Chicago Bears Week 2 Report Card


The Chicago Bears were sent to detention by the New Orleans Saints in Week 2, dropping their record to 1-1 on the season.  There were very few bright spots for the Bears, but there was a lot to learn from.  The offense looked like they forgot to study, and the defense was schooled by Drew Brees to the tune of 270 passing yards and three touchdowns.  I’ve had time to look over the effort turned in by the Bears and here are some grades.

RB Matt Forte:  A –
I know, 166 yards from scrimmage looks like honors level work from Forte, but I can’t give him a top grade when he didn’t put some points on the board.  He played very well, and I wish it could have rubbed off on the rest of the team.  A solid effort is rewarded, but he needs to petition Mike Martz to hand the ball off to him more.

QB Jay Cutler:  C +
I don’t even know how to fairly grade Cutler’s effort, when he basically had no one blocking for him all day.  He did allow himself to get frustrated and made numerous throws off of his back foot, but overall looked average when he wasn’t being knocked down.  However, he only turned the ball over once on a fumble, so I gave him the + for zero interceptions.

Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz and Head Coach Lovie Smith: F –
The Bears had no answer for the Saints blitzes and no real adjustments were made at halftime, when they were still in the game.  When Saints coach Sean Payton argued about a late hit that wasn’t called in the first quarter, he called a time out to get his money’s worth.  Then, the refs somehow moved the ball forward two yards and the Saints got a first down.  From what I saw on TV, Lovie did, and said, nothing after the Darren Sproles “touchdown.”  Speak up for once, Lovie!

WR Dane Sanzenbacher: B
The rookie wideout scored the Bears only touchdown against the Saints and showed some real promise.  While he did drop a pass, he showed a knack for getting open and showed he can take a hit and get back up.  I think he has a future as a slot guy for the Bears.

DE Julius Peppers:  D+
I don’t know if it was good blocking or the Bears line wearing down from being on the field too much, but Peppers and crew were pretty much nonexistent.  Peppers recorded only one tackle all afternoon and never laid a finger on Brees.  A bad day for Peppers, means a bad day for the Bears defense.

WR Sam Hurd:  F
He dropped a pass, fumbled his only catch out of bounds and was called for fair catch interference on special teams.  Great free agent acquisition, Jerry.

Bears Fans:  A+
While the Bears didn’t win the game, I saw tons of Bears fans in the stands.  Win or lose, Bears fans always travel well.

There you have it, some good and some bad.  I know the game was ugly but this is the NFL and anything can happen in a week’s time.  Don’t jump off the bandwagon and put your Rex Grossman jersey back on yet.  The Bears will be better and Jay Cutler will find a way to make this offense work.  Fourteen games remain and we all knew the first few weren’t going to be easy.  Let’s put the Saints behind us and get ready for Packer Week!

Schedule