Report Card: Bears Position Grades after win over Lions |
The Chicago Bears looked like a much better football team on Sunday, beating the Detroit Lions 24-14 at home. The Bears are now 2-2 and heading toward a tough part of the schedule.
So let’s take a look and give out some grades based on the performances by position after the win against Cincinnati. Quarterback B Justin Fields got his second career NFL start on Sunday and it was much better than the first. Fields was able to deliver some big throws, including some deep play shots that the Bears sometimes struggle to make. Fields was 11-of-17 for 209 yards and an interception on Sunday. Rushing wise, he was only able to muster up nine yards on the ground. It is unsure how long Andy Dalton will be out, but Fields has displayed that he can lead the Bears to wins. Running backs A David Montgomery carried the ball 23 times for 106 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday, pacing the Bears offense. Damien Williams also had eight carries for 55-yards and a touchdown as well, as well as catching a pair of passes for 15 yards. Plus, Khalil Herbert had a trio of carries as well. The Bears certainly need to keep them involved as much as possible. Wide Receivers B+ Only two Bears wide receivers caught passes on Sunday, but the ones who did were terrific. Allen Robinson had three catches for 63 yards, and that wasn’t the best the Bears had to offer. Second year wideout Darnell Mooney caught five passes for 125 yards, and rushed once for ten yards. Marquise Goodwin also was targeted, and had a carry for one yard. Tight Ends D This unit certainly has talent, with Cole Kmet and Jimmy Graham handling the tight end duties for this squad. This unit was nonexistent on Sunday though, only Kmet caught a pass and it was for six yards. Graham was not targeted. But this unit receives an D because they did do a decent job blocking. I’d like to see more out of this unit as the year progresses. Offensive Line B The offensive line was better, allowing just one sack of quarterback Justin Fields and creating holes in the running game all day long. It was against the Lions, but it was a step in the right direction on Sunday. Defensive Line B The defensive line was solid, keeping the Bears in this game and pressuring Jared Goff and the Lions. The unit only allowed 90 total rushing yards, and Bilal Nichols picked up a fumble as well. This unit did lose Akeim Hicks to injury though so we’ll keep an eye on that as time goes on. Linebackers A Any unit that boasts Khalil Mack deserves some props, and this position group certainly delivered on Sunday. Khalil Mack had a sack and a fumble recovery, Robert Quinn picked up a sack and Roquan Smith had five tackles and a sack as well. This unit is very good and looked like it on Sunday. Secondary B- This unit was fine on Sunday. No particular player in the secondary played well, but nobody really played bad. There were no glaring pass plays that gashed the secondary, but Eddie Jackson, Jaylen Johnson and co. couldn’t force a turnover. Tashaun Gipson did pick up a sack, as this unit continues to stay involved. Special Teams B+ Kicker Cairo Santos delivered a made field goal for the Bears and made three extra points. The return game was solid with Khalil Herbert and the punt unit was not very active, punting the ball three times. Playcalling B The play calling was much better on Sunday, mostly because of Matt Nagy’s incompetence was not calling plays. It was Bill Lazor instead. The Bears finally got Justin Fields moving and allowed his skillset to show — as well as pounding the ball with David Montgomery. More of that all would help the Bears exponentially as the season continues. Nonetheless, week four is in the books, and the Bears are 2-2. They head to Vegas for a matchup with the Raiders this week.
