Bears vs Dolphins: Fields and the offense shine yet again, 4 thoughts from Sunday’s loss

The Bears fell to the Dolphins with a final score of 35-32. The secondary had trouble stopping Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, as they both combined for over 200 yards on the day. Although, the Bears offense seemed to have an answer every time the Dolphins scored. They had a chance to win the game down 3 with two minutes to go, but a controversial no-call on a Chase Claypool jump ball ultimately ended the Bears hopes. Here are some things to take away from this game.

  1. Justin Fields is on his way to becoming a franchise quarterback

Yesterday, Fields had a great game. He showed his ability to use his legs and escape pressure, while also making good throws. Justin Fields threw for three touchdowns, ran one in, and broke Michael Vick’s single-game rushing record for a quarterback with 178 yards on the ground. His explosiveness combined with his arm talent is why he can be a very successful quarterback for years to come.

The Bears have $125 million to spend in the offseason to get Fields a better offensive line and maybe another receiver. This is the third straight game the Bears offense has put up thirty points. Bears fans were looking for improvement in his second year, and so far they are getting just that.

2. Luke Getsy’s play-calling is coming along nicely.

Earlier in the season, Luke Getsy’s play calling was off to a slow start. Which isn’t too surprising given the fact that he’s only called plays once in his coaching career while he was at Mississippi State. In the past three games, we’ve seen a lot more designed runs for Fields, some screens, and some jet sweeps. He’s also done a great job during third and short scenarios, and third and longs.

Overall, he’s done well controlling the flow of the game. It’s so great to see Getsy and Fields already gelling well together. They could be even more dangerous next season with a full year under their belt, and potentially more weapons.

3. Chase Claypool is already seeing some action is good to see

After being traded to the Bears on Tuesday, Chase Claypool was able to play 26 snaps on Sunday. He ended up only having 2 receptions for 13 yards, but the Bears did a good job trying to get him involved by calling some screen passes. He also was targeted deep toward the end of the game but was interfered with, and it wasn’t called.

Next week Chase’s snap count should increase a good amount. Which will make this offense even more dangerous.

4. The loss may end up helping the Bears

Losing isn’t fun, but when Ryan Poles trades your two best defensive players, he’s building for the future and not necessarily playing to win the Super Bowl this year. The Bears are 3-6 and as of today, they hold the 9th overall pick in the NFL Draft. Poles can get a stud that can help this team in the future.

And it’s not like the Bears are playing bad. They kept up with one of the best offenses in the league and almost won. It’s not fun to lose, but a top-10 draft pick would be huge for the Bears.

The Bears will be back at Soldier Field on Sunday as the Detroit Lions come to town. If the offense continues to stay hot, the Bears should be able to take care of business and get to 4-6.

3 available free agents the Bears can add to fill needs

The Bears didn’t really improve in free agency. They signed Andy Dalton to be their starting quarterback, added veteran cornerback Desmond Trufant to replace Kyle Fuller, and added some depth at running back with the signing of Damien Williams. They’re are still plenty of solid free agents out there that can improve the roster. Here are 3 free agents still available the Bears can add:

1. Kenny Vaccaro

The Bears still have a hole to fill at safety. Ever since Adrian Amos left, they have struggled to find a true strong safety. Kenny Vaccaro can fill that hole. He’s been around 8 years, and produced 62 tackles last season with the Titans. With the Bears signing Tashaun Gipson and Haha Clinton-Dix the past 2 seasons, Eddie Jackson had to play in the box. Causing him to not have as many interceptions the past couple seasons. Vaccaro is a true strong safety who can play in the box. He’s a great fit and the best strong safety still available in free agency.

2. Marquise Goodwin

With the Bears trying to trade Anthony Miller, Marquise Goodwin is a guy that can bring some speed into the receiving room. The Bears already have Robinson and Mooney. Goodwin can be a nice third receiver in Nagy’s offense. In his time with the 49ers (2017-2019) Goodwin racked up 1,543 yards and 7 touchdowns while also being hurt and not playing in 12 games during that time span. Goodwin would be a nice addition that can help the offense!

