Chicago Sports

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — There was a time when the Bears believed, perhaps correctly, that they had everything but the quarterback. They think they’ve found one in Justin Fields, but now they don’t have much else.

With Fields out Sunday because of a separated shoulder, the Jets laid bare the mountain of work the Bears still have to do in addition to further developing Fields. It was an unwanted trip back in time to the Matt Nagy era as the Bears lost 31-10 to a middling opponent.

Nothing has crippled the Bears more than their boondoggles at quarterback over the last several decades, and nothing will influence their future more than Fields flourishing.

But quarterback was hardly the only thing that got Ryan Pace fired.

It was easy to overlook how pockmarked with flaws this roster is when Fields was racing around setting records and making the games watchable even as losses inevitably piled up, but this was a reminder how long general manager Ryan Poles’ offseason to-do list will be.

Simply put, there isn’t much here other than Fields. Without him, the games are drab and inconsequential.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus is trying to hold a pedestrian roster to elite standards. It’s not going to work. Every opponent he faces right now figures on scoring no less than 30 points.

Offensively, the Bears can count on wide receivers Darnell Mooney and Chase Claypool as part of their future, but there are no other certainties. Backup quarterbacks like Trevor Siemian can get a team through a game or two if everything around them is solid, but when that’s all that’s in place, it’s hard to expect better than the 179 yards he put up Sunday.

That’s actually right around what Fields has been averaging lately, but something was missing … oh, right, Siemian’s rushing total was a whopping eight yards on four carries. Fields’ world-class speed offsets a lot of the deficiencies around him.

The Bears’ defense, meanwhile, is stocked with players who would have trouble finding starting jobs elsewhere. Jets backup quarterback Mike White lit them up for 315 yards, three touchdowns and an almost-perfect 149.3 passer rating.

That side of the ball should look better when safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Kyler Gordon get back on the field — both rookies are out with concussions — but there’s no other help on the way. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson is definitely a fixture, and safety Eddie Jackson was playing like a pillar before exiting with a non-contact left foot injury in the second quarter.

The good news for the Bears is that as they sink — soar? — to a top-three pick in the upcoming draft, quarterback doesn’t seem to be a need. Teams looking for a quarterback need as high of a pick as possible to ensure they get the right guy, but a team like the Bears that appears to have their answer in Fields can parlay it into multiple picks to solve multiple problems.

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The White Sox addressed one of their top areas of need, signing free agent right-hander Mike Clevinger, a source confirmed. Terms are not yet known for the deal, which is pending a physical and has not been announced.

Clevinger joins an all-righty starting unit that includes Dylan Cease, Lance Lynn, Michael Kopech and Lucas Giolito. Johnny Cueto, one of the team’s top starters in 2022, is a free agent.

Clevinger, who underwent Tommy John surgery following the 2020 season and did not pitch in 2021, posted a 4.33 ERA over 1141/3 innings in 2022. In his final regular season start, he beat the Sox with six innings of three-hit, one-run ball on Oct. 1. But in two playoff starts, he lasted a total of 22/3 innings, allowing seven earned runs. A right knee sprain suffered in spring training sidelined him for the first month of the season, and he was also sidelined in May with a right triceps strain.

Clevinger, who turns 32 on Dec. 21, posted a 2.96 ERA from 2017-20 with the Cleveland Indians and Padres. During that span, Clevinger was among baseball’s top starters, owning a 28.3% strikeout rate, 40.2% groundball rate and 9.1% walk rate.

The Padres acquired Clevinger from Cleveland in a nine-player trade on Aug. 31 of 2020. In his final regular season start, he was diagnosed with a right posterior elbow impingement, and he worked just one inning during the postseason before undergoing Tommy John surgery in November.

In 2020, Clevinger and Cleveland teammate Zach Plesac were placed on the restricted list by their team after breaking team rules and Major League Baseball protocols by leaving their hotel in Chicago and risking exposure to the COVID-19 virus.

“This one kind of hurts,” Cleveland manager Terry Francona said at the time.

Clevinger apologized for putting teammates, staff, opponents and umpires “at risk” by going out after a victory over the Sox.

“There is no excuse for my actions, and I can only take responsibility and learn from my mistakes,” Clevinger said in a statement. “Moving forward, I promise my actions will reflect a full understanding of the protocols set in place while I continue my passion for competing for the incredible Indians’ fans and the city that I adore.”

The signing is the Sox’ first move of the offseason. They also need to address their outfield and second base as they look to improve on their 81-81 finish in 2022.

