Getty Image / Jason Hanna
The Chicago Bears terrible play was overshadowed by the presence of Travis Kelce’s love interest, Taylor Swift, at yesterday’s game. But, a local paper wasn’t too distracted to give the Chicago Bears stunningly poor grades in every facet of football following a 41-10 demolishing that wasn’t even as close as the score.
The grades speak for themselves. Take a look.
Never seen this before pic.twitter.com/rcrbIYZrcE
— Michele Steele (@MicheleSteele) September 25, 2023
That piece, published by Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times, is as scathing as I’ve ever seen a team be criticized by a beat writer. Some of these are pretty unfair, though.
Yes, I know the point the reporter is trying to make. He’s giving the Chicago Bears all F’s because of how big of a dumpster fire the whole organization is. It was a truly terrible week in Chicago as they saw quarterback Justin Fields criticize the coaching staff, defensive coordinator Alan Williams mysteriously resigning, and tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment stolen from Soldier Field.
But, some of these position groups didn’t deserve F’s, though. The running backs combined for 15 carries for 68 yards and a fumble. That’s not great, and the fumble hurts. But, that’s not an F, either. That’s well over 4 yards a carry.
And, the linebackers were fine. They were at least productive, and TJ Edwards did have a monster game with 17 tackles and 2 TFL. Obviously, any time your defense gives up 41 points it’s not an outstanding group effort, but they don’t deserve a grade of F.
On the other hand, some of these are very much deserved. Quarterback Justin Fields was supposed to be a long-term answer as a franchise quarterback for the Chicago Bears. But, he’s shown no progress in his third year. Through three games he only has 526 yards passing to go along with 3 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, which adds up to an awful 67.2 passer rating.
The coaching isn’t putting him in much of a position to succeed, either. Yes, he has problems getting through progressions and seeing the field. But, he is an excellent runner and had a 1000-yard season last year. They’re simply not calling enough designed runs and rollouts for him.
Overall, it’s a terrible situation in Chicago. The good news is, the 0-3 Denver Broncos, coming off a performance that saw them give up 70 points to the Miami Dolphins, come to town Sunday. Despite that performance, the Broncos are still two-point road favorites.