3. Nickell Robey-Coleman

Towards the end of last season, Jaylon Johnson was injured for the Bears. This left an inexperienced Kindle Vildor to take the role at CB2. While Vildor is going to a great player, it’s nice to have solid depth at the position. And looking at Artie Burns who tore his ACL last year as the next man up seems untrusting. Robey-Coleman is a solid veteran cornerback who can play a backup role or even compete with Kindle Vildor and Duke Shelley for the starting nickelback position. He’s been in the league 8 years and has put up solid numbers, having 49 passes deflected, and 6 interceptions. Robey-Coleman can be a player that can complete the cornerback room for the Bears!

If the Bears make these moves, then get even better in the draft, they could be looking solid heading into 2021.

3 Players That Need To Break Out If the Bears Want To Make It Back To The Playoffs

The Bears missed the playoffs last season after going 12-4 in 2018. The team right now is good but to be a great team next year, here are 3 players that could help them make it back to the playoffs.

1. Mitchell Trubisky This might be the most obvious of the 3. Trubisky had a disastrous season last year. He was over throwing receivers, did not read coverages well, and overall just did not play good enough for the team to win games. The Bears did bring in Nick Foles, but if Mitch is the starter he needs to be sharp. The defense is Super Bowl good, and We’ve seen Mitch play good enough for the Bears to the playoffs. They also added a new QB coach in John Defilippo who is known for helping struggling QB’s and a new offensive coordinator in Bill Lazor. What they could do better to help Mitch is calling plays that relate to what he does best for example rolling out of the pocket. Part of that is on Nagy. I think if Nagy and the other coach’s have a good relationship with Mitch, and he starts reading coverages better, be ready for a breakout season for Mitchell Trubisky!

2. David Montgomery Montgomery is due for a breakout sophomore season! We’ve seen glimpses of what he can do last year and this season he is only going up! Part of a QB being successful is having a reliable running back. Last year was a decent freshman season for David Montgomery. He rushed for 889 yards and had 6 touchdowns. Part of those stats is because the Matt Nagy didn’t run the ball as much, but this season that will likely change. The Bears offense was ranked 23rd last season, and that rank needs to go up if the Bears want to be successful this year. Montgomery will be a big reason why the Bears offense will take a huge step in 2020.

3. Roy Robertson-Harris The Bears defensive line includes 2 pro players in Akiem Hicks and Eddie Goldman. Someone who could breakout this year on the defensive line is Roy Robertson-Harris and could potentially be a pro like the other two someday. Last year he had 2.5 sacks, 22 tackles, and 3 tackles for loss. He has shown a lot of potential and he will play a lot more this season! If Roy does break out, the defense could be almost unstoppable!

If those 3 players breakout, expect the Bears to be back in the playoffs!

Bears Draft Tight End Cole Kmet and Cornerback Jaylon Johnson with their second round picks

After all the anticipation we finally found out who the Bears took with their second round picks. With the 43rd overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears selected Cole Kmet Tight End from Notre Dame. And with the 50th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears selected Jaylon Johnson Cornerback from Utah.

Let’s start with Cole Kmet. In my last Mock Draft on my Instagram page I had them picking Cole. This was a great pick for the Chicago Bears! They add to a deep Tight End room. Matt Nagy’s offense uses 2 Tight Ends a lot of the time, and him and Jimmy Graham are going to be a great duo! Last season at Notre Dame, Kmet had 6 touchdowns for 515 yards in 10 games. People were questioning this pick wondering why we didn’t draft an offensive lineman or confused because we signed Jimmy Graham, but Kmet is going to be the tight end of the future for the Bears. Many are comparing him to George Kittle of the 49ers, and from his college highlights they look really similar. This is a great pick for the Bears and the fans can’t wait to see him play!