The Sox are familiar with Clevinger from his AL Central Division time in Cleveland. He faced the Sox 11 times, including nine starts, posting a crisp 2.15 ERA. Clevinger has fared well against the division — he’s 9-0 with a 1.98 ERA lifetime against the Royals, 8-2 with a 1.74 ERA against the Tigers and 4-4 with a 3.13 ERA against the Twins.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Everything is going wrong for the Bears in their rain-soaked game against the Jets on Sunday.

The newest concern is the exit of top wide receiver Darnell Mooney after Jets safety Jordan Whitehead fell into his left ankle while he was run-blocking early in the third quarter. Whitehead was trying to tackle David Montgomery and landed on Mooney as Montgomery slipped him

Trainers immediately helped Mooney to the locker room and he is doubtful to return.

The Bears also lost safety Eddie Jackson on a non-contact injury to his foot in the second quarter. He has been ruled out.

Mooney didn’t have a target from quarterback Trevor Siemian before leaving the game, but leads the Bears with 40 catches for 493 yards and has two touchdown receptions this season.

Chase Claypool led the Bears’ receivers with two catches for 51 yards at the time of Mooney’s injury.

Mooney, 25, is one of the most promising players on the roster as the Bears rebuild. He had a breakout season of 81 catches, 1,055 yards and four touchdowns in 2021.

He has one year left on his rookie contract and would be up for an extension in the coming offseason.

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DeMar DeRozan referred to it as “soaking in the hurt.”

Those tough losses that the veteran said sting a little harder, and last a little longer.

The Bulls have been sponges in that department so far this season.

A late October five-point loss in San Antonio, an embarrassing home loss to Orlando almost two weeks ago, and then Friday’s overtime loss in Oklahoma City headline that list of disappointments.

“Sometimes you’ve got to go through whatever you’ve got to go through to understand whatever it is,” DeRozan said. “I think that’s just where we are. We’ve had some down moments, long four games in a row, dropping games we thought we should have won, close games, getting out butts whooped at home.

“Kind of went through so many emotions already 20 games into the season. Sometimes you’ve got to soak in that hurt and kind of generate that to being competitors, and that’s where I think we are now.”

Where they also were was in the midst of a tough six-game road trip that won’t define the season by any means, but could continue to offer up some very important answers.

First being can this team show any signs of consistency?

The Bulls will enter Monday night’s game in Utah 8-11 on the season, but a very deceiving 8-11.

The resume of wins was beyond impressive, starting with two wins over 15-4 Boston, a win in the house of horrors that has been Milwaukee, and wins over expected playoff powerhouses like Miami and Toronto.

Proof that this roster was capable of beating any team in the league.

That was not the case at all last season, when the Bulls went a dismal 3-25 — including the first-round playoff loss to the Bucks — against teams that had a .600 winning percentage or better.

Considering the roster underwent very few changes from that 2021-22 campaign, it’s a group that has seemingly gotten over that hump.

The problem now seems to be plug one hole, and the water finds a leak elsewhere.

Yes, they can beat any team, but they can also lose to any team in the Association, as well.

Those inconsistencies remained ongoing concerns, especially when they feel like there’s inconsistencies with effort and urgency.

Coach Billy Donovan has made his feelings on that topic very clear, and according to DeRozan, it’s been discussed often in the locker room.

“Losing the games we lost, we’ve been holding each other accountable,” DeRozan said. “Everybody’s been speaking up whenever we get a chance — film sessions, practice, we’ve been on each other.”

That accountability will be tested.

If this part of the road trip feels familiar, it should.

Last March, the Bulls had a three-game West Coast swing, starting in Sacramento, then Utah, and finishing in Phoenix.

They lost all three by an average of 17 points.

This time around it’s Utah first up, followed by Phoenix, Golden State, and then Sacramento. Anyway you stack them, however, it’s not an easy road over the remainder of this trip.

And as far as storylines, there will be no shortage of those, starting with facing a Jazz team led by former Bull Lauri Markkanen. By the way, the same Markkanen that was traded to Cleveland back in 2021, and now leads Utah’s Cinderella story in scoring (21.7 points per game) and rebounding (8.4 per game), while also shooting just under 37% from three-point range.

The 7-footer will definitely be a concern, but considering the Bulls’ season so far, Markkanen isn’t really a high priority.

“It’s not even December yet,” DeRozan said. “There’s a lot more basketball to play and a lot more things to figure out. And I got the utmost confidence in this group of guys.”

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Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell informed his team on Sunday that he is leaving the school, paving the way for him to become the next head coach at Wisconsin.

