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A Bad Matchup: Bears Travel North to Face Current Class of NFC North

| November 17th, 2023


Why Do I Like the Chicago Bears this Week?

I.

Always.

Like.

THE.

Chicago.

Bears.


New Thinking on Quarterbacks/Defense

How many great quarterbacks are there currently in the NFL? How do we even define a great quarterback anymore? What if we reframed the question as…how many teams are currently not looking to upgrade the quarterback position? I’ll be conservative: Mahomes, Herbert, Russ (he does look pretty good) Lamar, Burrow, Deshaun (they have no choice), Tua, Rodgers (he’s old but he counts), Allen, Lawrence (I think), Stroud, Hurts, Dak (right?), Goff, Cousins (leave him there), Purdy (I know, I know), Kyler (maybe?). Some of those guys are elderly. Some of those guys are on the bubble. But even at my most conservative, only half the league has the QB position close to sorted.

How many great defenses are there currently in the NFL? Only nine units currently allow less than 20 points per game. But after watching the Browns and Ravens play a shootout and seeing the Saints get torched by Josh Dobbs, I would question whether there is a defensive group in the league capable of manhandling a decent opponent. The great defenses (a) bully bad offenses and (b) keep you in games with the good ones.

Is there a conclusion to be reached?

For me, the NFL has come down to a six-point lead with 1:41 on the clock. And two questions beg to be asked.

Do you have a quarterback that can put the ball in the end zone?

Do you have a defense that can keep the opponent out of the end zone?

If you can answer YES to those questions, you have a team that is likely to win double-digit games and make the tournament. Trying to find the next Peyton Manning/Tom Brady, or build the next ’85 Bears, seems a fool’s errand. Constructing a roster with the league’s financial impositions is too difficult. Find the right answers to those questions and become competitive on a weekly basis.


Dick Butkus Video of the Week

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Week Eleven: Bears at Rams Game Preview

| November 14th, 2019

L.A. Story (1991) – My favorite L.A. film


Why Do I Like the Chicago Bears This Week?

I always like the Chicago Bears.

And I have nothing else to do on Sunday night. Do you?


Rama Lama Ding Dong (Rams Facts)

  • The Rams offense is broken. Literally. Center Brian Allen is out for the year. Right tackle Rob Havenstein is out multiple weeks. Brandin Cooks is still not recovered from brain injury and should really be put on the shelf for the duration of 2019, if not longer. They won’t have time to protect the quarterback. They won’t have a threat deep down the field. This is a run the ball/short passing offense now. (And it’s struggling in those two departments as well.)
  • Very few times this season will the Bears not have a significant disadvantage at the quarterback position. This is one of those weeks because statistically (and visually) Jared Goff just isn’t playing very well. But at least Sean McVay will still be utilizing the entirety of his playbook. Matt Nagy will not.
  • These two defenses are basically the same. They:
    • Pressure the quarterback at almost identical rates (26-25 Rams in the sack count)
    • Hold opposing QBs to sub-90 rating.
    • Yield roughly identical numbers in yards per game, yards per completion and completion percentage.
    • Defend the run game at clips of (a) Rams – 3.3/90.8 and (b) Bears – 3.7/94.

Tweet of the Week (from last week)

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