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Those looking for more evidence of the Bears’ lack of faith in quarterback Justin Fields should venture no further than the 20-yard line.

The Bears threw on their first red zone play of the season — an 18-yard touchdown pass from Fields to Equanimeous St. Brown against the 49ers — and then ran the ball on 21 consecutive plays inside the 20.

It wasn’t until Fields dropped back to throw an incomplete pass on third-and-7 from the Giants’ 11 in the first quarter of Sunday’s 20-12 loss that the streak was snapped. The Bears’ three other pass plays on nine red zone attempts Sunday yielded a sack, an incompletion and a screen that lost three yards.

That should sound a red alert.

In an area of the field where accuracy and timing are essential, the Bears can’t post a functioning pass attack.

“I felt like we did a good job driving the ball, getting to the red zone,” Fields said. “But I think we’ve just got to capitalize on it when we get down there and score seven.”

The Bears can’t pass inside the 20. Here’s what went wrong in the red zone:

A booted bootleg

A 56-yard pass to receiver Darnell Mooney and a roughing the passer penalty two plays later gave the Bears first-and-10 at the Giants’ 12 with 3:37 to play in the first quarter.

Fields went under center and faked a handoff right.

Outside linebacker Jihad Ward lined up over Mooney, who was in a bunch formation left with St. Brown and Kmet. Mooney tried to chip Ward briefly to allow Kmet to run open into the left flat and buy Fields time to throw, but Ward fought through the block and was waiting for the bootleg.

Kmet, meanwhile, was open in the left flat. Fields looked at Kmet, didn’t throw and was sacked.

“I thought that [Ward] was going to go out and match Cole,” Fields said. “So I kind of tried to tuck it in. But next time I’ll just go outside, in, and back outside to Cole.”

Fields needed to use his eyes to look outside at Kmet and then back inside at a different receiver to move Ward before throwing to his tight end. Kmet would have gained three or four yards on the catch, but those first-down plays are valuable in the red zone.

Mooney took the blame. He thought he had to chip Ward with a block to let St. Brown run a corner route. In reality, their responsibilities were reversed. St. Brown tried to block but then recovered and ran a short route.

“I was the only one that messed up on the play,” Mooney said.

Go for it?

Two plays after the sack, the Bears had third-and-3 from the Giants’ 5.

Rather than giving Fields an opportunity for growth –something that would benefit the Bears more in the long term than a first down –they handed off to Herbert up the middle for a one-yard gain.

The Bears have averaged 2.8 yards per carry on 24 red-zone rushes, scoring four touchdowns this season. Herbert, though, had run for nine yards on the previous play, and the run game is the Bears’ strength.

The call, though, was an outlier in the modern NFL. Seven times this season, teams have faced third-and-3 from their opponent’s 5-yard line or closer. The Bears are the only team that ran.

“[Offensive coordinator] Luke [Getsy] isn’t scared to call a run play on third down,” Fields said. “It keeps the defense guessing, so I wasn’t surprised at it.”

It was more surprising, though, that the Bears didn’t then go for it on fourth-and-2, instead kicking a 22-yard field goal. Eberflus said, that was predetermined by the team’s analytics and reinforced during in-game conversations between he and Getsy.

“We were going by the numbers,” he said.

Eberflus, though, could have trusted Fields to try to convert fourth down. Like the third-down handoff, it was a long-term opportunity missed.

Doubled up

On third-and-7 from the Giants’ 11 about six minutes into the game, Fields took a shotgun snap.

Dante Pettis ran a corner route to the back left pylon, where he was covered well by Giants cornerback Aaron Robinson with safety Xavier McKinney helping from the inside. Fields could only throw it away, over his head.

Kmet popped open on a crossing route from right to left. Linebacker Tae Crowder was spying Fields to make sure he didn’t run. Safety Jordan Love trailed Kmet a second late.

Like another botched pass play later in the game — a third-and-6 screen to Kmet that lost two yards — it was a passing failure in the red zone.

“You just got to put the put the points on the board,” Mooney said. “We score two of those touchdowns whenever we get down there, we win the game.”

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Statement from White Sox manager Tony La Russa released Monday:

“This February, I had a pacemaker installed and was cleared by my doctors to begin spring training as scheduled. A periodic check of the device later identified a problem. During batting practice on August 30, I was informed of the issue, taken out of uniform and tested by doctors the next day.The solution was to update the pacemaker in Arizona and for me not to return as manager without medical clearance.

