Bears Week 14 at 49ers, 3:25 on FOX

[Abedunk34]

4-13 here we come!

[Outshined_One]

They're not winning another game this season.

[Irrelevant Dude]

3 minutes ago, Outshined_One said:

They're not winning another game this season.

The same could be said for about 5 or 6 other teams as well.  There are some really bad teams across the NFL this year.

[Derwood]

The no interception streak continues

[Wilson A2000]

Ben Johnson is going to find a better opportunity than the Bears, isn’t he? He knows he won’t win anything with this organization and in this division for the foreseeable future. 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

1 minute ago, Wilson A2000 said:

Ben Johnson is going to find a better opportunity than the Bears, isn’t he? He knows he won’t win anything with this organization and in this division for the foreseeable future. 

I think he's got the right idea of wanting to hear some darn good explanations from this regime for why it will be different going forward 

[UK]

48 minutes ago, Tryptamine said:

Braxton is really bad, I don't give a horsefeathers what PFF says

Agreed. His value is that of a backup swing tackle. He's not Charles Leno.

LT should be of equal need as interior lineman.

Fwiw, Wright has shown to be nothing more than an avg at best RT while J. Carter has been playing at a pro bowl level.

 

Edited December 9, 2024 by UK

[Wilson A2000]

3 minutes ago, Hairyducked Idiot said:

I think he's got the right idea of wanting to hear some darn good explanations from this regime for why it will be different going forward 

The only answer the Bears can offer is “we have a QB now”

[Cubs420psd]

Fire Poles.

 

The way he built this roster was so damn stupid, and the more that time goes by his picks look worse and worse.

You don't even have to mention his coaching hire abortions.

 

It hurts too because I honestly thought we finally had a legit GM. 

Edited December 9, 2024 by Cubs420psd

[Wilson A2000]

No Bosa, the 49ers still get 7 sacks

[UMFan83]

Man I'm so confused about where Caleb is at as a QB and what he's shown us means so far.  This isn't a negative Caleb post, this isn't a positive Caleb post.  I've said it repeatedly that I've seen a lot I love, things I just haven't seen from other Bears QBs, amazing performances late in games to put the Bears in a position to win etc.  But we also see stuff like today where Caleb did basically nothing until the game was basically over midway through the 3rd quarter. He looked tentative, bailed out of the pocket too soon or hung around in it too long.  And then with the Bears down 24-0 midway through the 3rd, he leads the Bears on 2 really nice looking professional looking TD drives with a really nice looking TD throws (especially the first one) to Rome.  

Overall I just don't know what we're really seeing.  How much of his performances are hindered by a horrific offensive line?  How much is hindered by disastrous coaching, especially now that the players got multiple coaches canned midseason? (I mean realistically they got themselves fired but it took player revolts to get the FO to do something about it).  Why is he incredibly inconsistent?  How much can be attributed to being a rookie?  What causes him to get in a groove and completely turn around games that are looking like terrible performances?  There's just so much I don't know and with 4 games left I'm not sure we'll find out this year.

The good?  Despite inconsistent play and a ton of coaching issues, Caleb is still on pace for ~3600 yards, 21 passing TD, 6 INTs.  As mentioned before, when he gets into a groove he looks elite and has come up clutch several times in key moments.  He has 5 performances this year that I'd classify as great (Carolina, Jacksonville, Green Bay, Minnesota, Detroit). 

The not so good?  He's also had several performances that I'd consider poor or worse (Tennessee, Houston, Washington, Arizona, New England).  Today I'd consider below average despite somehow having a 116.9 QB rating (His QBR was 32.5 and he had 5.8 YPA).  Overall where does he sit amongst qualified QBs in stats?

(there are 38 qualified QBs)

Comp %: 62.6% - 33rd

YPA - 6.3 - 35th

TD - 16 - 13th

Yards - 2,746 - 18th

QBR - 46.3 - 35th (note: this is not updated with today's 32.5 QBR but there's a huge drop off between Caleb's 46.3 and the 36th best QB Minshew at 37.9, so I'm guessing he's still 35th)

QB Rating - 87.8 - 27th

Again, this is not meant to be a negative Caleb post or a positive one.  I'm mostly expressing my confusion that I see a QB that for a decent chunk of the time legit looks better than any Bears QB I've seen in my life (I know, not saying much).  But there's also a bad side that we've seen, and its getting hard for me to determine how much his environment is hindering him vs. him potentially just needing to improve/not being good enough at this stage of his career. 

