The Chicago Bears went from being on the fun side of a blowout to the worst end. Last week, the Bears beat the Raiders 30-12. This week, they were embarrassed and lost 30-13 to the Chargers. Leading up to this game, there was an entire social media war amongst Bears fans debating who is a better quarterback for this team -- Justin Fields or Tyson Bagent. The debate was a little ridiculous but here we are and now we know.
Although, we might not know what you think. Tyson Bagent was never the answer. He's an undrafted free agent out of Division II. He has already proven he's a solid backup quarterback. We also shouldn't put a ceiling on him. There's no reason he cannot amount to more. That said, he was never more talented than Justin Fields at this point. This isn't the point though. I'm not here to debate Bagent and Fields. If that's the case, then what did Tyson Bagent prove?
The Chicago Bears are short in two main areas
Before we get into what Tyson Bagent proved tonight. Let's take a quick look at the outcome of his performance. Bagent started the game out by hitting Darnell Mooney on a deep pass that went for 41 yards. Chicago followed that up with two runs that went nowhere, then a sack for a 10-yard loss that took them out of field goal range. Not a great finish after an impressive start. Bagent had another deep ball, not thrown well, to a wide-open Velus Jones. Despite a poor, underthrown ball, Jones dropped an easy touchdown. Bagent played very up and down all game. He looked like a backup.
Overall, the Bears and Chargers had a similar time of possession. Chicago turned the ball over twice -- both were interceptions. The second one wasn't on Tyson Bagent though as it hit Darnell Mooney in the chest but he couldn't hang on as he got it. It bounced right into the Derwin James' hands for the pick. Bagent got lucky on a few other passes that he telegraphed that should have been picked off.
The defense was not efficient. Despite the teams having similar time of possession, the Chargers converted 53% of their third downs. That number improved at the end of the game, but at one point the Chargers converted 5 of 6 third downs. It's partly how they extended drives and went up 17-0 early in the game. It seemed as though the DBs were playing too soft and as usual the defensive front could not bring enough pressure. So many things went wrong in this game, but again, we at least were able to see two things brought to light.
The Chicago Bears do not have a quarterback problem
I'm not about to tell you that the quarterbacks of the Chicago Bears have not attributed to the outcome of many games over the last two years. Justin Fields has only won two games under Matt Eberflus and Luke Getsy. The thing is, wins are not a quarterback stat. Wins and losses are team stats -- even though the quarterback can usually have the biggest effect on the outcome of a game.
Watching the Chicago Bears operate on offense over the last four weeks, we have seen the best of Justin Fields, a horrible game plan, followed by a solid game plan against a really bad team and now another relapse back to poor game planning. This game has exposed and proved just how badly the offensive game plan continues to operate.
When I looked at this matchup, I said how the Chicago Bears needed to take advantage of the quick passing game and screen game. This would fit perfectly with Tyson Bagent's skill set. The Chargers have a top-12 run defense that has improved week-over-week. The same game plan that Luke Getsy brought against the Raiders wouldn't work in this game. However, part of it should have worked. Instead of running up the middle, the team should have used the outside zone rushing attack more (it worked at times), coupled with WR, RB, and TE screens.
It's not often I call for that many screens. However, the Chargers have been the worst at stopping it. The Bears didn't attack this area of the defense enough. Some deep shots across the middle should have been incorporated too as the Chargers have struggled in that area of the field, but instead, we saw mostly throws toward the boundaries.
Essentially, the game plan was awful as usual. Now, couple that with all of the penalties (even ones not accepted) and you have to wonder just how prepared is this team. We are constantly talking about how the H.I.T.S. principle isn't working. That continues to negatively impact Matt Eberflus and it has to be said that this staff continues to prove they should be fired. The quarterback has been 'a' problem, but the coaching staff has been mostly 'the' problem.
The Chicago Bears still have a lack of talent problem
We now know for sure (most of us already knew this) that the Chicago Bears have a coaching problem more than a quarterback problem. However, we are also seeing how the Chicago Bears have a talent problem. When asked where the Bears are at in the rebuilding process, Ryan Poles said the team is roughly 75-80% complete. I know the team is dealing with some injuries right now, but they are still lacking serious talent in some key areas.
When you see Velus Jones continue to make mistakes on offense (and thank goodness no longer in the punt game), you have to wonder why he's still here. That is a Ryan Poles mistake. The same could be said about the Chase Claypool trade. Although, I still understand the process. Some of these moves by Ryan Poles are starting to weigh on many Chicago Bears fans. They are calling for his head. I think too many fans are showing impatience though. They are in Year 2 of a major rebuild and it is going to take some time if Ryan Poles is going to do things right. 2023 was never going to be the year.
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That doesn't discount the lack of talent in areas. Darnell Wright looks legit. Left tackle is still suspect. DJ Moore is elite, but Darnell Mooney is at best a WR3. The team needs another receiving threat as soon as possible. On defense, the team is lacking on the defensive line. There is not enough pressure without using blitzes. Center is obviously an area of concern too. Ryan Poles isn't going to be fired at the end of the season. Poles has his hands full and tough decisions to make. However, he has a serious amount of cash coupled with some great draft capital for 2024. We just need patience.