What a difference one week makes.
In Week 3, the Chicago Bears managed to win ugly over the Houston Texans. In Sunday's Week 4 game against the New York Giants, they lost ugly.
That said, I feel better about this loss than I did about last week's win. Here are the players who earned a game ball for the Chicago Bears who, despite a losing effort, provided some reasons for hope.
Justin Fields
Last week, in his own words, quarterback Justin Fields played like trash. His performance this week, though it didn't stuff the stat sheet, was a welcome bounce back.
Fields threw for 174 yards on 11 completions, including a gorgeous 56-yard bomb to wide receiver Darnell Mooney, no touchdowns, no turnovers, and 57 yards on the ground. Underwhelming stats, yes, but his box score is also absent of any critical mistakes. He was accurate, poised, and made mostly good decisions.
Unfortunately, his offensive line rarely gave him time to throw, and his receivers made some critical drops late in the game, which caused several drives to stall in the red zone.
As many of us said this offseason, the development of Justin Fields is more important than the win-loss record this year. Sunday's performance was a nice return to normalcy after many fans and pundits smashed the panic button last week. Hopefully, next week against the Vikings, we can see Fields get back into the touchdown column as this offense continues to search for a groove.
Darnell Mooney
After missing in action for three weeks, Darnell Mooney finally had an impactful game, registering 94 yards on 4 receptions. He could have had a touchdown late in the game when he found an open spot in the Giants' zone defense, but Fields did not get him the ball. I'm not sure where Fields' eyes were, but he tucked the ball as the pocket began to collapse and ran for 12 yards, picking up a key first down.
If he'd thrown Mooney the ball, it almost certainly would have resulted in a touchdown, and it would've flipped a very good day into a great one for Mooney.
As it is, though, I'll settle on calling this a nice game for the young wide receiver. It's up to him now to keep this up, to continue getting open for Fields and making those tough catches. If he wants to be a top wide receiver, he must keep playing like one.
Michael Badgley
Who? That newly signed Bears kicker was responsible for all twelve points on Sunday. Badgley filled in for Cairo Santos, who missed the game due to personal reasons, and connected on all four of his field goal attempts. Badgley's roster status depends on Santos' return, and if he doesn't make it to Week 5 as a Bear, here's to a great effort!
Eddie Jackson
This is starting to feel like a weekly thing, isn't it? Jackson again pulled in an interception, his third of the year and his fourth total takeaway.
When the Bears drafted safety Jaquan Brisker, I had high hopes for Jackson. I believed that with a true strong safety to play in the box, Jackson could get back to doing what he does best: taking the ball away. Through four games this season, he has delivered.
After a two-year hiatus from ball-hawking, Jackson is back to his 2018 form, and Bears fans should be thrilled. He's an impact player and arguably the best player on this defense right now.