Before I get to the bullets, which are necessarily stocked with reaction to yesterday’s heartbreaking 33-28 defeat to the Packers, I wanted to look forward a bit; it’s never to early for next year. (Many of you come to Bleacher Nation for Cubs talk; you sadly know exactly what I mean.) After the conclusion of the Cowboys-Eagles matchup, which ended with a Kyle Orton interception, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweeted the opponents the Bears will face next year, both home and away.
Home
New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Dallas, Buffalo, Miami, Detroit, Minnesota, Green Bay
Away
Atlanta, Carolina, San Francisco, New England, New York, Detroit, Minnesota, Green Bay
The NFC North plays the AFC East and NFC South next year, while the Bears second place divisional finish meant that they’ll play the second-place 49ers and Cowboys in their remaining games. (For example, had Detroit defeated the Vikings, the Bears would have finished third, meaning they would have played the Giants at home and visited the Cardinals.) The NFL schedules are fairly well-mapped out into the future; if you’re curious, you can find the Bears schedules through 2019 here (minus the results-dependent matchups, of course.)
If you want my quick early opinion, the AFC East was not a good division this year, (no AFC division was “good” really; the Bears went 4-0 against the AFC North after all) but the NFC South is a tough draw. At least the Bears avoid a trip to the Superdome.
His ESPN Chicago colleague Michael C. Wright writes that Jay Cutler played well in the defeat. I’d agree with this; he outplayed Aaron Rodgers all day, throwing for 226 yards and 2 touchdowns before an interception on the game-ending Hail Mary. I’m not one to buy into the “big game performance/clutchness” way of thinking, but if you do believe in that, you can only be encouraged by his performance. (I just saw a player who has played well all year continue to play well.) He racked up a QBR of 88.8, and he finishes the season 8th in the NFL in that metric, ahead of Tom Brady, Tony Romo, Matt Ryan, Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck, Matt Stafford, Andy Dalton, Ben Roethlisberger, and others. Wright thinks Cutler will be back, and I tend to agree. When that will happen, though, is something I can’t predict.
CBS Chicago’s Adam Hoge checks in, describing how fitting the defeat was for the Bears. He touches on a couple of the same plays I will be breaking down this afternoon. Adam also notes that the Bears allowed a staggering 6,497 yards this year; 521 more than their previous franchise record for yards allowed.
The Daily Herald’s Barry Rozner has his own recap, including comments Brandon Marshall made after the game in which he predicted that Cutler would be back. Marshall obviously says a lot of things, and while he himself admitted that he had no inside info as to the Bears plans, I think it’s safe to assume he does have insight into what Cutler wants to do. If Jay is motivated to return and the Bears are motivated to bring him back, I think a financially reasonable deal is quite possible.
Finally, Rich Campbell had a nice summary of Matt Forte’s game. Forte played quite well, rushing for 110 yards, tacking on 47 receiving yards, and scoring 2 touchdowns. He also had some Madden-style jukes in the open field. He’s very deserving of his Pro Bowl nod; hopefully he can stay healthy for a few more years, as he’s a dynamic weapon and a perfect fit in Trestman’s offense.
Oh, and I missed the Pro Bowl announcement; the Bears had two representatives, Matt Forte and Brandon Marshall. I was surprised that Alshon Jeffery didn’t make the cut, but he might still make it as players pull out due to injury. (Which happens every year.)
I have a lengthy look at yesterday’s game coming this afternoon, if you can stomach it.
But I also want to say how much fun it’s been writing about the Bears this season. Thanks for reading. I just wish I had a playoff game to preview.
Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
The wait is over. We now know who the Chicago Bears will be playing in London. As fate would have it, it is a team that is no stranger to international travel. The Jacksonville Jaguars are set to be the...
Caleb Williams clips, however brief, will always grab my attention. Because while I can tell myself over and over again that I will not get googly eyes over spring practice videos, the reality is that I can't wait to see...
Chicago Bears offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie is reportedly signing his rookie deal. NFL reporter Aaron Wilson has details on the contract, which includes: A $1.121 million signing bonus Annual workout bonus of $50,000 per year from 2025-27 Total deal worth...
Let's get this out of the way from the top. Looking at an NFL team's strength of schedule for the upcoming season based on the previous year's opponent winning percentage means almost nothing. So much change (roster moves, philosophy shifts,...
The NFL's schedule release is just over 24 hours away, but we're already getting some juicy teasers this week. Here's a roundup and some upcoming NFL-related productions coming to Amazon in today's NFL Notes. Chiefs Will Host the Ravens in...
Coming home to a wonky wifi wasn't on my to-do list. But at least I'm home in one piece. Anyway, apologies if this set of BN Bears Bullets is brief because I can't spend all day on mobile hotspot. The...
I've said it, and I'll continue to say it: this chapter of Chicago Bears football feels different. Perhaps it's because the last time we did this, we were in a pandemic, and when the Bears jumped up to No. 11...
The Detroit Lions have been busy in recent weeks securing their core after a run to the NFC title game last season. Jared Goff became the latest player to get a new deal in Detroit, and he became the highest-paid...
The Buccaneers have made Antoine Winfield Jr the highest-paid defensive back in the history of the NFL. On Monday afternoon, Winfield Jr and Tampa Bay agreed to a four-year, $84.1 million deal. It also guarantees the Bucs' star $45 million....
The Chicago Bears offseason roster churn continues. In addition to their five-player draft class headlined by Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze (plus nine more players who were signed as undrafted free agents), the Bears have signed six free agents who...
The first sticky stuff ejection of the year has arrived. Houston Astros righty Ronel Blanco, he of the surprising no-hitter earlier this year, got the boot last night. From the look of things, Blanco and his manager were trying to...
The wait is over. We now know who the Chicago Bears will be playing in London. As fate would have it, it is a team that is no stranger to international travel. The Jacksonville Jaguars are set to be the...
Not every game is a referendum on a team. Actually, come to think of it, a single game is NEVER a referendum on a team. Anyway, point is, a whole lot of teams are going to get stomped by these...
Pablo Aliendo gave the Tennessee Smokies an early lead on Tuesday night. Matching up with the Rocket City Trash Pandas, Aliendo sent a ball deep into left field during the 2nd inning. The homer gave the Smokies an early 1-0...
You know that expression, when it rains, it pours? This is like that, except instead of raining, it is pouring deluxe turds. Just an absolute monsoon of shit. Another Cubs injury issue to another key Cubs player: https://twitter.com/maddie_m_lee/status/1790522697002455532 So, Nico...
Caleb Williams clips, however brief, will always grab my attention. Because while I can tell myself over and over again that I will not get googly eyes over spring practice videos, the reality is that I can't wait to see...
If you are a Philadelphia Phillies fan and looking to catch their games, you can watch most of them on TV with a cable subscription or via streaming with one of the many different apps. Let’s break down the cable...
Oh hey! Blackhawks' star Connor Bedard scored his fifth goal of the World Championships for Canada on Tuesday afternoon. https://twitter.com/BN_Blackhawks/status/1790468565675483262 Bedard helped Canada sprint to a 6-1 lead... which evaporated as Austria scored five unanswered goals in the third period...
The Bronx is booming! Yankee Stadium crackles with energy as the New York Yankees chase another World Series title. Whether you're a die-hard Yankees fan bleeding pinstripes or a baseball enthusiast captivated by the American League East race, their remaining...
I had the weirdest reaction to what is objectively bad injury news on Adbert Alzolay just now. According to Meghan Montemurro, medical imaging confirmed that Adbert Alzolay has a right flexor strain. While I should have been upset to learn...