Post by motm on Nov 25, 2016 3:28:10 GMT -6
Ryan Pace and Zach Miller stood face to face in the middle of the Bears locker room Sunday and chatted at a low volume. Miller wore a walking boot on his broken right foot, his season over while the Bears continue falling.
After a minute, the general manager patted Miller on the arm. The tight end then hobbled past Adrian Amos' stall and out to the team bus.
Amos was sitting alone with his thoughts near the corner. As disappointment and pain took various forms around him, his was internal. The second-year safety was wrenched by regret.
He had dropped an interception in the 22-16 loss to the Giants, and it had nothing to do with Miller's broken foot or Kyle Long's torn-up shoulder or any other injury that has ripped a hole in the Bears' parachute.
It was a play Amos had to make. An errant Eli Manning pass floated right to him at the 11-yard line. Amos is not some fill-in off the street. He's a 2015 draft pick and a two-year starter. He's the only Bear to play every game since Pace and coach John Fox took over. He's the type of player the Bears' long-term plan depends on.
But Amos dropped it. He got both hands on it, and he dropped it. Instead of his first career interception, the Giants salvaged a 46-yard field goal. And in a six-point loss that ended with the Bears in Giants territory, well, that's some painful math.
"I was just disappointed that he dropped it," defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. "He played his assignment correctly, put himself in position to make it. He just didn't make it."
That missed opportunity highlights the ample room to evaluate these 2-8 Bears despite a decimating spate of injuries and a pair of embarrassing suspensions.
So does Eddie Royal's third-quarter drop on third-and-6 near the first-down marker; and Connor Barth's missed 51-yard field-goal try and extra point; and the fact the Bears didn't sack Manning.
The unfortunate and growing list of absent players is essential context for the evaluation process. But that doesn't preclude a fair assessment of players or areas of the team that should be progressing.
In a game determined by the total outcome of many individual matchups, you can still gauge player development, evaluate depth and scrutinize the Bears' ability to find unheralded players — each an important component of championship teams.
So don't hesitate to keep your grading sheets out. Rest assured the Bears front office and coaching staff will keep the red ink flowing too.
Now, is this situation as satisfying as game planning for a run at a playoff spot? Of course not.
But the Bears have no choice but to try to learn what they have in players like Nick Kwiatkoski, the fourth-round rookie linebacker positioned to replace suspended leading tackler Jerrell Freeman against the Titans on Sunday.
Can Kwiatkoski improve his eye discipline on play-action passes, an area in which he broke down as the Bears blew a 13-0 fourth-quarter lead against the Jaguars on Oct. 16? That's an individual challenge, one that doesn't depend on whether quarterback Jay Cutler is in the lineup.
Remember, the Bears drafted Kwiatkoski 22 spots before the Cowboys took quarterback Dak Prescott. If Kwiatkoski develops into a consistent contributor, maybe Pace will sleep a bit better about that one.
Perhaps it's too much to ask most fans to get energized about the development of a fourth-round linebacker at the end of a 2-8 season. And, frankly, it should be. But just know that's the focus at Halas Hall over the next six weeks.
Kwiatkoski is just one example. Take your pick of any rookie, more specifically the draft choices.
Running back Jordan Howard is one of the season's brightest spots, but there remains a lot for him to accomplish in the last six games.
He won't have as many open holes to exploit now that teams will load the box against a patchwork offensive line and Matt Barkley, the Bears' fourth preference at quarterback. But Howard must make gains as a receiver, as his two drops last Sunday remind us.
In Amos' case, his backhanded drop against the Giants was reflective of the Bears' bigger problem taking the ball away.
Their gains as a defense are admirable, at least when it comes to yardage. They're ninth-best in the NFL in yards allowed per play, up from 25th last season. That's a solid improvement, one that bodes well for the overall rebuilding trajectory.
But the Bears' eight takeaways are second-fewest in the NFL. Forcing turnovers is what makes a good defense great, and it also helps a team overcome quarterbacking inconsistencies.
"At the end of the game, when you lose, you look back at any play you could have taken advantage of," Amos said Sunday. "Just concentrate on the ball."
Those nuances, as uninspiring as they seem, are all the Bears have in the home stretch of this lost season. They'll be judging all of them, and injuries aren't an excuse. If you care to tune in, it's entirely fair for you to do the same.