During an annual private exam after the first of the year, a second health issue also was diagnosed. I decided to delay confronting it until the off season. While I was inactive with the pacemaker, the second issue was analyzed. The result is that a corrective plan has been developed by my medical team and implementation has begun. I informed the White Sox of this second issue while I was out of uniform dealing with the pacemaker. As I have stated previously, I continue to request privacy related to my health issues and appreciate those who have respected that request. My overall prognosis is good, and I want to thank everyone who has reached out to me with well wishes related to my health.

At no time this season did either issue negatively affect my responsibilities as White Sox manager. However, it has become obvious that the length of the treatment and recovery process for this second health issue makes it impossible for me to be the White Sox manager in 2023. The timing of this announcement now enables the front office to include filling the manager position with their other off-season priorities.

Our team’s record this season is the final reality. It is an unacceptable disappointment. There were some pluses, but too many minuses. In the Major Leagues, you either do or you don’t. Explanations come across as excuses.Respect and trust demand accountability, and during my managerial career, I understood that the ultimate responsibility for each minus belongs to the manager.I was hired to provide positive, difference-making leadership and support. Our record is proof. I did not do my job.

The 2020 and 2021 seasons were important positive steps for this organization ending with playoff baseball. I take pride in the 2021 season because our team dealt with the pressure of being labeled as favorite by earning a division championship and posting winning records in each of the season’s six months. In 2022, we have some movement in the wrong direction. The key now is to figure out what is right versus what is wrong. I’m convinced that the process will be productive, and the players will be receptive. The future for this team remains bright.

At no time have I been disappointed or upset with White Sox fans, including those who at times chanted “Fire Tony.” They come to games with passion for our team and a strong desire to win. Loud and excited when we win, they rightly are upset when we play poorly. A great example of this support came in Game 3 of last year’s division series. No disrespect intended to any of my other teams and their fans, but that was the most electric crowd I ever experienced.

Finally, I am sincerely disappointed that I am leaving without the opportunity to finish what I was brought in to do. I still appreciate the chance to come back home to the White Sox and leave today with many more good memories than disappointments.

As I have said many times during my career, no manager has ever had more good fortune than I have.”

Thank you.

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This is becoming an ugly tradition for the Bears.

Not only are they getting poor quarterback play from Justin Fields, but everything they’re doing around him is exacerbating his struggles.

They’ve done this before, most recently with Mitch Trubisky. While he wasn’t good enough independently to live up to the prestige of being the top quarterback drafted in 2017, he also was hampered by a variety of ancillary malfunctions.

Fields’ best passing performance of the season still wasn’t very good Sunday — 11 of 22 for 174 yards and a 76.7 passer rating — and wasn’t enough to win, as the Giants staggered to a 20-12 victory. That’s technically progress, but it’s a tiny step with no promise of a bigger one coming this week against the Vikings.

Everything is wrong right now.

Fields is missing open receivers, and there aren’t an abundance of them anyway. The offensive line isn’t giving him much protection, but he’s not making the most of his time in the pocket when he does get it. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy isn’t opening up a lot of opportunities for him as a passer, but Fields isn’t doing much to earn his confidence.

The result is that Fields ranks last in completions (34), yardage (471) and passer rating (58.7). Perhaps most alarmingly, he’s at the bottom in completion percentage (50.7) despite playing in an offense that doesn’t take many deep shots.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus cited all the issues in a roundabout way over the last two weeks and was back at it Monday.

He said the offensive line was “good in spots” when it came to pass protection, which is a polite way of saying it was bad most of the time. He highlighted Giants nose tackle Dexter Lawrence having “a pretty good day” with eight pressures and two sacks as he bullied various interior linemen.

Amid that duress, Fields often didn’t seem to have a feel for moving away from the pressure through the middle of the line and buying himself time to throw.

“It’s just pocket presence as he gets more experience,” Eberflus said. “He did a nice job of riding the pocket a couple of times, staying in there and delivering the ball, for sure.

“We talked about those plays… More experience on the job and he’s going to get better at it.”

Eberflus also mentioned a play in which Darnell Mooney ran the wrong route but got open anyway and said Fields needed to adjust and “take what they give you.”

By the way, when the most accomplished and surefooted of the Bears’ wide receivers is making mental mistakes, they’re in real trouble. Mooney said Sunday he got the play wrong twice against the Giants.

Pro Football Focus’s metrics show that the Bears have allowed pressure on the highest percentage of dropbacks and have had the lowest percentage of dropbacks in which the receivers are considered open.

Pro Football Reference charts them allowing pressure on 29.3% of dropbacks and has Fields throwing on target just 43.9% of the time — second-worst in both categories.

