The Chicago Bears came into Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers looking to right the ship and get their postseason hopes back into focus after dropping two straight games.
Red zone mistakes, costly turnovers and something that’s all too familiar to Bears fans — a missed field goal that could’ve won the game — cost the Bears as they lost to the Chargers 17-16 and dropped to fourth place in the NFC North at 3-4.
Here are my takeaways following the heartbreaking loss:
1. Matt Nagy’s passive approach effectively ended the Bears’ season
You can blame quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, you can blame the red zone playcalling and you can blame kicker Eddy Pineiro for missing the field goal. All of those reasons are valid. But with a chance to drive further down the field for a closer field-goal attempt or even a touchdown, Nagy played scared and decided he was comfortable with a 41-yard attempt to win or lose the game.
On first down, the Bears decided to take a knee with 43 seconds left on the clock and one timeout in their pocket. In that time, the team could have run one to two plays, picking up extra yardage.
Instead Nagy was passive, and it cost the team the win and moved the Bears to last place in the division. This isn’t the first time the Bears’ coach has been bitten by this approach, and his failure to learn cost his team the game and all but ended their postseason hopes in a stacked conference.
2. Good things happen when you feed David Montgomery
One question surrounding the Bears all season has been: When will Montgomery have his breakout performance? The answer was Week 8.
The rookie running back was the star of the offense on Sunday as rolled for 135 yards, the first 100-yard rushing game of his career, and scored one touchdown. He broke off a 55-yard run at the end of the second quarter, the longest run the Bears have had since 2016.
By funneling the offense through Montgomery, Trubisky and company were able to move the ball down the field more effectively than in previous weeks.
3. The Bears’ red zone offense needs a lot of work
Nagy made headlines this week when he said: “I know we need to run the ball. I’m not an idiot.” Turns out he’s right, at least when it occurs outside the red zone.
The Bears offense looked better for the most part against the Chargers, except in one glaring area: inside the 20-yard line. Out of five trips to the red zone, the Bears only came away with one touchdown.
Questionable calls and poor clock management doomed their chances to put the Chargers away early, and it came back to bite them in the second half. Overall, Nagy’s play calling improved from last week’s debacle against the Saints, but it needs to carry over to the red zone offense as well.
4. Roquan Smith has his swagger back
One of the bright spots in the Bears’ loss was the play of Smith. After dealing with personal issues over the last month, the inside linebacker has looked like a timid player on the field. Some have questioned whether he was truly over his issues.
But against the Chargers, Smith played with the fire and speed that made him a breakout candidate this year. He had five tackles on the day and was engaged all game, showing tons of emotion on each play. He even got into it with Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers after a huge stop.
The Bears can use more of that from their second-year linebacker as they attempt to salvage their season.
5. Mitchell Trubisky continues to baffle
If every drive was to decide the game, Trubisky may be the MVP of the NFL. The Bears quarterback continues to be inefficient and inconsistent, stringing together a decent first half, but then falling apart in the second with a costly interception, fumble and missed deep balls.
Yet, when the game is on the line, he’s able to deliver in clutch moments time and time again. It’s frustrating to see small flashes of what he can be in those moments, and then be disappointed more often than not during the rest of the game.
If Trubisky can somehow harness that potential and play a full 60 minutes, the story might be different. But after 32 starts the story remains the same, and the Bears should be looking for a new QB in 2020.
