Post by JABF on Dec 16, 2017 21:32:46 GMT -6
Hopefully we can beat the Cleveland Browns next week. Tonight I was thinking back to how the Bears were going to get "better" after the 10-win season that got Lovie Smith fired. Somehow this just doesn't "feel" better than those years of winning division titles, going to the Super Bowl... you know, actually having winning seasons.
LINK
Doormat Bears pummeled in Detroit as end nears for John Fox and Co.
The Lions could very well wind up in the same boat as the Bears in 15 days, in search of a new head coach, and Saturday’s national showcase confirmed there’s a wide gap between the NFC North rivals.
The running game that should have given the Bears a chance to win was nonexistent, quarterback Mitch Trubisky was erratic and the defense failed to come up with key stops after holding the Lions to field goals on two of their first three possessions. Making matters worse, coach John Fox, conservative to the end, didn’t have the fortitude to go for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 45-yard line when it was a six-point game early in the second quarter. Add a season-high 13 penalties for 97 yards, including one that negated a 90-yard kickoff return by Tarik Cohen, and the loss of starting guards Josh Sitton and Tom Compton to injuries and it was an all-around wreck.
The Lions wound up drubbing the Bears 20-10 at Ford Field, ensuring the Bears (4-10) will finish with double-digit losses for the fourth consecutive season and the 10th time in the last 21 years.
In a week’s time, the Bears went from looking energetic and improved in a 33-7 victory in Cincinnati to indifferent. That’s what happens when you go from playing the Bengals, who had no interest in being on the field, to the Lions, who have an outside chance at the playoffs if they can win out for embattled coach Jim Caldwell.
The Lions (8-6) kept their chances flickering as Darius Slay (twice) and Quandre Diggs picked off Trubisky three times, including one in the end zone. It marked the ninth time in the last 10 meetings the Lions have beaten the Bears, a reminder of just how far they have fallen. The Bears are 0-5 in the NFC North, 3-14 under Fox and 4-19 in the last four years. That’s the issue. The Bears keep hinting at turning the corner, but they remain a doormat.
There are plenty of places to point to for why this game went south on the Bears, but the single most telling factor was their inability to run the ball. They pounded out 222 yards on the ground in the Nov. 19 meeting at Soldier Field, a 27-24 Lions win. The Lions entered having allowed an average of 158.6 rushing yards in their last five games and had a season-best performance, limiting the Bears to 43 yards on 15 carries. So much for Jordan Howard (10 carries, 37 yards) chasing a rushing title in the final weeks of the season. When the Bears fell behind 13-0 in the second quarter, it felt much worse than two scores.
“That first half,” left tackle Charles Leno said. “That’s what that came down to. We can’t play catch-up like that, especially with our team. We’re a team that likes to get the ball rolling with the running game and play-action and dink and dunk here and there. You can’t play like that from behind.”
Doormat Bears pummeled in Detroit as end nears for John Fox and Co.
The Lions could very well wind up in the same boat as the Bears in 15 days, in search of a new head coach, and Saturday’s national showcase confirmed there’s a wide gap between the NFC North rivals.
The running game that should have given the Bears a chance to win was nonexistent, quarterback Mitch Trubisky was erratic and the defense failed to come up with key stops after holding the Lions to field goals on two of their first three possessions. Making matters worse, coach John Fox, conservative to the end, didn’t have the fortitude to go for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 45-yard line when it was a six-point game early in the second quarter. Add a season-high 13 penalties for 97 yards, including one that negated a 90-yard kickoff return by Tarik Cohen, and the loss of starting guards Josh Sitton and Tom Compton to injuries and it was an all-around wreck.
The Lions wound up drubbing the Bears 20-10 at Ford Field, ensuring the Bears (4-10) will finish with double-digit losses for the fourth consecutive season and the 10th time in the last 21 years.
In a week’s time, the Bears went from looking energetic and improved in a 33-7 victory in Cincinnati to indifferent. That’s what happens when you go from playing the Bengals, who had no interest in being on the field, to the Lions, who have an outside chance at the playoffs if they can win out for embattled coach Jim Caldwell.
The Lions (8-6) kept their chances flickering as Darius Slay (twice) and Quandre Diggs picked off Trubisky three times, including one in the end zone. It marked the ninth time in the last 10 meetings the Lions have beaten the Bears, a reminder of just how far they have fallen. The Bears are 0-5 in the NFC North, 3-14 under Fox and 4-19 in the last four years. That’s the issue. The Bears keep hinting at turning the corner, but they remain a doormat.
There are plenty of places to point to for why this game went south on the Bears, but the single most telling factor was their inability to run the ball. They pounded out 222 yards on the ground in the Nov. 19 meeting at Soldier Field, a 27-24 Lions win. The Lions entered having allowed an average of 158.6 rushing yards in their last five games and had a season-best performance, limiting the Bears to 43 yards on 15 carries. So much for Jordan Howard (10 carries, 37 yards) chasing a rushing title in the final weeks of the season. When the Bears fell behind 13-0 in the second quarter, it felt much worse than two scores.
“That first half,” left tackle Charles Leno said. “That’s what that came down to. We can’t play catch-up like that, especially with our team. We’re a team that likes to get the ball rolling with the running game and play-action and dink and dunk here and there. You can’t play like that from behind.”