Next let’s talk about Jaylon Johnson. He was projected to be a 1st round pick but fell to the Bears and he is a steal for them! Cornerback was a need for the Bears. Even though they have Kevin Toliver and Tre Roberson, Ryan Pace always said that you can never have enough corners. Jonson was an absolute beast at Utah! His final season there he only allowed 4 receptions, 10 yards on 31 targets! Those stats are off the charts and truly unbelievable! I think that he will come in and he will start he is that good. This was a great pick by Ryan Pace and he is going to be a great player for the Bears!

What releasing Trey Burton means for the Bears

The Bears decided to let go of veteran Tight End Trey Burton. With the signing of Jimmy Graham this was kind of expected due to the fact the Bears were paying Trey Burton a lot. Burton struggled to stay healthy last season battling a groin injury as the Bears placed him on Injured Reserve last Season.

What’s next for the Bears at the Tight End Position? Well the Bears currently have 9 on the roster, and a lot of them won’t be here for the long run. What the Bears need to do is draft a Tight End with one of their Second Round picks. A guy like Cole Kmet or Brycen Hopkins probably will be their at pick 43 and the Bears should take advantage and get a Tight End for the future. I think if Cole Kmet is available at pick 43 the Bears have to take him. He is the best Tight End in the Draft and can get him at great value. If the Bears draft a Tight End, Expect the depth chart to look like this at the start of the season: 1. Jimmy Graham 2. Cole Kmet/Brycen Hopkins 3. Adam Shaheen 4. Demetrius Harris. Not a bad Depth Chart right their, maybe expect Ben Braunecker to be on the Practice Sqaud or maybe even be one of the guys on the roster.

Trey Burton had a great 2018 season, but he didn’t do well in 2019 when he was healthy and the Bears didn’t want to wait and see if he would bounce back especially when their is talent available in the Draft. The Bears will draft a Tight End, which player it will be is the question we will have to wait for.

Mitchell Trubisky vs Nick Foles: An Open Competition For The Starting Quarterback Job

Ryan Pace made it official, the starting Quarterback Position is going to be an open competition. What does that mean for Mitchell Trubisky going into his 4th year in the league? He has to work for the starting job for the first time in his career. Nick Foles has won a Super Bowl and has worked with Matt Nagy before. He also has worked with Offensive Coordinator Bill Lazor and Quarterbacks Coach John DeFilippo before in his career. All of the pieces are there for Nick Foles, he can thrive in this offense and win the starting job. Mitchell Trubisky on the other hand had a terrible 2019 season. He didn’t read coverages well and he never seemed to leave the pocket. Mitch has a lot of work to do if he wants to get his job back. Matt Nagy said that Mitch needs to know the playbook better than he does and that he needs to be a master at reading coverages. That is what probably what needs to happen this offseason for Mitch to improve his game. Matt Nagy should also call plays that benefit Mitch’s skill’s which would be scrambling and running out of the pocket. Some of Mitch’s best games last year were when he was running out of the pocket throwing touchdowns for example the Redskins game. 2 out of 3 touchdown passes he threw when he scrambled. It’s what makes him a great Quarterback and maybe part of this is Nagy’s fault. The Bears coaching staff had to change something to Trubisky’s game. Think about it in 2018 Mitch had an amazing season and all of a sudden he just doesn’t perform well? Matt Nagy and Mitchell Trubisky have to be on the same page. If i had to make a prediction, I would probably say Nick Foles will start week 1. I mean the Bears are not going to pay a backup QB a big load of money. Foles knows how to run the offense and until Mitch can read coverages better, pencil in Nick Foles at QB1.