[jersey cubs fan]

10 minutes ago, UMFan83 said:

Man I'm so confused about where Caleb is at as a QB and what he's shown us means so far.  This isn't a negative Caleb post, this isn't a positive Caleb post.  I've said it repeatedly that I've seen a lot I love, things I just haven't seen from other Bears QBs, amazing performances late in games to put the Bears in a position to win etc.  But we also see stuff like today where Caleb did basically nothing until the game was basically over midway through the 3rd quarter. He looked tentative, bailed out of the pocket too soon or hung around in it too long.  And then with the Bears down 24-0 midway through the 3rd, he leads the Bears on 2 really nice looking professional looking TD drives with a really nice looking TD throws (especially the first one) to Rome.  

Overall I just don't know what we're really seeing.  How much of his performances are hindered by a horrific offensive line?  How much is hindered by disastrous coaching, especially now that the players got multiple coaches canned midseason? (I mean realistically they got themselves fired but it took player revolts to get the FO to do something about it).  Why is he incredibly inconsistent?  How much can be attributed to being a rookie?  What causes him to get in a groove and completely turn around games that are looking like terrible performances?  There's just so much I don't know and with 4 games left I'm not sure we'll find out this year.

The good?  Despite inconsistent play and a ton of coaching issues, Caleb is still on pace for ~3600 yards, 21 passing TD, 6 INTs.  As mentioned before, when he gets into a groove he looks elite and has come up clutch several times in key moments.  He has 5 performances this year that I'd classify as great (Carolina, Jacksonville, Green Bay, Minnesota, Detroit). 

The not so good?  He's also had several performances that I'd consider poor or worse (Tennessee, Houston, Washington, Arizona, New England).  Today I'd consider below average despite somehow having a 116.9 QB rating (His QBR was 32.5 and he had 5.8 YPA).  Overall where does he sit amongst qualified QBs in stats?

(there are 38 qualified QBs)

Comp %: 62.6% - 33rd

YPA - 6.3 - 35th

TD - 16 - 13th

Yards - 2,746 - 18th

QBR - 46.3 - 35th (note: this is not updated with today's 32.5 QBR but there's a huge drop off between Caleb's 46.3 and the 36th best QB Minshew at 37.9, so I'm guessing he's still 35th)

QB Rating - 87.8 - 27th

Again, this is not meant to be a negative Caleb post or a positive one.  I'm mostly expressing my confusion that I see a QB that for a decent chunk of the time legit looks better than any Bears QB I've seen in my life (I know, not saying much).  But there's also a bad side that we've seen, and its getting hard for me to determine how much his environment is hindering him vs. him potentially just needing to improve/not being good enough at this stage of his career. 

The bottom line is there is no such thing as a qb that does it on his own. He’s a very capable qb playing for an incredible flawed team. He’ll probably flame out because this organization couldnt find an offensive philosophy in a maga convention, but they could luck out and team him up with something decent. He’s fine. He’s not impeccable. He’s not a lost cause. He’s fine, but they’ll need a hell of a lot more to make anything great out of it. 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I think Williams is an extremely talented rookie QB who needs time and experience to consistently read NFL defenses, and he definitely needs to refine some of his habits including overcaution on throws and reads. He is absolutely not exempt from the offense struggling.

I also think that our offense is poorly built.

The line is a bit unlucky with injuries but the decision to go bargain hunting at LT has never set well with me

The WR group doesn't have a guy who is great at getting open.  Allen used to be that guy but he's ancient.  Moore is a YAC guy. Odunze is a jump ball specialist (the first td today was so good).

Swift is a home run merchant who needs a great offensive line giving him big, obvious holes.

And as much as I love Kmet, he's an inconsistent blocker who often tanks plays with poor execution 

 

[UMFan83]

Speaking of QBs, Darnold with 347 yards and 5 TD today. Now on pace for 4,314 yards and 37 passing TDs. Of course journeyman former mega bust Sam Darnold is going to obliterate every Bears single season passing mark this year. 

[UMFan83]

lovely

 

 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Things I am significantly less worried about now:

1) not picking high enough to get a worthwhile OT prospect 

2) keeping brown around as coach 

[NorthsideAvenger]

4 hours ago, UMFan83 said:

lovely

 

 

Probably could say that for every member of the defense.

[NorthsideAvenger]

5 hours ago, UMFan83 said:

Speaking of QBs, Darnold with 347 yards and 5 TD today. Now on pace for 4,314 yards and 37 passing TDs. Of course journeyman former mega bust Sam Darnold is going to obliterate every Bears single season passing mark this year. 

Somebody is going to give him a bad contract.

[BigbadB]

I saw a blip about how Ben Johnson wouldn't even consider the Bears job unless there was some stability in upper management. In other words, a new GM or an extension for Poles. And this was obviously said before this game. There is no way that Poles can be brought back if this is the way this team performs after all of these moves. And I'm sure Johnson might prefer a new GM over a Poles extension.

