The Chicago Bears hung tough and lost in a one-score road game. It is a good sign for things to come
The Chicago Bears fell to 2-2 in the Mitchell Trubisky era with their 20-12 loss at the New Orleans Saints. While there are no moral victories in football, this team has to feel like they played better than the final score, and were just a couple of bad breaks away from this game finishing in a completely different fashion.
The first big mistake was the offsides call on a field goal attempt. On the first drive of the game, the Saints drive down the field, but the Bears bend but don’t break defense forced them to three points. That is, until an offside on fourth and one gave the explosive Saints offense new life. It took one play after for Alvin Kamara to run up the middle for eight yards, and punish the Bears for the mistake with four extra points.
Next, the Bears missed a field goal of their own. Right before the half, Mitchell Trubisky put on in a solid drive. He was 3-5 for 48 yards in a two-minute drill. He did take a sack to make the kick longer, but still, a 48-yard kick in a dome is one that has to be made in the NFL. This is how a 10-6 game on paper turns into 14-3 on the field.
Lastly is the egregiously missed touchdown that was an obvious catch but was somehow taken back. The first two minor mistakes can be put on the Bears, this was costly in many ways and was to the fault on no one on the team. Zach Miller made an incredible catch, severely hurt his leg, but followed through with a completion. On a play that only the league will be able to explain, the play was wiped off of the board.
With the other plays compiled on it, that was a play that should have given them the lead. On the actual field, it should have turned a 14-3 game into 14-10.
With a total of 14 points lost, seven due to shooting themselves in the foot, the Bears have to have felt like they should have won this eight-point game.
However, this also should be a team that is looking in the mirror and realizing that this is just the start of something. With Trubisky, Jordan Howard, Eddie Jackson, Adrian Amos, Kyle Fuller, Leonard Floyd and Eddie Goldman in their rookie contracts, a core has officially been established.
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The window for contending is just opening now, it should be open for the next four to five years at the minimum. There will be a game next season where the Bears do all the little things on the road and steal a game from a contending team and they will point to this game. For this season, this loss only stings. However, it is tough to come away from this game without the fresh thoughts that this was a fun football game, and the Bears will be competing in games like this for the rest of the year and the foreseeable future.