Detroit Lions Smash Chicago Bears: A Mostly Unbiased View
Nov 27, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Lions running back Joique Bell (35) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears at Ford Field. Detroit won 34-17. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
It can be hard being a fan of an NFL team. The rollercoaster ride from week to week can be exhausting. One week your team looks like they could take on anybody, but just a week later they could be taken apart by a team that you don’t think they should have any trouble defeating. It’s never as good or bad as it seems, and certain problems will persist throughout a season while others can be worked through. That’s why we here at BGO have decided to bring you “Bear and Balanced: A Mostly Unbiased View of your Chicago Bears”. I can find the silver lining to any cloud, but also find areas of concern in the most convincing victory. Each week I’ll try to bring you the facts from the game from an unbiased standpoint to help you, the fans, get a better feel for where the season is going.
Another week gone by and another lopsided loss for the Chicago Bears is in the books. The Bears were able to pull out a couple of close wins prior to this one and the beginning of the Lions game looked promising, but this is starting to get ridiculous. I’m not as concerned with the losses themselves as I am with the lopsided scores. Is the Chicago Bears coaching staff really this inept, or did we all vastly overestimate the talent on this team? It’s likely a little bit of both, but it’s still cause for concern either way. There were still some bright spots in this game, but with each crushing defeat I fear I’m going to start to sound like a broken record. To avoid that, I’ll be focusing a little more on individual performances that impressed me this week.
The Chicago Bears may have finally found a decent return man in Marc Mariani. We’ve all been spoiled by Devin Hester for nearly a decade, and this season has shown us how difficult it can be to find a competent return man in the NFL. Mariani didn’t light up the stat sheet by any means, but he did look quick and didn’t have any glaring mistakes which is more than I can say for the other players the Bears have tried out at the position this year. If he can continue to improve as he gets a better feel for his blockers, or at least doesn’t digress, I think there’s a strong chance he’s brought back next season to compete for the gig. And that might be a good thing.
Alshon Jeffery isn’t flying under anyone’s radar anymore, but he still deserves to be mentioned here. His stat line of 9 receptions for 71 yards and 2 touchdowns was a far cry from Calvin Johnson’s monster day, but his ability to produce despite the offense struggling as a whole should give Chicago Bears fans something to look forward to in the future. Even if Brandon Marshall winds up being one of what I expect to be several Bears jettisoned this offseason, Jeffery should continue to be a quality number one wide receiver for many years to come.
Be sure to hit the page break for more…