I'm not advocating for Ben Johnson at this point. Hell, I'm not advocating for anyone. I already think no matter who they bring in here, something bad will happen anyway, even if it's considered the greatest hire by any team in the history of football.

I admit I was excited about Bears playoff football this year. I admit I set lofty expectations. Whether they made it or not, I was fully expecting fun football. How can it not be fun with so many explosive offensive play makers on the roster? Right?! 

I think back to all of the highlights of DJ Moore breaking away for td's in a Carolina uniform. All the over the shoulder catches and no one catching him as he runs into the end zone. And now he's just a 5 yard quick screen receiver where you hope he isn't tackled immediately. The offense hasn't had an identity all season long. It's boring and defenses are playing to the weaknesses and taking advantage. I don't think there was a 10+ yard throw in the entire first half. To be fair, there weren't a whole lot of plays in the entire first half, but if a team is playing you tight, you gotta punish them with downfield plays. Dink and dunk is exactly what they want you to do. 

This is just not fun to watch.

[NorthsideAvenger]

23 minutes ago, BigbadB said:

I saw a blip about how Ben Johnson wouldn't even consider the Bears job unless there was some stability in upper management. In other words, a new GM or an extension for Poles. And this was obviously said before this game. There is no way that Poles can be brought back if this is the way this team performs after all of these moves. And I'm sure Johnson might prefer a new GM over a Poles extension.

I'm not advocating for Ben Johnson at this point. Hell, I'm not advocating for anyone. I already think no matter who they bring in here, something bad will happen anyway, even if it's considered the greatest hire by any team in the history of football.

I admit I was excited about Bears playoff football this year. I admit I set lofty expectations. Whether they made it or not, I was fully expecting fun football. How can it not be fun with so many explosive offensive play makers on the roster? Right?! 

I think back to all of the highlights of DJ Moore breaking away for td's in a Carolina uniform. All the over the shoulder catches and no one catching him as he runs into the end zone. And now he's just a 5 yard quick screen receiver where you hope he isn't tackled immediately. The offense hasn't had an identity all season long. It's boring and defenses are playing to the weaknesses and taking advantage. I don't think there was a 10+ yard throw in the entire first half. To be fair, there weren't a whole lot of plays in the entire first half, but if a team is playing you tight, you gotta punish them with downfield plays. Dink and dunk is exactly what they want you to do. 

This is just not fun to watch.

Bears have an identity crisis. I'm not confident in their ability to fix it. 

[CubinNY]

Man, the Bears laid an egg. 

[Old Style]

I haven’t read this thread so I’m not sure if this has been covered and call me a meatball for this take if you want, but putting in Bagent to hand the ball off and let the clock run down before snapping is horsefeathers horsefeathers. Sure the game is over but show some heart and run some horsefeathers plays. Thomas Brown or whatever the horsefeathers his name is needs to go with the rest of the staff at the end of the year. Such a loser organization from top to bottom. 

[Soul]

9 hours ago, UMFan83 said:

Speaking of QBs, Darnold with 347 yards and 5 TD today. Now on pace for 4,314 yards and 37 passing TDs. Of course journeyman former mega bust Sam Darnold is going to obliterate every Bears single season passing mark this year. 

Just another example of why it's teams as much as it is players.

[Soul]

14 hours ago, Wilson A2000 said:

The only answer the Bears can offer is “we have a QB now”

I can't imagine a highly sought after HC hire would come here either, but being able to say we have a QB now is something the Bears never could have claimed with a straight face before.  Caleb does remain a QB with superior skills and they aren't all his ability to scramble.  He has challenges too but he's clearly better than say Fields or Trubisky.

It's still a terrible situation to be thrust into though.  Knowing that you serve under a hamstrung GM being told what to do by proven losers like the McCaskeys is almost career suicide.  Even a guy like Ben Johnson has one shot to really show what he can do or his resume is forever tainted, justified or not.

[gflore34]

24 minutes ago, Soul said:

I can't imagine a highly sought after HC hire would come here either, but being able to say we have a QB now is something the Bears never could have claimed with a straight face before.  Caleb does remain a QB with superior skills and they aren't all his ability to scramble.  He has challenges too but he's clearly better than say Fields or Trubisky.

It's still a terrible situation to be thrust into though.  Knowing that you serve under a hamstrung GM being told what to do by proven losers like the McCaskeys is almost career suicide.  Even a guy like Ben Johnson has one shot to really show what he can do or his resume is forever tainted, justified or not.

Same could have been said about the Lions, with the correct hires things can turn around. The Bears, like the Lions did, have to stumble into the right people.

Edited December 9, 2024 by gflore34