The problems are circular among Fields, his passing targets and his line. And there are no obvious solutions.

The line took a hit with left guard Cody Whitehair’s knee injury. The only help coming at wide receiver is the eventual return of N’Keal Harry, but he’s hardly a sure thing.

The deflated numbers this season are tiresome, but the mess carries big-picture consequences, too.

It was paramount for general manager Ryan Poles to assess whether Fields could grow into a franchise quarterback. He’s not playing like one, but Poles didn’t build a roster to facilitate that development.

If it keeps going like this, they face bad outcomes: They either won’t be able to tell how good he is, or they’ll decide to reboot at quarterback in the draft. Either scenario simply slows down what already feels like a crawling rebuild.

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Justin Fields’ passing game isn’t good on paper

Moving the football downfield through the air has been a rarity for the Chicago Bears offense this year. The Bears rank last in the league in passing. Quarterback Justin Fields is averaging passing less than 100 yards a game. That’s an unbelievable stat in modern NFL football.

The lack of a serious passing game hobbled the Bears’ chances of winning in Week 4. Fields and the offense couldn’t get the ball past the goal line. They settled for four field goals. That won’t get the job done in most weeks.

Fields isn’t worried about the stats

One would think those problems would concern a second-year quarterback. But Fields apparently isn’t worried about where the offense is after another week where the Bears couldn’t put up a meager score of two touchdowns and two extra points. Per Josh Frydman of WGN News, Fields was asked by Jason Lieser why the Bears’ passing game wasn’t working. Fields didn’t seem to think the passing game was failing.

Stats do matter. Justin Fields needs to be able to throw more than 100 yards a game to be a franchise quarterback. The heavy running offense can pretend to look cute when they sneak by the worst team in the NFL by 3 points at home. But games like Week 4 will become more common unless offensive coordinator Luke Getsy and Fields can find a way to make the passing game work.

The Giants snuffed the Bears on their third down runs in the red zone and other critical situations like their penultimate drive. The Giants stopped those plays because they knew what was coming. And it wasn’t a pass. That’s why passing stats matter.

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Patrick Kane’s offensive star power comes more from facilitating than from shooting.

But Kane’s new linemates, Blackhawks summer signings Max Domi and Andreas Athanasiou, seemingly haven’t figured that out yet. By the time the regular season starts next week, the Hawks desperately need them to.

That line has struggled to create anything during their first two preseason games together, primarily because Domi and Athanasiou have constantly deferred to Kane. Their disconnect was obvious Sunday against the Wild as the trio squandered opportunity after opportunity.

“We are getting chances, for sure,” Domi said Sunday. “We’re just not finishing, obviously. Some of that comes down to bearing down and executing and wanting it. It is preseason, but there’s some stuff that we could have been a lot better at tonight, and we know that.”

The most glaring example came during a three-on-one break in the second period. Domi started with the puck but passed to Kane on right wing before the group even reached the red line.

Kane later fed Athanasiou in the high slot, giving him a prime shooting angle, but Athanasiou forced a pass back to Kane that was broken up by the Wild defenseman, ruining the play. Athanasiou realized immediately he made the wrong decision, coach Luke Richardson said, and smashed his stick in frustration upon returning to the bench.

Several similar instances occurred Wednesday against the Blues in the Hawks’ preseason opener. It’s frustrating because the combination makes sense on paper and should theoretically be dangerous, at least by this Hawks team’s standards.

Athanasiou’s skating ability is one of the most impressive singular skills possessed by any forward on the current roster. He can blow past virtually any defenseman on the rush. Richardson noted his skating is also literally quiet –he can’t “hear the ice and the steel” from Athanasiou like he can with other blazers –which makes him exponentially more elusive.

Domi, meanwhile, has some similarities to Kane — albeit not at quite the same level –in terms of his offensive awareness, vision and soft hands. He and Kane are both London Knights alumni and actually once sat together during the US Open in New York. Kane recounted that story at the start of training camp while expressing genuine excitement about the opportunity to play with Domi.

So what would improve things? Simply spending more time together will presumably help build chemistry. So will a stronger shoot-first mentality from all three, but particularly from Athanasiou.

Domi has always been a pass-first player: his shot share (the percentage of team shot attempts during his ice time that he takes himself) over the last three seasons is just 22.0%, and it was 16.3% last season with the Hurricanes. Athanasiou’s shot share over the last three seasons, conversely, is a sizable 27.2%.

Kane will ultimately get his looks –his shot share is 27.7% over those three years –but they’ll often come about organically rather than by design. That’s something Alex DeBrincat learned quickly, and it made them deadly partners-in-crime. DeBrincat statistically took fewer shots than Kane did during their ice time together, but it felt like he took more, and that gave defenses fits.

