The Chicago Bears concluded Week 3 in the NFL with a decisive victory against the Washington Redskins, winning 31-15 and improving to 2-1 on the season. Chicago snapped a losing streak against the Redskins, beating them for the first time since 2003.
QB Mitchell Trubisky had his best game since the fall of 2018, throwing for three touchdowns and the defense combined for five takeaways, including two interceptions by former Redskin’s S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, one of which was returned for the game’s first score.
The game was filled with plenty of exciting moments and a few head-scratching decisions, plus some key developments that may impact the team over the next few weeks.
Here are five takeaways from Monday night’s victory over the Redskins.
1. Mitchell Trubisky finally lets loose
We’ve all heard the chatter, read the stories and listened to the media over the last couple of weeks: Mitchell Trubisky needs to step up and open up the field. We asked and he answered, completing 25-of-31 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns, all in the first half and all to WR Taylor Gabriel.
After a shaky start to the game, coach Matt Nagy and Trubisky began pushing the ball downfield, while using a lot of no-huddle calls to keep the defense on its heels. His best throw of the night came when he was flushed from the pocket and threw a 36-yard touchdown to Gabriel while on the move, giving the Bears a 28-0 lead near the end of halftime.
Following his lone interception of the night, Nagy dialed it down for his QB and the team became more conservative, working to protect the lead. His game wasn’t perfect, but the third-year signal caller looked noticeably more comfortable in the pocket than his first two starts. A game like this can help a QB regain his confidence, which would be timely as the Bears take on a more vaunted Minnesota Vikings defense in Week 4.
2. The takeaways return for the Bears defense
One of the narratives throughout the offseason was about how the Bears defense would likely regress under new defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano. While many didn’t necessarily think the unit would get worse, they assumed there was no way the defense could keep up the amount of turnovers generated in 2018.
That was likely put to bed once and for all as Pagano’s unit combined for five turnovers against the Redskins, the most in one game for the Bears since 2013. They may have had even more if a penalty hadn’t wiped out a fumble by ILB Danny Trevathan in the first half, who also had his a punch-out that counted late in the fourth quarter.
While the Redskins offense eventually found their footing in the second half, the defensive damage was already done. Like Trubisky’s performance, the defense should be able to build on their showing going into Week 4.
3. Injuries could expose defensive line
One of the sour notes from the team’s victory came on the injury front. WR Taylor Gabriel exited the game with a concussion and shortly after, DE Akiem Hicks followed suit with a knee injury.
Gabriel’s concussion isn’t ideal, as he had his best game as a Bear on Monday night, but the injury to Hicks could be more problematic going forward.
Aside from the fact that he’s a pro-bowl defensive stud, the Bears could now be without Hicks and DE Bilal Nichols, who is dealing with a broken hand. With both ends potentially out for multiple weeks, the line depth will be tested going forward. P
layers such as DE Roy Robertson-Harris, DE Abdullah Anderson, and DT Nick Williams will get more reps and may be tasked with the challenge of stopping red-hot Vikings’ RB Dalvin Cook on Sunday. More news regarding Hicks’ injury will come later in the week.
4. David Montgomery finally gets the call
Another offseason story has been rookie RB David Montgomery, the hyped bell cow from Iowa State. While he scored his first NFL touchdown last week against Denver, his best runs to-date came during this game, as he was the catalyst on the Bears final drive, accounting for 48 of the team’s 58 yards that led to K Eddy Pineiro’s field goal and took over 5 minutes off the game clock.
He showed rare vision on a 25-yard scamper and bounced off tacklers to keep moving the ball forward. Montgomery delivered when called upon in the final quarter and showed why he was worth the hype. He finished the day with 67 yards on 13 carries.
5. The Bears end long losing streaks in consecutive weeks
On paper, beating the winless Denver Broncos and winless Washington Redskins may not seem like much, even if both wins came on the road. But these two teams have plagued the Bears for years, going back to 2003.
Prior to this season, the Bears have lost four consecutive games to the Broncos and eight consecutive games to the Redskins. In 2019, Chicago snapped both losing streaks in back-to-back games.
What does it all mean? Maybe nothing, considering both team’s records, but sometimes it’s good to get certain monkeys off your back. For example, the narrative that the Bears couldn’t beat the San Francisco 49ers on their field existed for many years until 2014, when they finally snapped the losing streak. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, it’s never a bad thing to exorcise your demons.
