Tag: Chicago Bears

NFL WEEK 6: Goss’ three good things, three bad things and one thing to watch

photo: Joe Sargent/Getty Images

By Anthony Goss

With several close games this weekend, the two-point conversion attempt became a major point of discussion for several teams. 

The Houston Texans went for an aggressive two-point attempt, which cost them a victory. Philadelphia was close to completing a comeback against the Batltimore Ravens, but a failed attempt sealed their defeat. Such a seemingly easy setup, it is surprising that it has such a low success rate.

When teams convert, it is a stroke of genius, but failed attempts are hailed as unnecessary or aggressive. With that said, I enjoy watching a team play to win. It is certainly a gamble (maybe not even a smart one), but Washington head coach Ron Rivera put it best this weekend after his questionable two-point try against the Giants. 

“The only way you learn to win is to play to win,” Rivera said.  

Three Good Things 

Steelers and Titans Race Out to 5-0 

Sunday afternoon, the two undefeated teams left in the AFC won big divisional matchups. The Steelers absolutely throttled the Cleveland Browns in a 38-7 rout. 

LB Bud Dupree and the Pittsburgh defense looked like a hungry pack of wolves going against a banged-up Browns offense that was not prepared for the pressure and physicality of Pittsburgh. Having QB Ben Roethlisberger back in the lineup has made a huge difference, and this offense has not reached its full potential yet.

Tennessee survived a furious upset attempt by QB Deshaun Watson and the Texans. The Titans sent the game to overtime after a 7-yard touchdown catch by WR AJ Brown from QB Ryan Tannehill. RB Derrick Henry finished off the Texans with a 5-yard run to cap off a stellar performance with 212 yards and 2 touchdowns, one of which was a 94-yard run.

Tennessee has one of the most efficient offenses in the league, and while most will think of the monster in the backfield, Tannehill has been outstanding this season and his play has elevated the Titans passing attack. Off to historical starts, these two teams will meet next week for a must-see matchup on Sunday afternoon.  

Chicago finishes strong against Carolina 

It is time to give Chicago its due respect.

After a surprising win against the Buccaneers last week, the Bears pulled out a close win in an ugly game at Carolina.

“We’d rather win ugly than lose pretty,” said QB Nick Foles. The Bears defense was great in this game, totaling four sacks, and picked off QB Teddy Bridgewater twice, the second of which sealed the game. Sitting at 5-1, the Bears have picked up wins against some of the lesser teams in the league, but as the saying goes, “you play who is on your schedule.” 

Speaking of schedules, the Bears have two huge NFC matchups coming up, including a Monday night tilt in Inglewood against the Rams next week. Winning those games could give this gritty Bears team an inside track to a playoff berth.  

Chiefs Dominate on the Ground 

Kansas City is famous for its barbecue, and the Chiefs absolutely smoked the Bills run defense on Monday afternoon. In another installment of rescheduled football due to COVID-19, the Chiefs controlled the Bills on their way to a 26-17 win. 

Both teams struggled to throw the ball early in the game in ugly weather, but rookie RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire carried the Kansas City offense with 161 rushing yards, running for 6.2 yards per carry. The Chiefs ran for 245 yards as a team, but this explosive run game is nothing new. The Chiefs have focused on improving their run-game this season and they have done so, ranking sixth in the league in rushing yards per game which is up sixteen spots from where they finished last season. 

Head coach Andy Reid has added another explosive dimension to an offense that is already so lethal with QB Patrick Mahomes II at the helm. This goes without the fact that Kansas City just added RB Le’Veon Bell, who can provide some added production in a great system. Despite the loss last week, I find it hard to believe there is another team better than the Chiefs at this point in the season.  

Three Bad Things 

Packers Poor Effort 

Coming out of a bye week, the Packers put up a very poor effort in Tampa Bay. This game was supposed to be a battle of all-time great quarterbacks, but a strong defensive performance by Tampa Bay made the difference on Sunday afternoon. 

