Why Do I Like the Chicago Bears This Week?
I always like the Chicago Bears.
And now that the whole of their fan base has seemingly given up on them, you can see them winning.
Three Things About the Lions
- Detroit allows north of 135 yards per game on the ground, as last year’s mid-season acquisition of Snacks Harrison has turned into a bit of a dud for Matt Patricia and the boys. With the Bears desperate to get back into the win column, I’d be surprised if David Montgomery doesn’t find himself carrying the ball 20+ times Sunday.
- From my buddy and frequent podcast guest Dave Birkett of the Free-Press:
The Lions, by any metric, have one of the worst defenses in the NFL. They rank 31st in total defense, 30th against the pass, 27th in points allowed and 27th against the run. Their takeaway luck has dried up; on Sunday, they didn’t force a punt for the first three quarters.
I don’t know what the answer is to fixing the Lions’ defensive woes, and I doubt it can be now, with no means to acquire effective talent until the spring. They need more pass rush, they need to tackle better, they need their best safety (or two) back on the field, and they need to play with the urgency they showed early in Sunday’s fourth quarter…Part of me thinks we were duped by their strong defensive play down the stretch last season.
- The Lions, by just about every statistical analysis, are one of the most dynamic and diverse passing attacks in the league. (Stafford may be having his best season.) With their talent outside and at the TE position, it all comes down to the Bears pass rush this week. If it plays the way it has the last few weeks the Lions are going to move the ball through the air with ease. This is the week Khalil Mack breaks out. (It better be.)
Tweet of the Week
“Uh, yea hi. Look, we’re gonna need a reprint on the Lions 2020 calendars.” pic.twitter.com/9g7aCDyq2K
— Chris Burke (@ChrisBurkeNFL) November 5, 2019
If I Were Running the Bears, I Would…
(1) Prepare Chase Daniel to play. No more of this nonsense about not benching Trubisky in-game. If the Bears care about actually winning, they can’t continue to settle for the horrendous level of quarterback play they’re receiving weekly. Daniel isn’t good. But he’s better than Trubisky.
[Note: There are 16 teams in the NFC right now. And I don’t have Trubisky in the Top 20 quarterbacks in the conference. They have two better QBs in New York, Carolina, New Orleans…etc.]
(2) Release Roquan Smith and Buster Skrine in blitz packages. Yes, it will leave the Bears vulnerable but who cares if they allow some completions? This defense needs to start creating turnovers and scoring points. And both of those things come as the result of pressure.
(3) Get Javon Wims involved. Why not? The tight ends are non-factors. (This, upon tape study, is not exclusively their fault.) The screen game has been generally shaky. Why not put the team’s biggest target out there and let Trubisky fling him a few 50/50 balls?
(4) Go into the bag of tricks. Whatever silly plays Nagy and Helfrich concocted this summer, bring them out. The season is over. You might as well entertain the fans who show up.
Song I’m Listening To Right Now
He’s my favorite lyricist. She’s currently my favorite voice.
Three Bets I Like This Weekend
I’m actually having a pretty good year betting on the NFL. Lots of small bets and then trying to pair a live underdog with a bunch of big favorites. This week I found one I quite like. Saints over Falcons, Ravens over Bengals and Seahawks upsetting Niners.
Tomorrow
Poem and prediction.