Domi and Athanasiou need to learn all of that as soon as possible. Richardson, for one, is already talking to them about it.

“[Kane is] going to draw attention, and that’s going to open up other people, and you have to recognize that and pull the trigger — that’s your chance,” Richardson said. “That’s an assist for Patrick right there, whether he touches the puck or not.

“Then [the ice is] going to open up, and people are going to have to honor [Domi and Athanasiou] because they are good players with good speed. … There’s just a growing process with that, as I’m sure there always is over the years.”

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Ah, out of the mouth of babes.

A mouth that DeMar DeRozan would have appreciated staying shut a bit longer, or at least until the details continue working itself out.

It was last week that 21-year-old Bulls forward Patrick Williams divulged a new-look offense for the Bulls this season, which focused on positionless basketball and opening the floor. Williams didn’t offer up much more than that, but as far as DeRozan was concerned, that was enough.

That became apparent after the Monday practice, as the Bulls were preparing for their first preseason game.

“First of all, you can’t expect too much … he’s still a teenager,” DeRozan joked of Williams, and the fact that the third-year player may have pulled back the curtain a bit early. “But yeah, just putting more wrinkles in the offense so we don’t become so predictable and [relying] on ‘hero basketball’ so much.”

DeRozan was well-versed in “hero ball.”

He played it most of the 2021-22 campaign for the Bulls, as Zach LaVine was working through a left knee issue, Nikola Vucevic was working through shooting woes, and Williams, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso were working through significant injuries.

But the league isn’t dumb. Every hero has his kryptonite.

By Game 5 of the first-round playoff loss to Milwaukee, DeRozan was being served his.

“It was very clear what Milwaukee was doing,” coach Billy Donovan said. “It was like, ‘We’re going to have someone else beat us. DeMar is not going to do what he did in Game 2 [when he scored 41].’ ”

Even before the Bucks were handcuffing the Bulls’ duo, however, DeRozan and LaVine saw a blueprint throughout most of the second half hell-bent on erasing all the good feelings from earlier in the season.

That’s why over the summer Donovan felt a change to the offense was needed, set to debut against New Orleans on Tuesday night.

What Donovan did clear up from Williams’ assertion, though, was the idea of it being a “new offense.” It’s some of the same offense, but with some tweaks.

“We’re trying to create a little more randomness to help some of the guys,” Donovan said. “So how do you get a little more randomness so they’re not just keying on DeMar, not just keying in on Zach? We’ve got to not only make it easier for them, but have these other guys play to their strengths.

“There’s more reads, more randomness coming down, and that’s going to take this group some time. It can’t be paint by numbers, like A to B to C.”

So while the exhibition game against the Pelicans will be step 1, getting this offense to where it’s tougher to defend will be a process. One that DeRozan hopes could lead to some impressive results.

“Get guys in different places, get guys involved, and get easier shots for the next person,” DeRozan said. “Not just rely on me and Zach so much of playing a bunch of isolation basketball. There’s definitely more wrinkles in there, and just getting comfortable with that for sure.

“The better you balance that, the better a team we become. It’s just a matter of understanding how to balance that. That’s on us. We’ve definitely been locked in and understanding of how we can help that.”

Now, if certain players could just stay mum on that.

At least for a while longer.

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Is Justin Fields in the worst position among all NFL quarterbacks this year? One NFL analyst believes so

Through four games this season the Chicago Bears passing attack has been historically bad, even with Justin Fields throwing for 155 yards in the Week 4 loss.

Still, the Bears struggles continued as they didn’t find the end zone despite three trips to the red zone and they allowed six sacks on the quarterback. It was a disaster and there’s plenty of blame to go around.

But one ESPN host doesn’t think it’s all Justin Fields’ fault and that the Bears front office and coaching staff are to blame.

Former NFL safety Ryan Clark said the Bears can’t evaluate the quarterback position without putting him in a position to succeed. He went on to say that  “Justin Fields is in the worst position of any quarterback in the entire NFL.”

Look, Fields hasn’t played well this season but Clark has a point.

General Manager Ryan Poles didn’t do much to address the wide receiver position and waited to draft a rookie in the third round. He also waited to draft a tackle in the fifth round. That’s not protecting your future investment at the quarterback position.

Only time will tell if Fields pans out but right now, the situation in Chicago isn’t the greatest. And for Bears fans, that’s something we are used to seeing with any quarterback that comes through the Windy City.

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