5 players that the Bears could add this offseason to help them get back to the Playoffs

The Bears had a lot go wrong for them in the 2019 season. Weather it was terrible blocking, Not having a reliable Quarterback, and even sometimes the secondary. The Bears need to have a good offseason in order to fix those problems. Here are 5 players that the Bears could add this offseason to help them get back to the Playoffs:

  1. Joe Thuney- Guard

It wasn’t a secret that the Bears offensive line really struggled in the 2019 season. In order for Mitch Trubisky to be successful, it starts with having an offensive line to help him out. Joe Thuney the former New England Patriot is expected to hit the Free Agency market and the Bears should really try and get him on the team. A Guard is really needed considering Kyle Long was injured most of last year and has now retired from the NFL. There was no replacement from Long’s absence that really stood out, which makes a guard a clear need for Ryan Pace to address. Not to mention Thuney had an incredible 2019 season! He played 1,140 snaps which is 2nd most in the league. He didn’t have a single penalty during those snaps, and he only allowed 1 sack. These numbers are incredible and I think he would really help the Bears offense.

2. Andy Dalton- Quarterback

Mitchell Trubisky had a down year in 2019. We all know that. If he continues to not perform well then a reliable backup wouldn’t hurt to have. Andy Dalton from the Cincinnati Bengals is not a bad option for a backup. Dalton has had a good career so far, having 31,594 yards, throwing for 204 touchdowns, while having a 62 completion percentage in his 10 year career. With the Bengals expected to select Joe Burrow with the #1 pick, Dalton will likely be on the trade block. The Bears wouldn’t have to give up much either to get him. Dalton has a ton of starting quarterback experience that could come in handy if Trubisky continues to struggle. It also wouldn’t hurt to have some QB competition for MItch as well. Picking up Andy Dalton, not a bad idea.

3. Logan Ryan- Cornerback

The Bears defense wasn’t terrible in 2019, but improvements never hurt. Prince Amukamara seemed to get burned a lot on deep balls. Prince also is taking up a decent amount of cap space, I think the Bears should try and trade him. Then they should pick up free agent Corner Logan Ryan. Last season with the Titans, Ryan had 83 solo tackles which was first in the league, only allowed 80 receptions which is also 1st in the league, and he had 4 interceptions. If Ryan Pace were to land Logan Ryan, it would make this defense really hard to stop. Cap space might be an issue, but getting rid of Prince and perhaps some other high cap players would help land him.

4. Vic Beasley jr- Edge

The Bears were predicting a breakout year for Leonard Floyd last season. Unfortunately he didn’t have one. Khalil Mack gets doubled a lot of the time against opponents, and Leonard Floyd only had 3 sacks last season which is not to great. A little competition at the Edge position wouldn’t hurt, and Vic Beasley jr is a great option for the Bears to pick up. Vic had 9 sacks, 27 solo tackles, and 2 forced fumbles last season. If Khalil Mack gets doubled and you add Akiem Hicks into the picture, It leaves the second edge position wide open to get to work. The addition of Vic Beasley jr would maybe improve the Bears defense, and put more pressure on the quarterback.

5. Eric Ebron- Tight End

Last season, The tight end position for the Bears was a major let down. Trey Burton got injured and didn’t have a single touchdown. Adam Shaheen also got hurt and didn’t have a touchdown. The point is the Bears should sign a tight end in free agency. A good option would be Eric Ebron. In Eric’s last 2 seasons, he had 97 receptions, 1,125 yards, and he had 16 touchdowns. He also went to the Pro Bowl in 2018 and Mitch Trubisky and him seem to be friends. Contract wise the Colts had him at a 2 year 13 million dollar contract which the Bears can probably can afford if they clear up some cap space. Ebron would be a huge help to the Bears offense if they could get him.

Those are 5 players that if the Bears could at least get a couple of them, could really get back on track next season!

Bears survive in Minnesota; Get their 8th win of the season.

