4 Bears thoughts entering Week 17 against the Atlanta Falcons
Thought No.3: With Darnell Mooney officially out, can rookie Tyler Scott step up and shine?
Wide receiver Darnell Mooney was officially ruled out against the Atlanta Falcons due to a concussion. With his looming free agency this off-season, Mooney has played his final home game last Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. And if is not cleared from the concussion protocol by next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, then he played his final game as a Chicago Bear against Arizona.
He had the worst game against the Cleveland Browns where he whiffed on a key run block on fourth down, and also caught the winning pass on the final Hail Mary pass of the game only to lose control and was picked off. The Cleveland game encapsulated the frustrating 2023 season.
When both DJ Moore and Cole Kmet suffered an injury, the offense sputtered badly against the Cardinals. Yet, it is hard to fathom that the Bears still have no idea what they have in Tyler Scott with only two games left in his rookie season.
Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy will likely take the fall after the season is over, but also general manager Ryan Poles has shown his inability to scout wide receivers as Velus Jones has been a bust and will be forever remembered for the disastrous Chase Claypool trade.
So far, Scott is remembered against the Detroit Lions in November when he inexplicably slowed down and the deep ball thrown from Justin Fields went through his outreaching hands, in a game in which the Lions eventually came back from 12 points down and won.
It is expected that the Bears will draft a rookie wide receiver very high in the 2024 NFL Draft. They might also add a veteran receiver in free agency. Scott can't do anything about it since he is still unproven. However, with only two games left, he must prove he has learned from that Lions game and finish strong now that Mooney is out and expected to hit free agency this off-season. Fields also must learn to trust and get Scott involved to build his confidence as well.