1-0, Don’t You Know
1-0, Don’t You Know
Bad Catch, Good Finish
September 17, 2020
Bears 27, Lions 23
D’Andre Swift will remember it for the rest of his life, no matter how satisfying and wonderful a life it may be.
Mr. Swift, a rookie running back for the Detroit Lions, caught a pass from Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford in the final moments in Detroit on Sunday to score the winning touchdown as the NFL kicked off its 101st season of play and first campaign of COVID-19.
Except, though, Swift dropped it. The Lions had one more chance after that but the Bears stopped them and it was Chicago that came away with a stunning 27-23 comeback victory.
Let’s be fair. Many have characterized Swift’s not-catch as an “easy catch” but it’s not a catch that you or I could have made. But that’s why I’m sitting here typing in my bathtub and you’re reading this because the page froze.
He should have caught it, sure. And the Lions blew the game, sure, by farting away a 23-6 lead in the fourth quarter. But let’s give credit—and this is the fun part—to the Bears who did not roll over and crap the bed after getting kicked all over Ford Field for 45 minutes.
The Bears well-respected defense was not good, giving up 93 yards on the ground to Lions running back Adrian Peterson who just recently joined Detroit after failing to qualify for his AARP card.
And the Bears never-respected offense was equally unimpressive.
But, just like a dollar ain’t a dollar without four quarters, a football game isn’t over until the fat lady eats all her beans.
That’s what people say, right?
Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky, after spending the first three quarters looking like Mitch Trubisky, suddenly turned into Patrick Mahomes, or maybe Anthony Fauci, and guided the Monsters of Momentum Swing to three fourth quarter scores. It was not expected, to say it mildly.
We joke about Mitch Trubisky because we care. Here’s the deal with him: when he has all day to think about football he’s not so great. But when the game is on the line and he just has to be athletic, tough, and gutsy, #10 gets it done. He has done this before and we think he might be able to do it again.
Just sling it, dude. And who cares what the world thinks.
And also in Trubisky’s defense, his teammates didn’t help him out too much, dropping a bunch of passes. Had they caught a few of those, maybe Swift’s doink never would have been possible.
Overall, the play in the first week of the NFL season looked solid which surprises some of us who thought that having no preseason and virtually a virtual training camp would have left teams stumbling and bumbling out of the gate. The Bears and Lions did that and, sadly for them, now they have to play other teams.
But the good thing is, for the first time since 2013 the Bears are 1-0. Sometimes you earn a victory, sometimes it drops into your lap. It’s what you do with it that counts. --TK
Thursday, September 17, 2020