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-campbell-fair-to-evaluate-bears-spt-1125-20161124-column.html
After a minute, the general manager patted Miller on the arm. The tight end then hobbled past Adrian Amos' stall and out to the team bus.
Amos was sitting alone with his thoughts near the corner. As disappointment and pain took various forms around him, his was internal. The second-year safety was wrenched by regret.
He had dropped an interception in the 22-16 loss to the Giants, and it had nothing to do with Miller's broken foot or Kyle Long's torn-up shoulder or any other injury that has ripped a hole in the Bears' parachute.
It was a play Amos had to make. An errant Eli Manning pass floated right to him at the 11-yard line. Amos is not some fill-in off the street. He's a 2015 draft pick and a two-year starter. He's the only Bear to play every game since Pace and coach John Fox took over. He's the type of player the Bears' long-term plan depends on.
But Amos dropped it. He got both hands on it, and he dropped it. Instead of his first career interception, the Giants salvaged a 46-yard field goal. And in a six-point loss that ended with the Bears in Giants territory, well, that's some painful math.
"I was just disappointed that he dropped it," defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. "He played his assignment correctly, put himself in position to make it. He just didn't make it."
That missed opportunity highlights the ample room to evaluate these 2-8 Bears despite a decimating spate of injuries and a pair of embarrassing suspensions.
So does Eddie Royal's third-quarter drop on third-and-6 near the first-down marker; and Connor Barth's missed 51-yard field-goal try and extra point; and the fact the Bears didn't sack Manning.
The unfortunate and growing list of absent players is essential context for the evaluation process. But that doesn't preclude a fair assessment of players or areas of the team that should be progressing.
In a game determined by the total outcome of many individual matchups, you can still gauge player development, evaluate depth and scrutinize the Bears' ability to find unheralded players — each an important component of championship teams.
So don't hesitate to keep your grading sheets out. Rest assured the Bears front office and coaching staff will keep the red ink flowing too.
Now, is this situation as satisfying as game planning for a run at a playoff spot? Of course not.
But the Bears have no choice but to try to learn what they have in players like Nick Kwiatkoski, the fourth-round rookie linebacker positioned to replace suspended leading tackler Jerrell Freeman against the Titans on Sunday.
Can Kwiatkoski improve his eye discipline on play-action passes, an area in which he broke down as the Bears blew a 13-0 fourth-quarter lead against the Jaguars on Oct. 16? That's an individual challenge, one that doesn't depend on whether quarterback Jay Cutler is in the lineup.
Remember, the Bears drafted Kwiatkoski 22 spots before the Cowboys took quarterback Dak Prescott. If Kwiatkoski develops into a consistent contributor, maybe Pace will sleep a bit better about that one.
Perhaps it's too much to ask most fans to get energized about the development of a fourth-round linebacker at the end of a 2-8 season. And, frankly, it should be. But just know that's the focus at Halas Hall over the next six weeks.
Kwiatkoski is just one example. Take your pick of any rookie, more specifically the draft choices.
Running back Jordan Howard is one of the season's brightest spots, but there remains a lot for him to accomplish in the last six games.
He won't have as many open holes to exploit now that teams will load the box against a patchwork offensive line and Matt Barkley, the Bears' fourth preference at quarterback. But Howard must make gains as a receiver, as his two drops last Sunday remind us.
In Amos' case, his backhanded drop against the Giants was reflective of the Bears' bigger problem taking the ball away.
Their gains as a defense are admirable, at least when it comes to yardage. They're ninth-best in the NFL in yards allowed per play, up from 25th last season. That's a solid improvement, one that bodes well for the overall rebuilding trajectory.
But the Bears' eight takeaways are second-fewest in the NFL. Forcing turnovers is what makes a good defense great, and it also helps a team overcome quarterbacking inconsistencies.
"At the end of the game, when you lose, you look back at any play you could have taken advantage of," Amos said Sunday. "Just concentrate on the ball."
Those nuances, as uninspiring as they seem, are all the Bears have in the home stretch of this lost season. They'll be judging all of them, and injuries aren't an excuse. If you care to tune in, it's entirely fair for you to do the same.
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-campbell-fair-to-evaluate-bears-spt-1125-20161124-column.html