The Buccaneers defense bullied QB Aaron Rodgers, who threw two interceptions, including a pick-six that flipped the momentum of the game. Green Bay gave up 28 points in the second quarter and the game was basically over at halftime. In the second half, Rodgers looked completely disinterested at times, and this trickled down to the defense as well. 

This was a surprising result from the Packers, who had looked outstanding in the games prior to Week 6. This should be only a minor setback for one of the NFL’s top teams, and they should regain momentum in the coming weeks with matchups against the struggling Texans and Vikings.   

Vikings Disappoint Once Again 

It has been a rough year for Minnesota and it only got worse after losing to the previously 0-5 Falcons at home. This Falcons team — infamous for blown leads this season, who just fired their head coach, and having one of the worst pass defenses in the league — shut out the Vikings in the first half. 

Minnesota QB Kirk Cousins was nothing short of atrocious in the first two quarters with three interceptions, but connected with rookie WR Justin Jefferson for two scores in the second half.

WR Julio Jones had his best game of the season against the Vikings defense, putting up 8 receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns in his first game back from a hamstring injury. The absence of RB Dalvin Cook was noticed as well, shown by the frail 32-yard performance put up by his replacements. Cook should return after the bye week, but with the Vikings already in a 1-5 hole, it may not matter. 

Another Bad Week in the NFC East 

In case you forgot, one of the Cowboys, Eagles, Football Team, or Giants will be hosting a playoff game this season. The only win this division got this weekend was the Giants, grabbing a 20-19 win against Washington after an aggressive two-point conversion attempt by the Football Team failed.

Previously, I have held confidence in Dallas crawling to the finish line in first place, but after an embarrassing performance against Arizona on Monday Night Football, I now give the slight nod to the Eagles, who boast a record of 1-4-1. 

The Eagles have been extremely unlucky with injuries this season, but QB Carson Wentz’s turnover bug has kept them from winning games. By no means are the Eagles true contenders, but with the state of the division right now, it is hard to imagine another team taking the NFC East crown besides them when they get some key pieces back from injury. The Eagles can start to right the ship with a win against the Giants on Thursday, and the following week they host the Cowboys on Sunday night.  

Keep an Eye on…. 

Steelers vs. Titans Matchup 

While COVID-19 has put a strange wrinkle in the 2020-21 season, most fans are probably happy that this game was moved to Week 7. After an arguably lackluster slate of games in Week 6, Week 7 presents a matchup of heavyweights in the AFC.

The Steelers and Titans are off to historic starts at 5-0, and Sunday’s game will pin strength against strength in Nashville, Tennessee. The vaunted Steeler defense, coming off a game where they shut down the league’s best rushing attack, will now be tasked with stopping a Titans offense coming off back-to-back 40-point performances.

This game has added importance because of the expanded playoff format instituted this season. There is only one first-round bye to play for, and with the Chiefs lurking at 5-1, staying undefeated and grabbing a head-to-head advantage could pay major dividends down the road.  

WEEK 3 NFL COLUMN: Allen’s immaturity could hurt Bills; Mahomes shines again; Foles picks up Trubisky’s slack

photo: Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images

By Nic Gelyon

The love affair between myself and Josh Allen has been a bumpy ride from the start. 

I’ll admit that I went into a fit of rage three years ago when the Buffalo Bills drafted Allen seventh overall. I’ll admit that I was discouraged, angry even, with Allen’s lack of progression the past couple seasons. 

And the Bills’ collapse in last year’s Wild Card game didn’t exactly boost my confidence. 

But here we are. We’re wrapping up what has been an amazing September for the Bills. 

Allen – and the Bills in general – are now the stereotypical “media darlings” in NFL circles. 

Allen is suddenly an MVP candidate. The ‘Bills-could-make-the-Super Bowl’ bandwagon is growing stronger by the minute. I should be elated, perhaps overcome, with joy: My team and my city are finally relevant. 

But I can’t believe the Bills will live up to that hype. Not until I see better from Josh Allen than I did on Sunday. 

Late in the Bills’ 35-32 tire-fire win against the 2-0 Los Angeles Rams, the immaturity I’ve witnessed for three years returned to haunt the Buffalo Bills.