A person with knowledge of Fickell’s decision told The Associated Press that Fickell was leaving and veteran assistant coach Kerry Coombs was being named interim coach of the Bearcats.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because Wisconsin was still finalizing approval of Fickell’s contract.

Wisconsin’s Board of Regents scheduled a special closed meeting for Sunday afternoon “to consider employment and additional compensation agreements for the UW-Madison head football coach,” according to a meeting notice posted online.

Another person familiar with the situation told the AP earlier Sunday that Wisconsin and Fickell were progressing in negotiations toward a deal.

Fickell, 49, has posted a 57-18 record in six seasons at Cincinnati and helped the Bearcats earn a College Football Playoff berth last year. The former Ohio State linebacker went 6-7 as the Buckeyes’ interim head coach in 2011, after Jim Tressel’s resignation.

Fickell will take over for interim coach and former Badgers star player Jim Leonhard, who replaced Paul Chryst on Oct. 2.

Chryst went 67-26 in 71/2 seasons. He was fired one day after the Badgers lost 34-10 at home to an Illinois team led by former Badgers coach Bret Bielema.

Wisconsin (6-6, 4-5 Big Ten) is awaiting its bowl assignment. A loss in their bowl game would cause the Badgers to finish below .500 for the first time since 2001.

Leonhard was promoted from defensive coordinator after Chryst’s firing and led Wisconsin to a 4-3 record over the final seven games of the regular season. Leonhard said Saturday after the Badgers’ 23-16 home loss to Minnesota that he had interviewed with athletic director Chris McIntosh earlier in the week.

“I think whoever hires coaches is going to be an idiot if they don’t hire coach Leonhard,” safety John Torchio said after the Minnesota game. “I don’t know if I should say that, but I’ll say it.”

The Badgers instead are hiring the guy who led Cincinnati to the first CFP berth for any Group of Five school. Fickell won several national coach of the year awards last season for helping Cincinnati go 13-0 before losing to Alabama in a Cotton Bowl semifinal.

That 2021 Cincinnati team produced nine draft picks for the third-highest total of any school, behind only Georgia’s 15 and LSU’s 10. Five Cincinnati players were selected among the top 100 overall picks.

After replacing all that NFL talent, Cincinnati has gone 9-3 this season. The Bearcats didn’t qualify for the American Athletic Conference championship game that takes place Saturday.

Cincinnati went 4-8 in Fickell’s debut season of 2017 but has gone 53-10 since.

Fickell’s Cincinnati players also succeeded in the classroom. Heading into this season, Cincinnati had a 100% graduation rate among players who had stayed in the program for four years under Fickell.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — This was ugly.

The Bears were without quarterback Justin Fields and their top two rookies before the opening kickoff. In the second quarter, they lost safety Eddie Jackson to a foot injury. In the third, receiver Darnell Mooney limped to the locker room with an ankle problem.

What remained of the Bears was left to get run over by a Jets offense that seven days earlier went into DEFCON-1 when they managed two second-half yards. Earlier this week, the Jets benched quarterback Zach Wilson for Mike White, whose soft landing was getting to face the Bears. He led them to four touchdowns in a 31-10 win.

Bears quarterback Trevor Siemian began the game hot after being named the starter during warmups, only to feel pain in his oblique. The Bears scored a field goal on his first drive and a touchdown on their second when Byron Pringle caught a four-yard pass. That gave the Bears a 10-7 lead; the Jets then scored 24 in a row.

Take away a kneeldown at the end of the first half and the Bears punted to end five consecutive drives before throwing a fourth-down incompletion four minutes into the fourth quarter.

Siemian finished 14 of 25 for 179 yards, one touchdown and one interception — and a passer rating of 75.2.

Jets receiver Garrett Wilson caught an eight-yard touchdown about five minutes into the game and a 54-yarder in the second quarter, during which Jackson fell to the ground, untouched, with a foot injury. Kicker Greg Zuerlein nailed a 57-yarder in the final seconds of the first half. The Jets added two third-quarter touchdowns against an undermanned Bears defense.

The Bears had lost their previous three games by a combined seven points. They’d been blown out only twice all year — by the Cowboys on Oct. 30 and the Packers on Sept. 19.

The Bears figure to limp into next week’s rivalry game against the same Packers. Fields’ timeline to return is uncertain — he warmed up briefly before the game and did not appear to be in obvious pain.

Jackson and Mooney appear to have serious injuries. Right tackle Riley Reiff left in the first quarter with a shoulder injury; his replacement, Larry Borom, limped off in the fourth.