It definitely wasn’t pretty, but with 12 seconds left in the game the Bears trailed the Vikings 19-18 and Eddy Pineiro lined up for a 22 yard field goal. Pineiro kicked it through the uprights and the Bears came out victorious. The win was nice but the Vikings were not playing any key starters. The Bears should have easily won the game but they barely escaped. There were a lot of other downsides to the game. The Bears did start of with getting a turnover, which lead to a field goal. The same thing happened next possession. Kevin Pierre Louis got an interception which lead to another Bears field goal 6-0. The Bears have had an incredibly hard time scoring in the red zone this year. It’s one of the reasons that they didn’t make the playoffs this year. It has to change next year if the Bears want to be a playoff contender. The Vikings then went down the field and got a field goal which made it 6-3. The Bears were forced to punt next possession, and it was a perfect punt around the vikings 1 yard line. The next play, Nick Kwiatkoski sacked Sean Mannion for a safety! Kwiatkoski has filled in nicely for the injured Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith. He could end up being a starter next year depending on whether the Bears resign Danny Trevathan. The Bears kicked a field goal towards the end of the half, so did the Vikings and the Bears lead 11-6 at the half. Coming out of the half, the Bears really got the run game going with David Montgomery! He got the Bears into the red zone and he scored a touchdown to make it 18-6 Bears. The Vikings took over on the Bears 40 after the Bears failed to convert on 4th and inches. Yes 4th and inches. It really has been that kind of year for the Bears. The Vikings went down the field, and Mike Boone ran in for a touchdown to make it 18-13. With 9 minutes to go the Vikings made it 18-16. Then the Bears got the ball back and on 3rd and 14 the Mitch Trubisky got sacked and lost the football. The Vikings recovered. Dan Bailey then made it 19-18 and the Vikings had their first lead of the game with 4:53 to go in the game. But Trubisky facing a 4th and 9, fired a strike to Riley Ridley and kept the Bears alive. The Bears ran down the clock and kicked the field goal and won the game 21-19. The Bears shouldn’t even have been in that situation, but a win is a win. Some downgrades were that Trubisky didn’t even have a touchdown pass in the game. Their were several opportunities for him he just didn’t capitalize. (pun intended) Another downside was the offensive line of course. They allowed 4 sacks to a Vikings defensive without any starters! that cannot happen. Lots of changes need to be made this offseason with the offensive line and it should be a top priority. They also should use one of their second round picks on an offensive lineman. The defense played decent but it was good enough to win. But lets be more positive! The Bears beat the Vikings twice this year and finished 8-8 which isn’t terrible. The Bears will hopefully bounce back next season and return to the playoffs!

3 Keys for the Bears to beat the Vikings, and end the year at 8-8.

The Bears are only playing for three things on Sunday: for pride, to extend their winning streak vs the Vikings to 4 games, and to end the year at .500. If the Bears are going to win this game they have to improve from last game against the Chiefs. Here are three keys to the game for the Bears:

  1. Get Trubisky going early

Any Bears fan knows that Mitchell Trubisky has had a rough year. A lot of games he has struggled to get going early in the game. Mitch and the offense needs to get maybe a touchdown in the first half of the game, and then continue to be successful and get a rhythm going for the rest of the game.

2. Run the ball with David Montgomery

Last game vs the Chiefs, David Montgomery had 57 yards on 13 carries. The Bears should give him more carries and he will have a good game. If David Montgomery gets going, the Bears can establish a read option game with Trubisky. The first drive of the Chiefs game the Bears did 2 read options which were only for gains of about 5 or less. If Montgomery is running the ball well the option will work better and they will be expecting Montgomery to have the ball. Another play that opens up if Montgomery is running the ball well is play action. Trubisky does well when he is rolling out of the pocket, and a good running game leads to play action.

3. Stop the short handed Vikings on offense

The Vikings are likely going to give Quarterback Sean Mannion his second carrer start due to the fact that the Vikings have clinched a playoff spot and they clinched the 6th spot of the playoffs. The Vikings are going to use this as a game of rest, and the defense needs to take advantage of that. The defense needs to rush the quarterback well this game. Last game they didn’t do terrible, but it’s Patrick Mahomes we are talking about the former MVP. The Bears should do a good job stopping the rush considering that Dalvin Cook won’t play and Alexander Mattison is questionable. Mike Boone will likely start and against the Packers he only had 28 yards on 11 attempts.

My prediction: Bears win 20-17