Chicago Bears must take advantage of this Tampa Bay Buccaneers injury update
The Chicago Bears are facing a game that is close to a must-win as they head to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They come in relatively healthy, although a question comes at slot cornerback. However, the Bucs appear to have a cornerback issue of their own. Bucs cornerback Carlton Davis is listed out for this game.
Chicago Bears must take advantage of Carlton Davis injury
Beyond that, their starting slot cornerback, Christian Izien, is coming back from a concussion. He did practice on Friday, but he is questionable to play in this game. Izien is a rookie UDFA, and that speaks to the depth of the Bucs secondary right now. So, these injuries are major.
With Davis down, the Bucs are going to have to turn to Zyon McCollum to start. McCollum is a fifth-round pick entering his second NFL season. Injuries forced McCollum onto the field during his rookie season, and he struggled, which was expected from a day-three rookie. Now that he is entering year two, the Bucs are hoping that he can bring more to the table, but there are plenty of questions about that.
So, the Bucs will walk in with Jamel Dean, who was up and down last week, McCollum making his first start of the year, and Izien, the rookie UDFA making his second start, coming off a concussion, and only having a day of practice. This is not the same as Jaire Alexander, Rasul Douglas, and Keisean Nixon. The Packers' cornerbacks are much better.
Darnell Mooney had a great game, and he will line up in the slot and get a lot of Izien. He should have another solid performance. On the other side, D.J. Moore has a history of good luck against the Bucs, and those games were typically when he lined up against Carlton Davis. Now, he gets a banged-up secondary.
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The Chicago Bears need to learn their lesson from week one. They need to find ways to work the ball down the field and test the Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary. The Bucs' defensive line has talent for sure, and they can push around the Bears' weaker line, but the game plan must be better and must call for shots, especially in the direction of D.J. Moore.