One of the awful coaching decisions that was masked in the aftermath of the Chicago Bears' heartbreaking Week 8 loss to the Washington Commanders was the fact that the team had the ball on the 2-yard line on third-and-goal and instead of handing the ball to Roschon Johnson, offensive coordinator called for a dive with offensive lineman Doug Kramer.
The #Bears just handed the ball off to a freaking offensive lineman in a crucial part of a game.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 27, 2024
What. In. The. World.pic.twitter.com/o5MVGTRqfW
Kramer had become somewhat of a folk hero with the Bears this season. Despite being a backup center by trade, Kramer has found a role on the Bears' offense as a de facto fullback on short-yardage plays. Before we go further, a quick flashback to last Friday when the Bears released the actual fullback they had on their roster, Khari Blasingame.
While Kramer has found success this season as a traditional fullback, it's important to note that it was done primarily as an extra blocker for Roschon Johnson on short-yardage plays. While the Bears have practiced plays where Kramer was the ball carrier, Sunday was the first time they tried such a play in an actual game. Safe to say it's a play that likely will not be called upon again for the Bears this season.
It was a moment when not only was Bears' offensive coordinator Shane Waldron not aware of the personnel he had at his disposal, he got too cute in a moment that was too big for him. Because had the Bears had a competent offensive coordinator, they likely would have been aware of this stat.
Roschon Johnson is the NFL's only player to score a TD on 100% of their carries inside the five-yard line this season (min. 4 carries). What a blessing that must be for the Bears knowing that you have this sort of sure-thing option available once you get to the goal line.
— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) October 29, 2024
There has been a popular rebuttal that had Kramer not fumbled and instead scored a touchdown, the play would have been praised. That is incorrect. In a one-position game, there is never a scenario where handing the ball to an offensive lineman deserves to be praised. This is not the same scenario as the Detroit Lions utilizing their offensive linemen as playmakers while putting up 50 against the Tennessee Titans. This is a Bears' offense that has routinely struggled to put the ball in the endzone and instead of handing the ball to the sure-handed Johnson, Waldron called a play that should be worthy of getting him fired.