There will be little mention of Mike Glennon and Mitch Trubisky in this post beyond this: everybody is now seeing what I’ve been telling them to see for six months. Mike Glennon isn’t any good. It doesn’t require stats. It doesn’t require nuance. It doesn’t require Bill Belichick’s football acumen. If you open your eyes and watch him play quarterback you become deftly aware of his limitations. They are many. He’s just not any good.

On the rest of the game…

• Tarik Cohen is brilliant and it’s very clear the Bears are going to be using him in a larger role than just third-down back / kick returner. I’d still be concerned about someone his size taking too much contact over a sixteen game schedule but ten carries a game is now in play.
• Who gets cut first: Roberto Aguayo or Daniel Braverman? Both are exceedingly useless.
• Listen, preseason lovers. If these games are as important as you tell me then Roy Robertson-Harris is going to make the final 53. No player was more impressive in Arizona.
• Why is everybody so concerned about Kevin White’s preseason performance? (1) He’s playing with Mike Glennon. He has no shot to be successful. (2) Bears don’t care what he does in these August games. They need him healthy in September.
• Bears are going to be cutting a decent tight end. Both Brown and Braunecker are not bad players but how are they cracking through Sims/Miller/Shaheen?
• Bears seem unclear about their kick returner. Cunningham was on kickoffs, Deonte Thompson scored off a missed field goal, Tarik Cohen and Eddie Jackson have both seen action on punt returns. Not sure what it all means.

That’s it.

There was no giddy-up in this 2017 Chicago Bears season. There was no reason to believe this year’s model would be a significant improvement over 2016’s clanky, too-often-in-the-shop lemon. Then, in the first preseason game, a normally useless affair, the sun rose over a dark night sky. The narrative changed in an instant. There it was. There was the future. And that future was – dare we believe what are our eyes doth see – bright.

Last night the organization that drafted Mitch Trubisky went out of their way to shield their fans from that big, beautiful sun. Darkness returned. Mitch Trubisky didn’t get time with the first-string offense. Mitch Trubisky didn’t get time with the second-string offense. Mitch Trubisky was buried on the depth chart – behind two quarterbacks he’s infinitely better than – in a decision that was equal parts inane, irresponsible and indefensible.

Leaving Bruno Mars w/ one question for #Bears. Why did you want to see let less Trubisky instead of more Trubisky???

— Silvy (@WaddleandSilvy) August 20, 2017

INANE

Dear Ryan Pace,

Mike Glennon.

How much more do you need to see?

He hasn’t been any good in the games he’s played in the NFL. He hasn’t been any good in camp practices for the Bears. He hasn’t been any good in the two preseason games he’s started. When do you expect he’s going to suddenly become good? Is it going to happen between now and the start of the season? That’s not much time, Ry.

You had to see what we all saw last night. A running game getting bulk yardage and an offensive line dominating the line of scrimmage. Only one thing was missing. A capable quarterback. And you made the boldest move of the NFL Draft to acquire one! What the hell are you waiting for?

I know, I know you gave Glennon a boatload of cash. That was silly. But you’re in the clear on that now. Trubisky has given you a mulligan. There won’t be a single newspaper column criticizing you for making this move. You know why? Because nobody wants to see Glennon play a single snap for this franchise.

Trust your eyes. Glennon is awful. Make the move.

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Three thoughts for tonight:

• Jordan Howard isn’t playing. And Jordan Howard shouldn’t be touched by another defender until that defender is wearing the uniform of the Atlanta Falcons. Running backs only have so much wear and tear in their bodies. Howard’s style – tough, bruising, absorbing contact – will have less than most.
• In the absence of Howard, will the Bears start Tarik Cohen? He was first off the bench a week ago. I think they’re making a mistake if they try to use this kid as an every down back. Kick returner. Third down, scat back. 3-5 carries as a change of pace.
• This is truly a rough spot for Mike Glennon tonight. He will be under an immense amount of pressure and facing one of the feistiest secondaries in the sport. It just seems the stars are aligning for Mitch Trubisky to take this gig. (And in case I haven’t made it clear, that’s in the best interest of the Bears organization moving forward.)

It’s the time of the season when major media outlets waste time and space by ranking players. And Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer is regularly ranked amongst the best quarterbacks in the NFL, despite not even being on the radar two years ago.

