The Bears Are Going to the Playoffs Despite Their Best Efforts and Other Bears Bullets

I understand why some people jump into “new year, new me” mode immediately, but I’m just not wired that way. But today begins a renewed interest in accountability and self-improvement in several areas. I know it won’t be easy, but nothing that’s worth a damn ever is.

•   In December, my friend Greg Braggs Jr. tweeted: “The Chicago Bears have had 3 different seasons in one football season.” And for obvious reasons, that has stuck with me. Not only have the Bears run the gamut three times over with three varying sets of results, they’re now preparing for a fourth season. The postseason. More on that momentarily.

•   What’s wild about living in three different seasons is that you can see what you want from it. And it was all on display yesterday between the Bears and Packers at Soldier Field. Moreover, it played out featuring the three most important people in the organization. We’ll start with Matt Nagy, the polarizing head coach who is tough to get a feel for three years into the gig. Nagy’s backers could point to his ability to keep things afloat during the darkest hour as a strength. But detractors can highlight his general stubbornness as a reason the Bears are spinning their tires at 8-8 for a second straight season. Nagy seemed to be moving in the right direction by handing Bill Lazor play-calling duties, but NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reports Nagy has had his hands in the mix lately. Perhaps this was such a moment:

If you're upset about the shotgun pass on the unsuccessful 4th & 1 then I assume you're also upset about the shotgun pass that worked on the other 4th & 1

— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) January 4, 2021

•   After running it successfully on earlier fourth-down tries, the Bears ran a sprint right pass play that was absolutely blown up. That reeked of the type of “too cute” stuff that’s been bogging down Chicago’s offense for some time. Then again, the difference between the 4th down pass that worked and the one that didn’t are clear as day. The successful one came with a design and play-fake that forced Green Bay to overcommit to stopping the run, leaving open clear lanes to throw the ball for a first down. On the other hand, the one that didn’t work was a straight roll out that featured a poorly executed block attempt by Jimmy Graham. There was no misdirection and no options beyond the obvious. Frankly, the Bears are lucky to have not seen Mitchell Trubisky throw a pick-six there.

•   Speaking of Trubisky, what was said about his head coach is also directly applicable to him. Tru believers see Trubisky ending the year on a heater as a sign of growth and development. Trubisky’s last six games had him completing 70 percent of his passes, averaging 249.2 yards per game, throwing to a 10-5 TD-INT ration, and posting a 96.0 passer rating. Extrapolate those stats over a full 16-game season, and we’re looking at 3,987 passing yards, 27 TD, and 13 INT. That’s not awful. But Trubisky’s critics can point to the rate of interceptions in his last three games (3.1% is the last three games) and where/when they happened is a bit too Jay Cutler-ish (and for all the wrong reasons, too).

•   Seriously … what was this?

.@_SmashAmos31 with the INT!#GBvsCHI | #GoPackGo

📺 FOX
📱 https://t.co/2UxGSiVlvn https://t.co/LcUgHVD28h

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 4, 2021

•   Hey, it wasn’t all bad for Trubisky:

That last completion to Allen Robinson gives Mitch Trubisky 1,000 for his career. He becomes only the third player in #Bears history to accomplish this feat (Cutler, Harbaugh).

— Chicago Bears (@BearsPR) January 3, 2021

•   What a sad history of quarterbacking for this franchise.

•   In the end, that we can have this thought process with GM Ryan Pace ties it all together. Draft picks like Eddie Jackson and Roquan Smith have established themselves as core pieces. David Montgomery, Jaylon Johnson, and Darnell Mooney look like recent picks who can stake claims to being part of a growing nucleus of young talent. Then again, you can look at high-profile big whiffs and find yourself disappointed in Pace’s overall body of work. First-round hits in 2015, 2016, and 2017 likely have us looking at a far different Bears team in 2020. But today isn’t the day to fall down that rabbit hole. Instead, it’s a reminder of how every opportunity should be viewed as sacred.

•   And yet, the Bears are going to the playoffs. That’s … kinda neat.

•   They’ve got the Saints right where they want them:

This team getting the first ever 7 seed is truly the most fitting thing of all time

Anyway. Saints in a quiet Superdome with potentially a less than 100% Michael Thomas have vulnerabilities

— Brad Spielberger (@PFF_Brad) January 4, 2021

•   I believe in the “due factor” and you can’t get me off my stance:

The Bears have lost six in a row to the Saints. It’s their longest active losing streak against any team.

The last time the Bears beat the Saints was 12/11/2008. Their last win in New Orleans was 11/6/2005 on a Robbie Gould game-winner against a Saints team that went 3-13.

— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) January 4, 2021

 

•   The moment C.J. Gardner-Johnson realized who was coming to town:

He coming to the city ✅

— Ceedy Duce. (@CGJXXIII) January 4, 2021

 

•   Cordarrelle Patterson is good at returning kicks:

Cordarrelle Patterson finishes the season with 29.1 yards per kickoff return.

It’s his fifth season with 20+ returns and 29+ yards per return. Since he entered the league all other players have nine such seasons combined.

— Adam Harstad (@AdamHarstad) January 4, 2021