Sometimes 3-2 Smells Like Poo
Sometimes 3-2 Smells Like Poo
We Need Another Revolution
October 9, 2019
The London Letdown
Raiders 24, Bears 21
The Chicago Bears flew to London and man, were their arms tired.
So were their legs and heads and helmets, apparently, because the Bears played so poorly in the first half against the Oakland Raiders that they just could not recover no matter how well they played after halftime and no matter what the Raiders did try to give this game away.
Some people think the fact that the Bears flew into London just a few days before this game whereas the Raiders had been there for a week is the reason Chicago looked so sluggish. And we’re among those people.
Have you ever flown eight hours and then landed in a place with a six-hour time difference? Yeah, you don’t feel too good. By the second day your body is supposed to adjust but the Monsters of the Meridian did not because our kids got steamrolled by the Raiders, slapped and shamed en route to a 17-0 halftime deficit that felt more like 70-0.
No, it actually felt more like Dunkirk. (The movie and the battle.)
But thanks to several Raider errors and some defensive punch-drunk toughness and the pluck of Bears quarterback Chase Daniel and the sheer talent, gutsiness and star power of receiver Allen Robinson, the Bears blasted back in the third quarter and, quicker than Benny Hill used to get whacked on the head by some lady he was leering at, Chicago was leading 21-17 going into the fourth quarter.
And there was much rejoicing by the London fans who, by measure of our ears through the TV screen and comments from the TV and radio announcers, seemed to be heavily in favor of the Bears.
But a boneheaded play here – dropping a pass – a blunder there – running into the punter when you have a fourth quarter lead and your previous punt return went 70 yards, a brainfart everywhere – taunting after a touchdown, running the wrong route, throwing the ball where only guys with other jerseys were hanging out, that kind of stuff and, seemingly just as quickly, the Raiders marched into the lead again, this time for good.
Raiders 24, Bears 21.
The Bears looked tired. Maybe it wasn’t because of jetlag. Maybe it was because, as some professional observers are still observing, a third of the way into the season they still aren’t in shape having not played any of their starters in the preseason.
No, we won’t give up on that.
Maybe the Bears just weren’t prepared. Of course, when you’re tired and/or out of shape you look unprepared. Or maybe when you’re not coached up you look tired.
The Bears cannot run the football. They squeaked a mere 42 yards on the ground. Meanwhile, the Raiders gouged the gassed Bears defense to the tune of 169 yards with the ground game, 123 from bulldozing rookie Josh Jacobs.
The vaunted Bears defense did not look so vaunted in this one, that’s the fact. But as we all learned on our first day of football school, a defense’s best friend is an offense that can chew up the clock and the running game has the best teeth for that.
The Bears need to shuffle their offensive line to get a group that can start making holes for David Montgomery. They also need to get rid of David Montgomery and bring back Jordan Howard. Ouch! They can’t do that, can they?
So the Bears appear to be the victims of bad coaching, a bad trade and lost luggage, which is why their record is so bad.
Oh, we forgot. They’re actually 3-2. It would have been so nice and so inspiring and commanding to go into the bye week at
4-1, but nope.
Still, these Monsters continue to fascinate. In 22 games that count under Matt Nagy (because believe us, those preseason games don’t count, do they sister?) The Bears are 15-7 and have never lost a game by more than seven points. So maybe these guys are actually damn well coached and talented and it’s just one of those things that they’ve dropped a few games.
Is that what we believe? What do we think as we enter a week off and then the mighty New Orleans Saints come marching into Soldier Field?
We sharpen our cleats. And say our prayers. --TK
Wednesday, October 9, 2019