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WRs Chase Claypool and Byron Pringle made highlight worthy catches on Chicago’s TD drive

The Bears offense has put together two solid drives to open against the tough New York Jets D on the road. Trevor Siemian was healthy enough to start over Nathan Peterman after a minor warmup injury and he’s playing very well. The Bears pulled off their second consecutive 71-yard drive, however, this time, it ended with the first touchdown of Byron Pringle’s Bears career.

The drive got a major boost with an acrobatic catch from trade deadline acquisition Chase Claypool. He mossed Jets first round pick Sauce Gardner who has been lock down all season long.

The Bears drive was capped off by completing a third and goal on a good pass from Siemian to Pringle. Pringle did his own moss job on Jets CB D.J. Reed.

The Bears offense has played well and Siemian is playing smart and with confidence. Chicago is in yet another close battle.

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The concussion Blackhawks goalie Alex Stalock suffered Nov. 1 against the Islanders has turned out to be a longer-term issue than initially thought. He has missed almost a month now.

But his absence might be finally nearing its end. Stalock joined Petr Mrazek — who started against the Jets — and Arvid Soderblom as full participants in Hawks morning skate Sunday, his first time practicing with the team since the injury.

“He’s a great voice in the dressing room, [so] him just being healthy again and around the guys, it’s a huge boost for this team,” coach Luke Richardson said. “It’s nice to have him back. But [it was his] first day on the ice, we’ll see how he feels with shots and everybody out there.”

Stalock impressed in October, going 3-2-1 with a .914 save percentage. Goaltending hasn’t really been the Hawks’ issue this season, even during his absence, but his return should help nonetheless. Soderblom will likely return to Rockford at that point.

Tinordi injured

The Hawks’ second defensive pairing of Jarred Tinordi and Connor Murphy was broken up Sunday for essentially the first time all season, albeit not voluntarily.

Tinordi missed the game because he “banged up” a lingering, preexisting injury, Richardson said. The journeyman defenseman has found a stable role in Chicago, tallying five points in 20 games while averaging 17:30 of ice time.

Filip Roos, who’d previously been scratched for all but one game since Nov. 14, assumed Tinordi’s spot in the lineup. Forwards Sam Lafferty (upper body) and Tyler Johnson (ankle) remained out.

Kane’s shootout drought

As of Dec. 4 last year, Patrick Kane’s career shootout resume was stellar. He had converted 49 of 117 career attempts, good for a sparkling 41.9% conversion rate — well above the NHL average.

But since then, Kane has uncharacteristically had seven consecutive shootout attempts saved. His attempt Friday wasn’t even technically saved; he just hit the side of the net after running out of time and space.

Jonathan Toews, whose career shootout numbers are even better, is also an unremarkable 2-for-9 since the start of last season. The Hawks, as a team, still went 6-2 in shootouts last season but are 0-2 this season (entering Sunday).

Kane and a handful of other Hawks forwards love their tradition of post-practice games of “two puck,” which are basically scaled-down shootouts. With all those opportunities to try out new moves, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them eventually improve in the shootouts that count.

Dickinson speaks up

Richardson told an interesting story Sunday about Hawks forward Jason Dickinson that sheds light on his mindset.

“He’s a quiet guy,” Richardson said. “But the other night, I told him to go out and take a short shift. It was four-on-four and then we were going to go into a penalty kill. He came to me and goes, ‘I want that kill.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, but I need you to go out and finish this four-on-four.’ He’s like, ‘No, I want that kill.’ And I go, ‘I heard you, but I need you out there for 20 or 30 seconds, and then come back and I’ll get you back on the kill.’

“He wanted a little redemption. Maybe [he had] a bad game before, and he wanted to get back on the pressure side of our penalty kill and kill it off. It’s good to see [that] drive in a player like that. You’re not sure if it’s there or not when a guy is quiet.”

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — With their defense already stripped down significantly, the Bears took another hit with the loss of two-time Pro Bowl safety Eddie Jackson in the second quarter of their game against the Jets.

Jackson hurt his left foot in a non-contact situation as wide receiver Garrett Wilson raced to a 54-yard touchdown catch and couldn’t put weight on it as he hopped to the sideline. After a quick exam in the injury tent, Jackson was carted to the locker room and ruled out for the game.

Jackson, 28, has enjoyed a resurgent season and leads the Bears with four interceptions and two forced fumbles this season. He had played 98.8% of the defensive snaps going into the Jets game.

The Bears already were down safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Kyler Gordon as both rookies were out with concussions.

Even with Jackson, the Bears had been one of the worst defensive teams in the NFL, allowing an average of 24.9 points per game.

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