Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2016 9:38:50 GMT -6
It's going to take more than one notable 'W' to buy into Bears turnaround
David Haugh Contact Reporter Chicago Tribune
For good measure, perhaps the Bears can pry Cubs manager Joe Maddon away from watching DirectTV and grilling steaks Sunday at his offseason home a few miles away to be an honorary captain at Raymond James Stadium.
At the very least the Bears can borrow a Maddon mantra if he's busy. Needing to prove that beating the Vikings was no fluke, the Bears must try hard not to suck versus the beatable Buccaneers.
The Bears don't have to be great against a Bucs defense that has mastered the Mannequin Challenge, giving up more points than all but three NFL teams. But they have to be better than the inconsistent bunch who, until recently, looked capable of competing with the 0-10 Browns for the No. 1 overall draft pick next April. They have to continue the momentum carrying over from an off week that rejuvenated hope in a city desperate to shift its sizable post-Cubs sports attention to something worthwhile.
But, sorry, the atrophy of NFC North contenders isn't a good enough reason suddenly to see big things happening at Halas Hall. It will take more than one victory over the Vikings to believe the Bears can go on a second-half run that implies progress, the kind of stretch that eases mounting pressure on general manager Ryan Pace and coach John Fox.
That reality adds intrigue and importance to Sunday's visit to central Florida that didn't exist two weeks ago. It would be overstating the stakes for any 2-6 team to call Sunday a "must-win" game, but Pace and Fox stand to sustain a credibility hit if things go awry. A team good enough to handle the Vikings has no business losing to the Bucs. Face it: The Pace-Fox regime remains one bad loss away from the return of doubt in Lake Forest and one bad month away from the arrival of jeopardy.
That is the reality of their jobs. This is the NFL, where parity reigns and "Any Given Sunday" was a movie title for a reason. Anything can happen and, on "Monday Night Football," anything did when the Bears surprisingly dominated the Vikings behind an aggressive pass rush and an efficient Jay Cutler. The Bears now must follow the same formula trying to win back-to-back games for the first time since Weeks 9 and 10 of the 2015 season. And, yes, what a long year it has been.
But on the positive side, the presence of Cutler gives the Bears a big-play threat they lacked in his five-game absence. A show of hands from those who still think the Bears offense was better with Brian Hoyer than Cutler … anybody? Um, thought so. Whether the second half represents the final eight games of Cutler's Bears career still depends on too many unknowable factors, but that's the way he should view it. The Bears will benefit if Cutler considers every Sunday an audition for teams seeking a starting quarterback in 2017 — and if you don't think those teams are out there, consider the disfigured bodies of work of Cody Kessler or Ryan Fitzpatrick, among other lousy NFL starters.
With Jordan Howard emerging as a 2016 version of Anthony Thomas, a similarly styled hard runner, Cutler possesses a ground game that offers a semblance of balance. Offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains devised a smart game plan featuring a relatively cautious, controlled passing attack against the Vikings, a formula worth following again. The use of play-action passes with a moving pocket allows Cutler the freedom to throw on the run and buys time for favorite receiver Alshon Jeffery to get open. The more Cutler incorporates Jeffery — neglected by Hoyer — the more involved tight end Zach Miller becomes and, suddenly, the Bears offense can start to function the way everyone imagined at Bourbonnais.
Likewise, the Bears defense has begun to take shape under creative defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, a master football strategist when he's not critiquing baseball managers. Despite injuries that decimated the depth chart early, Fangio's unit somehow ranks 12th in total defense, giving up 338.9 yards per game. The Bears schedule makes finishing in the top 10 a realistic goal, especially if pass rushers Leonard Floyd and Pernell McPhee stay on the field and keep meeting at the quarterback. The last two games have given the Bears a glimpse of how disruptive their defensive line can be with Floyd and McPhee able and active.
Nobody welcomed those overdue contributions more than cornerback Tracy Porter, the defense's unsung hero asked weekly to shut down the opponent's No. 1 receiver no matter how banged up he is. Nobody appreciated the help from Floyd and McPhee more than ends Akiem Hicks and Willie Young, who needed the reinforcements. With Eddie Goldman returning to the middle, and linebackers Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan as steady as ever, you see why the Bears consider the front seven a strength that can sustain them throughout a second half of the season full of promise.
Opportunity beckons at One Buc Place. One look at the injury report suggests the Bears are as healthy as they have been all year — and the same goes for the football outlook around Chicago.
