For the third time in only two months, the Chicago Bears squandered a double-digit lead in the 4th quarter to lose another game. This time, the Cleveland Browns, led by Joe Flacco’s 212 yards in the final 15 minutes, sealed it. While the defense will get a lot of the grief for the collapse, plenty of fingers should be pointed at the offense for a frankly dismal afternoon. They couldn’t do much of anything on the ground or through the air. A lot of it came from bad miscues, including two dropped touchdowns and some missed blocks.
However, most people pointed the finger at offensive coordinator Luke Getsy for his conservative approach that basically allowed Cleveland to do what they wanted most of the afternoon. It seems the fans and media weren’t the only ones upset about that this time. Wide receiver Darnell Mooney had something to say about it after the game.
“I didn’t like how we felt comfortable in the third quarter. Just lackadaisical and just conservative. Everybody just happy that we were winning and just got to be aggressive and continue to put their foot on the pedal and just go out there and punch ‘em. Can’t get too comfortable in the third quarter. That’s what kind of bit us. Tried to switch gears in the fourth quarter once they scored. It’s hard to do that.”
He didn’t single anybody out by name, but the words he chose made it clear who he was talking about.
People will jump on him for having the audacity to criticize anybody after an ugly game that saw a missed block on 4th and 1, along with dropping what would’ve been the game-winning Hail Mary. However, he got some backup from teammate D.J. Moore.
“I mean, yeah, it was kind of a lull in the third quarter. We didn’t really have no explosive plays. I don’t even think we had more than four first downs. It was like a little lull and we can’t be like that going against a defense like that.”
The Chicago Bears coaching staff is in deep trouble.
Conversations have shifted away from the argument that the roster isn’t good enough. It’s clear by now that GM Ryan Poles has assembled an array of talent capable of winning games. Matt Eberflus has squandered way too many opportunities this season. Three 4th quarter collapses are bad enough. He is also the one who hired the untried Getsy for the job. He’s instilled a conservative nature in this team, coaching not to lose rather than being aggressive. For all his ability as a play caller, Eberflus keeps proving to be a lousy head coach.
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The fact players had no qualms about speaking out about this problem says a lot about what might be happening in the locker room. While there haven’t been any blowups, the frustration appears to be mounting. Mooney, Moore, and others feel this team should be in a far better spot than they are. The stubborn unwillingness of the coaches to stay on the attack is breeding resentment. It is one of several reasons team president Kevin Warren and GM Ryan Poles may have to make changes next month.
