Chicago Bears Week 16 Report Card
By Deez
Much as expected, the makeshift 2011 Chicago Bears fell 35-21 to the Green Bay Packers for the fourth time this calendar year. The Bears were relying on backups at seemingly every position on offense and the defense couldn’t keep Aaron Rodgers out of the end zone, giving up five passing touchdowns. QB Josh McCown played surprisingly well, throwing for 242 yards and a TD to go along with two costly interceptions. Third-string running back Kahlil Bell led a rejuvenated Bears running attack that racked up 199 rushing yards. Despite the bloated yardage totals, the Bears struggled to put points on the board. Their first TD of the game was scored by offensive lineman Edwin Williams. Yep, it was one of those nights. Let’s hand out some grades as the Bears were officially eliminated from playoff contention, again, by the Packers.
QB Josh McCown – For a guy who hasn’t started an NFL game since 2007, he actually had a decent game. He showed great mobility in the pocket, rushing for 38 yards on eight carries and he wasn’t sacked. Maybe it was because I expected nothing from him, but he put Caleb Hanie to shame against a pretty good defense. McCown’s performance didn’t make me want him to stay with the team, rather it made me realize how terrible Hanie is. I can’t wait until they are both gone and hopefully they will take Martz and Angelo with them.
Grade: C+ (the plus is because he almost made Roy Williams look like a competent receiver)
RB Kahlil Bell & RB Armando Allen – I graded these two guys together because this game made me realize how important it is to have two reliable running backs with different skills working in tandem during a game. Maybe the Packers defense wasn’t trying very hard, since they had a lead, but they let a third string RB (Bell) run for 121 yards on 23 carries and a fourth-string RB (Allen) run for an additional 40 yards on 11 carries. This may be jumping the gun, but could these two guys be the Bears future? Do you think the Bears may consider franchising Forte and trading him? We will have to wait and see.
Grade: A
S Major Wright – This guy has no idea how to play football. On the Packers first scoring drive, I saw Wright try to make two consecutive tackles … with his head. The first ended with him spearing his own teammate, Zack Bowman, in the chest. The second spear attempt was more blatant. He tried to tackle Jermichael Finley, missed him with his head, didn’t even try to use his arms, and ended up bouncing right off him. It’s just lazy football. He’s proven that he isn’t a very good safety and his career will end when he concusses himself making a stupid hit.
Grade: F
DE Julius Peppers – It’s never a good game when you forget that Julius Peppers is playing. He didn’t make a tackle this week and wasn’t quick enough to get close to Rodgers. You need more out of him in a game like this, especially when he is playing against second-string offensive linemen.
Grade: F+
WR Roy Williams – After his six catch, 81 yard performance, I think Roy Williams can be the Bears No. 1 receiver in the future … Now that I have your attention, Roy Williams is a terrible receiver. He misses easy passes, he’s not athletic and he gives up on routes/throws all the time. Don’t let this performance fool you, Williams is useless. I hope he enjoyed the “big” game he had, because he’s not going to be in the NFL much longer. A starting receiver who had his “best” game of the year in Week 16 with 81 receiving yards is a travesty, not a good game. Martz’ prediction of 70-80 catches for Roy (33 catches so far in 2011) is going to fall 30-40 short. Martz should be fired based solely on this whole Roy Williams fiasco.
Grade: F-
K Robbie Gould – We still love Robbie, despite missing his fourth field goal of the season. However, his kickoffs have been immaculate all season and Sunday night was no different. Good as Gould, baby.
Grade: B+
Mike Martz – I still have no clue how he helps the Bears by sitting up in a booth rather than being on the sidelines, especially with all the problems getting playcalls in. I think the immortal words of Stewie Griffin apply here – Go..away…fat man.
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