Still, experience as a Bears watcher says it will require a road victory over a bad Buccaneers team before considering the Vikings game more revelation than aberration.
dhaugh@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @davidhaugh
David Haugh Contact Reporter Chicago Tribune
For good measure, perhaps the Bears can pry Cubs manager Joe Maddon away from watching DirectTV and grilling steaks Sunday at his offseason home a few miles away to be an honorary captain at Raymond James Stadium.
At the very least the Bears can borrow a Maddon mantra if he's busy. Needing to prove that beating the Vikings was no fluke, the Bears must try hard not to suck versus the beatable Buccaneers.
The Bears don't have to be great against a Bucs defense that has mastered the Mannequin Challenge, giving up more points than all but three NFL teams. But they have to be better than the inconsistent bunch who, until recently, looked capable of competing with the 0-10 Browns for the No. 1 overall draft pick next April. They have to continue the momentum carrying over from an off week that rejuvenated hope in a city desperate to shift its sizable post-Cubs sports attention to something worthwhile.
But, sorry, the atrophy of NFC North contenders isn't a good enough reason suddenly to see big things happening at Halas Hall. It will take more than one victory over the Vikings to believe the Bears can go on a second-half run that implies progress, the kind of stretch that eases mounting pressure on general manager Ryan Pace and coach John Fox.
That reality adds intrigue and importance to Sunday's visit to central Florida that didn't exist two weeks ago. It would be overstating the stakes for any 2-6 team to call Sunday a "must-win" game, but Pace and Fox stand to sustain a credibility hit if things go awry. A team good enough to handle the Vikings has no business losing to the Bucs. Face it: The Pace-Fox regime remains one bad loss away from the return of doubt in Lake Forest and one bad month away from the arrival of jeopardy.
That is the reality of their jobs. This is the NFL, where parity reigns and "Any Given Sunday" was a movie title for a reason. Anything can happen and, on "Monday Night Football," anything did when the Bears surprisingly dominated the Vikings behind an aggressive pass rush and an efficient Jay Cutler. The Bears now must follow the same formula trying to win back-to-back games for the first time since Weeks 9 and 10 of the 2015 season. And, yes, what a long year it has been.
But on the positive side, the presence of Cutler gives the Bears a big-play threat they lacked in his five-game absence. A show of hands from those who still think the Bears offense was better with Brian Hoyer than Cutler … anybody? Um, thought so. Whether the second half represents the final eight games of Cutler's Bears career still depends on too many unknowable factors, but that's the way he should view it. The Bears will benefit if Cutler considers every Sunday an audition for teams seeking a starting quarterback in 2017 — and if you don't think those teams are out there, consider the disfigured bodies of work of Cody Kessler or Ryan Fitzpatrick, among other lousy NFL starters.
With Jordan Howard emerging as a 2016 version of Anthony Thomas, a similarly styled hard runner, Cutler possesses a ground game that offers a semblance of balance. Offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains devised a smart game plan featuring a relatively cautious, controlled passing attack against the Vikings, a formula worth following again. The use of play-action passes with a moving pocket allows Cutler the freedom to throw on the run and buys time for favorite receiver Alshon Jeffery to get open. The more Cutler incorporates Jeffery — neglected by Hoyer — the more involved tight end Zach Miller becomes and, suddenly, the Bears offense can start to function the way everyone imagined at Bourbonnais.
Likewise, the Bears defense has begun to take shape under creative defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, a master football strategist when he's not critiquing baseball managers. Despite injuries that decimated the depth chart early, Fangio's unit somehow ranks 12th in total defense, giving up 338.9 yards per game. The Bears schedule makes finishing in the top 10 a realistic goal, especially if pass rushers Leonard Floyd and Pernell McPhee stay on the field and keep meeting at the quarterback. The last two games have given the Bears a glimpse of how disruptive their defensive line can be with Floyd and McPhee able and active.
Nobody welcomed those overdue contributions more than cornerback Tracy Porter, the defense's unsung hero asked weekly to shut down the opponent's No. 1 receiver no matter how banged up he is. Nobody appreciated the help from Floyd and McPhee more than ends Akiem Hicks and Willie Young, who needed the reinforcements. With Eddie Goldman returning to the middle, and linebackers Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan as steady as ever, you see why the Bears consider the front seven a strength that can sustain them throughout a second half of the season full of promise.
Opportunity beckons at One Buc Place. One look at the injury report suggests the Bears are as healthy as they have been all year — and the same goes for the football outlook around Chicago.
Still, experience as a Bears watcher says it will require a road victory over a bad Buccaneers team before considering the Vikings game more revelation than aberration.
dhaugh@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @davidhaugh