Which begs the question: Can Jay Cutler do the same?

The question isn’t can Cutler be as good as Palmer. I’d argue he currently is and always has been the betteir player. Even after Palmer’s last two monster seasons, they’re comparable statistically. The consensus amongst mainstream media members, however, appears to be that at 36 years old with a number of major knee surgeries and a brief retirement, Palmer is somehow better than he used to be.

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Looking Back

It wasn’t all bad.

Really, it wasn’t.

Without their best wide receiver and with a makeshift offensive line, the Bears drove down the field against one of the best defenses in the league and scored touchdowns twice.

Then Cutler got hurt.

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We wanted to see improvement. We wanted to have hope. No improvement. Hope gone. Season over? Reactions…

• Up until the interception, Jay Cutler may have been playing his best game as a Chicago Bear. He had remarkable awareness in the pocket, made smart decisions and didn’t throw a single inaccurate pass. He also seemed to thrive with the read option concepts Adam Gase installed. Then a poor throw is compounded with the ridiculous decision to try and make a tackle. Now he’s got a “hamstring” injury. Those who hate Jay Cutler can hate him all day long but they should recognize this team this will be non-competitive without him.
• But wasn’t this Jay Cutler’s Bears career in a nutshell: flashes of brilliance, terribly pick-six, injury.
• Jimmy Clausen’s performance reminded me an awful lot of Shane Matthews in the 2001 playoffs. Jim Miller throws a pick. Gets injured trying to make a tackle. Matthews forgets how to play football.
• Clausen’s appearance also brought out the worst in Adam Gase. His play-calling once the backup entered the game fell off a cliff. Abandoning the run, stretch runs when only inches are needed…etc. John Fox has to step in during these sequences.
• Bears may have nothing in David Fales. They KNOW they have nothing in Clausen. Start Fales if Cutler can’t go.
• Kyle Fuller. Not good.

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The Game Poem

I entered this NFL season

Abounding with patience and reason

A week in the books

Da Bears dug in their hooks

I hope they weren’t only teasin’

A Not-So-Quick Thought

Sunday is a playoff game for the Chicago Bears – figuratively speaking.

The Bears, whether they want to admit moral victory or not, gave many of their fans hope for a 2015 campaign that began with the tiniest expectations in more than a decade. They had every opportunity to beat one of the best teams in the league. So why is a contest with the Cardinals in week two a “playoff” game?

• The NFC is not particularly deep and the Cardinals will be a team in the mix for one of the six spots in the tournament. If the Bears pulled off a win Sunday, who is going to argue they can’t be playing meaningful games in the month of December?
• Fans were pleasantly surprised Sunday but remain skeptical. If the Bears improve off Sunday’s performance you could see expectations rise around the city of Chicago very quickly. Fans want to believe. Will the Bears give them that opportunity?
• The Bears are not going to win in Seattle in Week Three. And they are not recovering from an 0-3 start.

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Looking Back

As nice as it was for the Bears to look like a professional football team and compete with a  team we all expect to be playing in January, the Bears still lost and nobody should be happy about that.

The Bears had their chances and didn’t execute. They followed the recipe almost perfectly. They kept Aaron Rodgers off the field, running for nearly 190 yards and dominating time of possession early on. But they didn’t make enough plays. That’s what decides the outcome of games.

Outside of Cutler and Forte, the Bears didn’t have a single player make a big play. While James Jones was jumping over Bears defensive backs and Eddie Lacy making one-handed grabs, the Bears got nothing. The biggest play was made by Clay Matthews, perfectly reading Cutler’s eyes for an interception. A good reminder that defensive players get paid too.

One thing that was clear is that the Bears have confidence in their coaching staff. They know they’re going to be put in a position to succeed and it’s up to them to come away with the win. In Week 1, they didn’t.

Looking Forward

It’s hard not to look at the Cardinals and wonder what if Phil Emery had hired Bruce Arians instead of Marc Trestman? Arians wanted the job, he practically begged for it, but Emery went in another direction and it cost him his job.

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Doesn’t seem like any news will be breaking on the GM/head coach front over the next 48 hours but if it does I will be on top of it. In the meantime, as always, follow DBB on Twitter by CLICKING HERE.