Special Teams Change
It was a pleasant surprise when Marc Mariani was not back to receive the opening kick. Instead, it was Deonte Thompson. However, I believe Bears fans were disappointed to see Marc out there for punt returns. I’d like to see Mariani relieved of his return duties, he failed to impress the last three weeks and I like to think that most Bears fans can agree with that, let’s see someone else back there for a week or two.
Playing Against a Top-Rated Defense
Well, we’ve seen this offense play better. I would like to split the blame 50/50 on Cutler and the play calling. Jay seemed to underthrow a lot of his targets. He also had a questionable throw that got intercepted in the third quarter.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the Bears offense move down the field throwing the long ball. On the final drive, Cutler hit Zach Miller for a good gain down the field, then Josh Bellamy, then Marquess Wilson, and then got the pass interference call throwing to Martellus Bennett.
When it mattered most, our Bears moved downfield with ease and punched it into the endzone.
Yeah, the Bears were able to get downfield multiple times, but they only managed field goals. That’s kind of a win going against the top-rated defense in the NFL. However, when they absolutely had to, the offense moved the ball. This is not the first time we’ve seen this happen this year.
Whenever Alshon Jeffery and Eddie Royal are not present, it seems the play calling stays conservative until crunch time. I think there is enough talent on the field to keep a good mix of conservative and aggressive play calling to keep defenses on their toes when Jeffery and Royal are out.
Failure to Capitalize on Denver Mistakes
In back-to-back Denver possessions, the Broncos committed two mistakes that the Bears did not jump on.
First mistake… in a 7-3 game in the second quarter, Denver had a 3rd and 2 and was called for a false start to create a 3rd and 7. The Bears kept Denver from getting a first down so it was a win for the defense. Then the offense was able to get a field goal out of the following drive. That made it a 7-6 game and the Bears were able to gain a little momentum.
On the following kickoff, the Denver return man let the ball bounce in the end zone and it bounced right back into the field of play. Having to pick it up, Denver started on their own two and ended up going three and out. The punt was short and out of bounds so the Bears started on the right side of the 50.
Then… the Bears offense goes three and out. Still a 7-6 game and all of a sudden the momentum is back to being balanced.
Now I get the defense is ranked number one in the NFL, but to beat good teams you have to make plays when you’re called to. The Bears missed an opportunity to take the momentum, even if they just came away with a field goal on that drive.
It’s a Short Week…
So, let’s have a short memory and prepare to take on the cheeseheads on Thanksgiving!
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