It was an ugly way to snap the four-game winning streak, but a loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday was exactly what Chicago Bears fans were afraid of happening. It was something many fans felt was inevitable, even before the game, because this was precisely the type of game the Bears usually lose.
And they did, but they also didn't help themselves in the process. Running back D'Andre Swift was one of several Bears players or coaches to talk about penalties after this contest, and he seemed visibly frustrated when asked about the issue.
"It's always self-inflicted," Swift said. "Pre-snap, anything after the (snap), holding, that's things that's going to happen throughout football but the pre-snap stuff, we got to eliminate because that's what we can control."
Swift is preaching to the choir, here. Wide receiver Rome Odunze was just as frustrated and noted the penalty issues as well when speaking post-game.
The Bears have won games despite playing winning football, until now
This game was the perfect example of an Achilles heel finally catching up to the Bears. It's something fans have noticed all season long. Whether it was Cole Kmet getting into the habit of starting early or guys like Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright, among others, this has been alarming and flat-out unacceptable.
To date, the Bears have had 72 flags thrown against them on the season, 64 of which were accepted penalties and for a total of 533 yards. If you break it down even further, the Bears lead the NFL with 16 false start penalties.
Swift and Odunze were visibly frustrated, yes, but to be frank, they could have been downright ticked off.
Ben Johnson even said the quiet part out loud when he told the media that he and the coaching staff have been addressing this problem week-in and week-out, and at this point, it's on the players. It's on the leaders in the locker room to enforce and correct.
And he isn't wrong. This is the kind of problem that, after a certain point, is fully on the players. It cannot continue happening.
Forget the idea that Johnson might be giving them too much to handle with this new offensive scheme. We are eight weeks in, and it's still as big of an issue as it was in Week 1.
Read more: Ben Johnson calls out leaders in the locker room after loss to Ravens
Every franchise has excuses, right now. Every franchise has injuries. They all have their own woes. But, penalties and, specifically pre-snap penalties, are 100 percent correctable. This has to be addressed in a massive way, or the Bears have absolutely no business competing down the stretch this year.