The Chicago Bears took another painful loss on Sunday. Not painful in the sense that it was a back-and-forth affair with a tragic ending, but painful as in it was painful to watch.
They were bad if not atrocious at every phase of the game and so far have reinforced the preseason prediction that they’d be among the worst rosters in the NFL.
While Justin Fields had his best game of the season, classifying it as a “good” game would be a gross overstatement. Granted, he didn’t have much of a chance to be any more productive than he actually was as he was under duress all day.
Below are my primary takeaways from the Chicago Bears’ loss to the New York Giants on Sunday and by extension my impressions of them so far this season. Four games in, the Bears are showing us exactly who they are and who they will be this season.
Takeaway One: The youth in the Chicago Bears secondary continues to have growing pains
This really shouldn’t surprise anyone. They have two second-round picks out there, one at a corner and another at safety. I believe both will be solid if not plus starters for a long time (Brisker has already shown signs of this) but for now, they both still have a lot of room to improve.
The problem is, on a team with literally zero bright spots, there will be elevated scrutiny on these two picks as well-regarded wide receivers were on the board when GM Ryan Poles made both these selections.
Takeaway Two: The Chicago Bears have no answers on both the offensive line and at wide receiver
Another takeaway that shouldn’t surprise anyone is that the Chicago Bears have glaring issues at every position on the offensive line and at wide receiver. Typically, teams can beef up one area to compensate for a weakness in the other.
Last year, the Eagles gave Jalen Hurts an amazing offensive line to compensate for a lack of weaponry. Meanwhile, Joe Burrow had a loaded receiver room to compensate for his lackluster offensive line.
The Chicago Bears gave Justin Fields neither and this is the obvious result of that planning (or lack thereof). This is what makes criticism of his answer to Jason Lieser’s question in the post-game presser all the more confusing.
“Who said the pass game isn’t working? The Numbers. “The numbers don’t matter, as long as we win that’s all I care about.” – Justin Fields (in an exchange w/ Jason Lieser in yesterday’s postgame)
Justin Fields knows we all know the issue with the passing game. He’s a young quarterback in a new system with no offensive line and no wide receivers.
Yet, he can’t say that in a press conference following yet another painful loss without throwing all his teammates, his coaching staff, and the new general manager under the bus.
Takeaway Three: The Chicago Bears got what they paid for
For a while this season and much of the summer, the Chicago Bears have hung their heads on what’s to come in 2023.
Their first-round pick, having the rest of their draft picks, and the 100+ million in cap space are the positives for next season according to them. However, I’ve realized that this is their main issue.
The Chicago Bears have 100 million dollars in cap space going into next year.
The Chicago Bears assumed that with good coaching they’d be able to keep Fields safe and develop their team while identifying the best avenues to spend next summer.
Now, four games in, it’s unclear what they can actually evaluate. Can they evaluate their quarterback as he’s constantly under duress without guys getting consistently open? Can they evaluate their wide receivers when they give their quarterback no time to throw?
With some minor investment into the supporting cast, the Bears could have at least put themselves in a spot to properly evaluate their team in this rebuilding season while not compromising the future.
Reports surfaced last week that the Chicago Bears are going to be active in the trade market, so who knows maybe they will actually face the music. However, until then, this Bears team is performing exactly as their payroll would suggest.
