Dhruv Koul shares his in-game reactions, thoughts and observations from the Colts-Bears game at Soldier Field. Follow him on Twitter @DhruvKoul to continue the conversation.
CHICAGO — By now, we’re all familiar with the story of the 2020 Chicago Bears. But in case you’re not, here’s the summary: They entered Week 4 with a record of 3-0, and not many people understood how. Here’s a recap:
In Week 1, they went into Detroit, fell behind 23-6 in the third quarter, reeled off 21 points in the fourth quarter, and survived an end zone drop to win. In Week 2, they jumped out to a 17-0 lead at home, only to need a goal-line stand on the final play of the game to seal it. In Week 3, they went into Atlanta, fell behind 26-10 in the third quarter, benched Mitch Trubisky, and watched Nick Foles reel off 20 unanswered points to steal yet another road game.
Crazy, huh?
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Today, in Week 4, they welcomed an intriguing Indianapolis Colts team to Soldier Field — a team that lost to Jacksonville (!!) in Week 1, only to blow out the Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets in the following weeks. Here was my Pre-Game Thoughts Thread:
Thread: A few thoughts on the upcoming Colts-Bears game…
1. Nick Foles coming on in relief of Trubisky to spark the win is one thing. A full week of prep as the starter (and the Colts game planning specifically for Foles) is another. The chess match will be fascinating.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 2, 2020
The Colts’ OL is tough, especially in the running game. Their rookie RB, Jonathan Taylor, has been very impressive so far. And guess what the Bears’ weakness on defense has been so far? Yep, run defense. However, with Nick Foles at quarterback, there was hope that the Bears’ offense would at least be more consistent and successful at turning drives into touchdowns.
In the end, the Bears got absolutely man-handled on both sides of the ball by a physical football team. The Bears had no answers, and shot themselves in the foot repeatedly all game. An awful football game that they’d be better off forgetting about.
I shared my in-game reactions, thoughts and observations below. Follow me on Twitter @DhruvKoul to continue the conversation.
Thoughts and Observations
1. (PRE-GAME) With Tarik Cohen out for the year, the Bears elevated Artavis Pierce from the practice squad this week. But Pierce is inactive today — the Bears’ only active RBs are David Montgomery, Cordarrelle Patterson, and Ryan Nall. I’d imagine the Bears use Patterson first in relief of Montgomery. The Bears’ other inactives are:
Inactives for #INDvsCHI: pic.twitter.com/Zn4dF6wd1a
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 4, 2020
Some news from Indianapolis — former Bears’ TE Trey Burton IS active. Let’s see how much of an impact he makes in his return to Soldier Field.
2. The Bears started the game with the ball. After Patterson took an ill-advised kickoff out of the end zone short of the 25 yard line, the Bears gained one first down before poor execution led to a punt. James Daniels missed a block that ruined a screen play, and Xavier Rhodes broke up a slant intended for Allen Robinson on third down. Then the punt was blocked, and the Colts took over near midfield. Pat O’Donnell needs to start hurrying up his release…
Not a great start for the Bears. Yikes.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
The Colts, aided by a bad DPI call on Kyle Fuller, marched down the field and scored a TD with relative ease to close their first possession. Jaylon Johnson and Kyle Fuller both got beaten pretty badly on that series. Colts up 7-0.
3. Not a good quarter for the Bears. They’re down 7-0, but the bigger concern right now is Nick Foles and the offense looking like more of the same as they did early on in the first three games. The deep attempts haven’t been there yet, and the Colts are squatting hard and playing aggressively. Perhaps it sets up for some double moves later in the game, but Foles needs to improve on the way he’s throwing the football this afternoon.
Not what I had in mind. It's clear Foles' timing is not there yet. And he's been off with his accuracy a bit. The Colts' defense is playing aggressively. The Bears have opportunities to take advantage, but will they? https://t.co/kWFNLoEzFD
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
4. All in all, a horrific first half for the Bears. They misplayed two potential interceptions from Philip Rivers. They had no answer for the running game. They had some awful, awful penalties called. The offense couldn’t do much (poor execution and not a great day play calling so far from Matt Nagy).
Bears' OL is getting mauled. Sometimes a defensive front is just better than you.
Colts can drain the life out of the Bears with a score here and score after halftime.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
The Colts are up 13-3 at halftime and have the opportunity to score again after halftime. I expect ball-control offense to shorten the game, especially with the offense unable to muster anything useful.
5. An overall half-time observation:
Matt Nagy's had a pretty poor game today calling plays so far today. The Bears' best chance of getting back in this game is to throw it downfield more. The Colts are playing aggressively on defense, squatting on the short stuff, and are overwhelming the OL in the run game.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
6. The second half has been more of the same. While the defense got a couple of three-and-outs to start the quarter, the offense did absolutely nothing. It’s been a terrible showing on all fronts today at Soldier Field.
I hate to get after the defense given the offense has done nothing, but with Tampa Bay coming to Soldier Field this Thursday, they have to get their third down defense straightened out. Otherwise, Tom Brady is going to ravage them all night.
The third down defense has been brutal. What's Tom Brady going to do to them?
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
7. Bears are down 16-3 with 13 minutes left in the game. They have the ball at their own 20 after a touchback. This is when they have to start putting something together…
…And Foles gets intercepted in the red zone. The ball went off Anthony Miller’s hands, but it was a bad throw — way too far in front when it wasn’t necessary.
Miller*
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) October 4, 2020
8. Trey Burton with the revenge third down conversion to drain the game away.
9. The Bears have serious issues to address and not a lot of time to do it… They got man-handled today by a physical team, on both sides of the ball. And they get the GOAT coming to town in four days…
10. The offensive game plan and execution has to be much better. The defense can only do so much. It’s 2020. Score points.
11. After today’s offensive clunker (again), the Bears don’t have a prayer on Thursday night against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (that’s so weird to say!). The Bucs, even though they have injuries, have a QB who is still destroying defenses at age 43. And with the soft zone the Bears enjoy playing, he’ll pick it apart all day. Before the season started, the Bears absolutely would’ve taken a 3-2 record after five games. After Thursday, it’ll feel disappointing. Bears will have some soul-searching to do in their 10 day break before heading to Charlotte to take on the Panthers.
Early prediction: Buccaneers 37, Bears 17.
