While most of the rest of the NFL prepares for Week 6’s Sunday slate, the Chicago Bears are in a reflective state.
And, perhaps, with the help of a mini-bye week that keeps Chicago’s football team off the field until Monday, Oct. 24, the Bears will come out with renewed vigor.
At minimum, it sounds like the Bears will be using the extended layoff to re-evaluate every aspect of a team that needs it:
This doesn’t sound like Head Coach Matt Eberflus is angling to make a tweak here or a small change there. Instead, this sounds like the Bears are about to undergo some serious self-scouting in the coming days. Frankly, this is what they should be doing. It’s time to take a good, hard look in the mirror and fix some things. These Bears should be re-evaluating everything about their team. Players, scheme, personnel fit, and likely everything else that would fall under the umbrella. It should be an exhaustive (if not exhausting) process. This team needs work. And while they won’t fix things over the span of 10 days, acknowledging any and all problems (as well as any and all solutions) should be top of mind.
But what could that even entail?
Offensive line changes could be in order after quarterback Justin Fields was pressured 18 times on Thursday and a 46 percent clip on his drop-backs in his first six games. A special teams swap in the return game figures to be in order after Velus Jones Jr.’s second muffed punt in three games sunk the Bears’ chances of winning (on each occasion). Rotations along the defensive line? Philosophical and/or schematic adjustment? We could go on.
It’s almost as if it is a good time for a mini-bye.