The Chicago Bears will be playing a primetime game for the second week in a row. This time they hope to walk away with the win after dropping the Week 6 contest to the Washington Commanders, marking a three-game skid for the Bears.
This week, they'll be on the road against Bill Belichick's New England Patriots, a matchup that is usually disastrous for young quarterbacks like Justin Fields. Belichick has eight Super Bowl Rings, has led some of the most dominant defenses of all time, and knows how to make things difficult for an offense.
If the Bears want to get back in the win column this week, there are three keys they need to focus on.
Multiple Takeaways
A short field is a young quarterback's best friend. It takes off some pressure and lets him play a little looser, knowing he only needs thirty yards to put points on the board. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Patriots on Monday, be it Mac Jones or Bailey Zappee, won't be someone who will strike fear in many defenses. The Bears' defense must take advantage of this favorable matchup and keep the scoring to a minimum. An Eddie Jackson interception and a Trevis Gipson strip sack could be the difference between winning and losing.
Red Zone Efficiency
Against the Commanders, the Bears had three drives reach the five-yard line, and none resulted in points. One was a freak interception when the ball was deflected at the line, but the other two were inexcusable errors in execution. On 4th and goal at the one-yard line early in the game, the offensive line crumpled and did not give running back Khalil Herbert a chance to punch it in. On the Bears' final drive, when they needed a touchdown to win, Justin Fields threw not one but two perfect passes that his receivers failed to corral.
That kind of inefficiency cannot happen again. If they can move the ball down the field on Monday as well as they did against the Commanders, then the Bears must come away with touchdowns. There's just no excuse otherwise.
Protect the Quarterback
Last week was a low point for the offensive line regarding pass protection. Watching the game live, it seemed like Fields was under constant duress on every snap. The few times when the protection held up, he generally made big plays happen.
Fields is a highly talented quarterback. He's a major threat every time he touches the ball, whether by running or hurling a dart sixty yards downfield. But he can't work that kind of magic if he's not protected. At this point, beyond the X's and O's of football, I should hope it's a matter of personal pride for these linemen. On primetime and in front of their fans, they utterly failed their quarterback and embarrassed themselves. One hopes they took that personally and will use it as fuel for a get-right performance.
Take the ball away, protect the quarterback, and score touchdowns when it's goal-to-go. If the Bears can do that, then this should be a win for them and an impressive one, too. But that's asking a lot when going up against the greatest head coach of all-time. I hope the Bears prove me wrong this week, but I'm predicting another loss resulting from one or two blown plays. Patriots win, 20-14.