the shotgun at a 78.67 percent clip.
  • Over at NBC Sports Chicago, JJ Stankevitz explains why the Bears are confident Daniel can hold it down while Mitch Trubisky sits out with a shoulder issue. Daniel’s vast knowledge of the offense is expected to be helpful. Because even though he isn’t the athlete Trubisky is, Daniel should be able to make up for it by making the correct reads and accurate throws. Sound decision-making skills are going to be needed for the Bears to get through this game.
  • Important stats are important:
  • OK, here are some actual important stats:
  • Larry Mayer of the Bears’ official website highlights four things to watch for in today’s game. I’m not as concerned with how the Bears will handle the turnaround as perhaps I should be. Instead, I’m more concerned with how the team will handle an apparent edge in depth. The Lions are banged up with running back Kerryon Johnson and receiver Marvin Jones Jr. out of the lineup. Even players who are expected to be in like defensive end Ezekiel Ansah (shoulder), defensive tackle Damon Harrison (shoulder), defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson (ankle), and cornerback Darius Slay (knee) were limited in practice and listed as questionable. How effective these important players will be is up in the air until we actually see them take the field.
  • Today should be a good day for television ratings:
  • I want to dive into this more later, but having players worth voting into the Pro Bowl is fun:
  • 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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