GM, Phil Emery: He absolutely deserves some blame, but what he does about correcting these issues will tell us if he’s the right guy for
Sep 28, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) fumbles the ball against the Green Bay Packers during the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
the job. First off, did he pick the right coach? That’s yet to be seen but it’s not looking good at the moment. The fact that he passed over Bruce Arians (Cardinals), Mike McCoy (Chargers) and Jim Caldwell (Lions) who all have their teams close to or at the top of their divisions, does not help his case. I don’t see Trestman going anywhere as that would be a death sentence for Emery after only 2 seasons, who put together a long process of interviewing. I think that Trestman and Emery will live or die together. He’s made some good free agent signings, trades and draft picks in his tenure (Alshon Jeffrey, Kyle Fuller, Kyle Long, Brandon Marshall, Jermon Bushrod, Martellus Bennett, Willie Young) but has also generated some duds (Lamar Houston, Shea McClellin, Brandon Hardin, Jared Allen).
HC, Marc Trestman: Not even a question here. When you are appointed to the leader of the team, you get blame. It’s not like players are open and balls are being dropped. It’s not like defensive players are in the right positions and just not making plays. Players don’t seem to be ready for the teams that they face which falls on the head coach. Another difficult duty that a head coach is tasked with is getting rid of coordinators whose units aren’t getting the job done. A knee jerk reaction is not a good idea, but too much blind loyalty behind your assistants is just foolish. As a head coach, you have to know when to pull the plug on people that are not doing their job, or it may cost you yours. Failure should not be rewarded and I see too many players and coaches that make the same mistakes each week, continue to get opportunities. When your team is 3-5, you must make changes.
On top of that, the play calling has been poor at times this year, especially on short yardage. It seems like when the Bears get down early, they abandon their game plan and seem to panic – acting like the ’85 Chargers or ’00 Rams. I also don’t understand why they keep Jay in the pocket all game long. He’s proven in his career that he can be effective being rolled out – get a little creative and less predictable, please. The screen passes 7 times per game aren’t fooling anyone.