Everything I’ve grown to love about Josh Allen turned into everything I can’t stand about him. 

The Bills built a 28-3 lead on the back of Allen’s steadiness. He stood in the pocket, welcomed pressure, and got the ball out quickly over the middle. Everything was clicking— until it all unraveled. 

 It all unraveled when a well-thrown Allen pass was caught by Tyler Kroft, and then wrestled out of his hands by Rams safety John Johnson. 

It was a controversial call, at best. Allen became visibly upset, like most Bills fans, when officials announced their ruling of an interception. It fired him up. Allen was ready for revenge. 

And I have no problem with Allen getting angry, I was ready to punch a hole in the TV myself. But the best-of-the-best know how to control their fire. They can single-handedly shift the team mentality to an urgent coolness. A calm confidence. 

But it’s apparent Allen has not yet learned to control his fire. Instead, he panicked.

He started overthrowing receivers. He took too long to read coverages. He started running away from Rams defenders who weren’t really there. 

He lost his cool. 

In moments of crisis, Allen has always seemed to lose focus. He plays with his heart and not his head. His fundamentals, which I can tell Allen worked on in the offseason, are lost in the heat of passion.  

And I’ll give credit where it’s due- no matter what penalty was called at the end of the game, Allen still threw the game-winning touchdown to – guess who – Tyler Kroft. Someone must have sat him down for a second, refocused him, shown him what good leadership looks like. He calmed down, and he came in clutch to get the Bills to 3-0. 

But it shouldn’t have come to that.

In year three, I wanted Allen’s immaturity to end. Whatever progress Allen made fundamentally in the offseason won’t matter if he can’t improve his mindset come crunch time.

We all saw prime erratic Josh Allen on Sunday. And that worries me come playoff time. 

PAT MAHOMES – sorry, Patrick Mahomes – was responsible for three passing touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown, and 274 total yards in the first half of the Chiefs’ dominant 34-20 performance against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night. 

The Ravens couldn’t contain the Chiefs’ passing game in the first half. But it had more to do with the Ravens’ defensive strategy than their players. 

The Ravens blitz a lot, and Monday night was no different. I call it the Wink Martindale special.

 But this week, the Ravens’ tunnel-vision blitzing allowed Chiefs receivers the room to get wide open, exploiting the resulting lack of coverage. Mahomes took full advantage. 

 The Ravens beat themselves in the first half. They shot themselves right in the foot. 

ROCHESTER, NEW YORK NATIVE and Atlanta Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, after he was placed on the Falcons’ COVID-19 reserve Friday. 

It would have been an easy knee-jerk reaction for the NFL to shut down all activity between the Bears and Falcons on Sunday. Take as many precautions as humanly possible. Wrap them all in bubble-wrap. 

But the NFL was smart enough not to panic. 

Instead, the NFL quickly responded by contact-tracing Terrell. Their conclusion: the Falcons and Bears were able to safely play their game on Sunday, 

We’ll see in the coming days if any more COVID-19 cases arise from either of these teams. But as of now, it looks like the NFL made an educated, common-sense decision. Good for them. 

Speaking of the Bears… quarterback Mitch Trubisky probably would have been better off Sunday if the game had been canceled. Head coach Matt Nagy yanked Trubisky early in the third quarter during the Bears’ 30-26 comeback win against the Falcons. 

Who completed the comeback? None other than Nick Foles himself. The God. 

The benching of Trubisky is a move Chicago fans have anticipated – and welcomed – for the better part of three years. It’s become obvious that when the Bears win, it’s in spite of Trubisky, not because of him. 

But did the Bears even give Trubisky a chance on Sunday? His coaches’ actions say that they did. 

His coaches have overseen his progression. They’re the ones who knew whether Trubisky’s last pass of the game – an interception – was caused by a lack of whatever it is that makes a quarterback good. 

Matt Nagy and offensive coordinator Bill Lazor’s decision to pull Trubisky means that they’re just not getting through to him. And if that’s the case, we’ve probably seen the last of Trubisky with the Bears.