4 Chicago Bears who are failing the team through Week 4
The Chicago Bears have now fallen to 2-2 on the season after an ugly loss to the New York Giants in Week 4. The team has been disciplined in key areas that helped lead to victories over the San Francisco 49ers and the Houston Texans. Not many people thought this team would have two wins through four games. I had the first three games predicted correctly but had them advancing to 3-1 in Week 4 with a win over the Giants. Unfortunately, the Bears cannot put up points.
When it comes to the loss to the Giants, I felt the opposite about this game than I did when watching the Texans game. I said that the Bears did not win the Texans game, but instead didn’t lose. In this game, the Giants didn’t beat the Chicago Bears. Instead, the Bears beat themselves.
Four trips within the 35-yard line yet they only came away with four field goals for 12 points. The only positive there was the signing of Michael Badgley who was perfect on the day in Cairo Santos’ absence. Too many times the team stalled and it was quite frustrating to watch.
This brings us to four Chicago Bears who have failed the team through the first four weeks of the season.
Justin Fields has failed the Chicago Bears to this point in the season
Look, I am one of the biggest Justin Fields supporters out there. I wanted him in a Bears uniform so bad in 2021 that I was screaming for joy when they traded up with the Giants from 20 to 11 to draft him. He was my QB2 in the 2021 NFL Draft behind only Trevor Lawrence. I also felt that Fields had a higher ceiling than Lawrence, but wasn’t sure he’d ever reach that mark. To this point, he’s not even reaching my expectations.
There is plenty of blame to go around. He doesn’t have a strong offensive line despite their ability to run the ball. Their pass blocking is suspect and they are unable to protect him long enough without some type of max protection. This limits the play calls and doesn’t allow certain players to reach their full potential. Cole Kmet for example has not been put in a position to succeed since he’s been blocking more often. Darnell Mooney is another one. If Justin Fields doesn’t have enough time for a route to develop, then he cannot make the throw.
The issue here though is that there is still plenty of blame to be put on Fields. He has not held strong in the pocket when there was one or instead of shifting or stepping up, he just takes off. His running ability is great but it could lead to unnecessary hits or a severe injury — neither anyone wants to see. He has also not read a few plays correctly that could have led to big plays should the throw be on point and the receiver come down with it.
All of this said, there have been some signs of growth and hopefully, this team can start turning a corner soon.