The overall reality of the 2022 Chicago Bears didn’t change on Sunday. It’s clear they are still a flawed football team. They have the worst passing attack in the NFL. Justin Fields looks lost and utterly devoid of confidence. Defensively they still struggle to stop the run and suffer occasional breakdowns in their young secondary. Yet one thing can’t be argued. They’re 2-1. This team has found ways to win. They won’t apologize for that.
It appears the good vibes aren’t done yet. As Sunday came to a close, news filtered out New England Patriots starting quarterback Mac Jones suffered a nasty high-ankle sprain against the Baltimore Ravens. If MRIs confirm the diagnosis, there is a strong likelihood the young quarterback will go on Injured Reserve. That means he will miss at least the next four games.
That would be noteworthy since the Bears play New England four weeks from now. It means they would likely face backup Brian Hoyer instead.
#Patriots QB Mac Jones is believed to have suffered a high-ankle sprain, pending MRI, per me and @TomPelissero. That means he’ll miss time and potentially head to IR, if the MRI confirms pic.twitter.com/tku5BnLmJV
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 26, 2022
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Lucky if #MacJones can avoid IR.
Details here: https://t.co/MGLce7BFZh— David J. Chao – ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc) September 26, 2022
The Chicago Bears have a real chance to build momentum.
That sounds crazy because of how bad Fields has been, but it’s true. Their next three games are against the Giants, Vikings, and Commanders. New York won their first two games by a combined four points. Minnesota barely escaped Detroit this week after getting thumped in Week 2. Washington lost to Detroit last week and got pounded by Philadelphia on Sunday. None of these teams are anywhere near elite status in the NFC. If the Bears can go 2-1 against them, they’d go into New England against a backup QB in a terrible offense. A win there would put them at 5-2 ahead of a tough two-game stretch against Dallas and Miami.
Even if they lose both, the Chicago Bears would have the Lions, Falcons, and Jets going into the bye week. There is a serious path to 8-4 for this team. Sure, more things need to go right for them. They have to play a lot better in the passing game. Still, nobody thought they’d be in this position. Fans should be grateful to have something to cheer about. Whether the national media likes it or not, this team is in the mix.
The Bears are overachieving. Only 19 remain from the Nagy era. You have 34 new guys that come together to go 2-1 in the toughest league, the NFL. The offense needs time to click. Other defenses are doubling Mooney the only receiver Fields has a repore with and keeping a spy on the edges so Fields can’t roll out. Defenses respect his deep ball so they play back and wait to see if he gets impatient, hence a couple of INTs. They also know that they can get to him given the new offensive line. He has to learn what… Read more »
Hopefully, since the management of the team admitted that winning doesn’t matter this season, and it is all about the development of Fields – that the Bear are also evaluating their unproductive offensive coordinator, Getsy. He hasn’t had the job before, so we do not know how he is going to do. I suggested after the Packers game that we give him thee more games to get his act together. Now, it is two game. The Bear should stay focused on their goals, and replace whoever cannot do their jobs. If we han’t seen sign of Justin Field’s accuracy, and… Read more »
Fields is definitely hesitant! It could be because he is over challenged and not having the success he has had, probably since HS. And, is he maybe listening to too many of the meatballs who are overreacting as they are so prone to do?
@Gator Joe, I agree with your comments. Fields is over-thinking, over-studying, which appears to be leading to mental lethargy on the field. As he said during the post-game presser, he’s going to watch film after he’s done with the presser. Work smarter; not always harder!
The real truth is that if the passing offense doesn’t get a lot better, Bears will be much closer to 4-8 than they will be 8-4. A lot if those teams listed have offenses that can score and at least an average defense. Teams are just going to play us like they played Trubisky. Load the box and force Fields to beat them with his arm. He is going to have to prove he can do just that at some point. Not saying he can’t do it.. just saying he is going to have to.