The lions, they come,

To an inspired lakefront.

A quarterback waits.

33.
29.
32.

Those are the points scored by the Chicago Bears over the last three weeks.

Having a QB is fun.

— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) November 7, 2022

In ole New England

‘Tis lovely this time of year.

Well, at least it was.

2022 Bears six weeks into the campaign.

I thought they could win 7-8 games if the QB did those things that make you believe he’s the guy. He’s not there yet. Not close. Great runner, great deep ball.

Right now, this feels like 4-13/5-12 first pick in the draft territory.

— DaBearsBlog (@dabearsblog) October 14, 2022

For nine years he stood,

Stoically on the sideline.

Today, he returns.

Five Things I Think Will Happen Sunday:

• Justin Fields will rebound, to a degree. The Bears will get the run game going early, opening up play action, and leading to a stat line around 17-26, 246 yards, 1 TD throwing, 1 TD running. It will be enough to quiet down the noise surrounding the quarterback for at least another week.
• Darnell Mooney will finally kick off his 2022 campaign. Luke Getsy hears the criticism and knows he needs to get his top receiver involved. Seven catches, 104 yards and a touchdown.
• Dameon Pierce will have his breakout game for the Texans. After a 15 carry, 69-yard output against Denver, this shapes up for a 20+ carry, 100+ yard performance, especially with the Bears concerned about protecting both one starting outside corner and their rookie slot guy.
• Eddie Jackson will get his second interception of the season. One thing that stands out watching Davis Mills is the number of contested balls he throws over the middle of the field. Jackson snags one.
• The team that wins the sack battle wins the game. And the Bears win that battle, 4-2.

Chicago Bears 24, Houston Texans 13

8:00 PM ET

Thoughts on a day of watching football and researching Hitchcock’s silent stage adaptations.

• There was some brutal football played in the early window. Saints/Bucs and Giants/Panthers were bad, bad ballgames.
• I know it seems I have a personal issue with Chris Ballard. And that’s only because I do. But Ballard’s answers at quarterback for a supposedly ready-to-contend roster have been a shot Phil Rivers, a never good Carson Wentz and an elderly Matt Ryan (who looked incredibly shot today). Ballard has been the GM of the Colts for six off-seasons. Is he going to take a risk at quarterback at ANY point?
• I never hated Mitch Trubisky, but I recognized his extreme limitations against the Saints in 2019. It’s not there. Pittsburgh can delay the inevitable all they want but not playing Kenny Pickett is wasting time. Trubisky is a solid backup option.
• Every time Tua attempts to throw a pass more than 10 yards it’s an adventure. But there is so much speed in that receiving room. He won’t need to be that accurate deep when Hill is averaging four yards of separation.
• So many helmet-to-helmet hits across the league. Spare me the “speed of the game” argument. If you can’t see the guy you’re tackling, you are tackling incorrectly.
• New Orleans did everything a team needs to do defensively against a Tom Brady offense, but they just kept handing him first downs with silly penalties. Ultimately, Brady made them pay for their “mistakes”.
• Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the best receivers in the league. Games like today aren’t stories anymore. This is who he is.
• Through two weeks, the Bengals look like a bad team. Somehow their offensive line is worse than a year ago. But they have now lost to Trubisky and Cooper Rush to start the season. That’s not a contender.
• Micah Parsons might be the best player in the league. He controls games.
• Not sure I can remember a rookie head coach looking as out of his depth as Nathaniel Hackett. The Broncos need to monitor that closely and pull the trigger quickly if these performances continue.
• The Cardinals are not in a good spot as an organization. Kliff got ownership to fully commit to Kyler. If you fire Kliff, the next coach has to want Kyler. How much coaches do?
  • If Kyle didn’t convert on the two-point conversion to end regulation, I’m not sure Kliff wouldn’t have been fired by the time you’re reading this. A delay of game…on a two point…with the game on the line???
  • But you rarely see a team as desperate to lose as Vegas was tonight.

8:16 PM ET

“I’ve been waiting all day for Sunday night” is one of the most ridiculous football concepts around. Other than the fans of the two teams, nobody waits all day for Sunday Night Football. If anything, most NFL fans are exhausted by kickoff. (People forget this slot used to be occupied by a throwaway game for years.)

8:18 PM ET

“The most played rivalry in the history of the National Football League.”

Is that a compliment?

8:24 PM ET

KICKOFF!

TOUCHBACK!

8:26 PM ET

I would like to preemptively apologize for tonight’s minute-by-minute. I am pretty damn tired and I’m old now and these games feel super late to me. I shall do my best and try to land a few barbs.

8:27 PM ET

Aaron Rodgers looks like Aaron Rodgers.

8:32 PM ET

Angelo Blackson makes a great play in the backfield and then stands over the back. He luckily avoided an unsportsmanlike penalty for taunting. That is being called all over the league. Needs to be coached into these guys pronto.

8:36 PM ET

Kyler Gordon makes a brilliant play on the football, and Trevis Gipson follows that with a sack. That is the kind of sequence fans need to see this year. Young players developing is the primary story of this campaign. Some very good signs through one game and one drive.

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