No one was expecting the Chicago Bears to start the season as they did against the Green Bay Packers last Thursday night.
The defense held Aaron Rodgers to just 10 points, Eddy Pineiro led the Bears in scoring, and there were more concerns than positives after another season-opener heartbreaker.
Suddenly, a Week 2 game against the Broncos has a lot more magnitude than it would have before.
Here are five storylines to watch as the Bears travel to Denver
Will Mitch Trubisky and the offense rebound?
Things couldn’t have gone worse for the Bears offense in a Week 1 loss to the Packers that raised some serious concerns. Mitch Trubisky had one of the worst outings of his career.
It wasn’t all on the quarterback, with plenty of blame to go around starting with Matt Nagy and trickling down to the offensive line, but the offense needs to go out against Denver and perform.
Last Monday, Derek Carr completed 22-of-26 passes for 259 yards and a touchdown against the Broncos. Oh, and he wasn’t sacked once, which is quite a feat for an offensive line going against the likes of Von Miller and Bradley Chubb.
The Bears offense needs to make a statement in this game. Nagy needs to call a more balanced game, Trubisky needs a consistent performance to calm the doubters and the line needs to protect the quarterback. The Bears need a win, plain and simple.
Can the Bears contain Von Miller and Bradley Chubb?
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr faced little pressure last week against the Broncos. In fact, he wasn’t sacked once.
Not exactly something you’d expect from stud edge rushers Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, who are certainly hungry to get after a quarterback.
Mitch Trubisky was sacked five times against the Packers, and Miller and Chubb should be excited. A bulk of the responsibility falls on the offensive line, which struggled mightily to protect the quarterback. But the offense can counter the Broncos’ pass rush by putting themselves in more manageable third-down situations, something they weren’t able to do against the Packers.
Establishing a balance on offense and avoiding those 3rd-and-longs can certainly help put the offense in more favorable positions — and avoid the wrath of Miller and Chubb.
How many touches will go to David Montgomery?
The Bears running game was virtually nonexistent in last week’s loss against the Packers, where a 53-to-12, pass-to-run ratio in a one-score game left fans scratching their heads.
Rookie David Montgomery looked impressive in his small sample size, which made it puzzling as to why Nagy stopped handing him the ball.
Montgomery is clearly the best option at running back, which begs the question: How many carries does Montgomery get against the Broncos?
Nagy acknowledged that the Bears needed to run the ball more, which suggests that we’ll see Chicago establish the run game early to bring balance to the offense.
Will tight end Trey Burton play?
The Trey Burton injury saga continues to be a frustrating mystery as the Bears tight end’s status is once again in jeopardy for Sunday’s game against the Broncos.
After having surgery to repair a sports hernia this offseason, Burton suffered a minor groin strain that has been a pain for everyone involved.
Burton has been limited in practice, but that’s not necessarily indicative of whether or not he’ll play. He was questionable in Week 1, when he warmed up during pregame before the Bears decided to sit him.
The Bears felt Burton’s absence, and it remains to be seen how much longer it will be until Burton sees the field again.
Does Vic Fangio have an advantage over Matt Nagy?
There’s no opposing coach that knows the Chicago Bears better than Vic Fangio.
After the Bears offense struggled to find any rhythm against the Packers, Fangio will look to force the same on Mitch Trubisky and company. If there’s anyone that should know how to frustrate Trubisky, it’s Fangio.
That means Matt Nagy has to throw things at him that he’s never seen before, since Fangio already knows the strengths and weaknesses of the offense.
Just as Fangio knows the Bears offense, the Bears know Fangio’s defensive tendencies, which should make for an intriguing duel.
