The Chicago Bears are stumbling into the playoffs after their 19-16 loss to the Detroit Lions, with a two-game losing streak in which the defense was once again exposed and gutted.
The worst part about this loss was that the Bears' players looked disinterested and lacked energy the entire game. Ben Johnson played his whole starters, knowing the two seeds were still at stake. But instead, the players did not seem to share the same sentiment and urgency. Now, a team looks like it’s drifting into the playoffs half‑awake.
Defense that looks broken and Bears offense sleepwalked through three quarters
For the second straight week, Chicago’s defense looked disorganized, slow, and vulnerable. The pass rush could not pressure Jared Goff, who is not mobile. Because of the anemic pass rush, the secondary was gashed and could not cover Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, and Kalif Raymond all game. Whatever Dennis Allen had planned did not work, and they are continuing to trend in the wrong direction.
Even more concerning was another slow start by the offense. While the defense deserves plenty of blame, Ben Johnson's offense sleepwalked through the first three quarters, with multiple three-and-outs, forcing the defense to be on the field far too long. It did not help that the running game was nonexistent, with D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai silent.
It was not until the fourth quarter that the offense finally woke up. Caleb Williams hit undrafted rookie receiver Jahdae Walker and rookie tight end Colston Loveland on two consecutive possessions, and converted both two-point attempts, to tie the game at 16-16. After safety Kevin Byard picked off a tipped pass, the Bears had a chance to pull off another improbable win once again. Instead, they went three-and-out and punted, and the Lions promptly marched down the field and kicked the game-winning field goal.
Johnson was caught shaking his head, regretting the decision to punt, signaling his distrust of the defense, and he did not even bother to take timeouts on their final offensive possession in the first half. He just wanted to run the clock out as much as possible so the defense did not have to take the field, rather than scoring points.
Johnson now has questions he must answer before their Wild Card playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. After losing to the San Francisco 49ers despite scoring 38 points, and a pathetic effort against the divisional rival today, has Johnson given up on Dennis Allen's defense, and might go for it on fourth downs regardless of their field possession in the postseason?
Johnson played his starters to win this game. But the efforts shown by his players had to disappoint Johnson. Is there a disconnect between him and his players? Can he get his players to bounce back against their hated division rival, the Green Bay Packers, for the third time in less than a week with all the pressure on them?
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After the performance they put on today, it does not look encouraging.