Bucs @ Bears, 9/30/18, 12 CT, GAME THREAD

[Ty21]

10 hours ago, JustAnotherFan said:

being undefeated.......how long has it been since that word and Bears were used in the same sentence.

I mean we started out 0-1 lol so probably still not the time to use it in the same sentence. 

[Madmike90]

Only got through the first half last night...Trubisky was the obvious high point but the OL was excellent against an expensively assembled DL...Whitehair's snapping looked solid...very impressed with the series that Daniels played at LG...thought Burton had an excellent half as a move blocker as well...Gabriel played really well and Trubisky seems to have adjusted to throwing between some of the 6-3" guys and Gabriel at 5-8"...looking forward to catching the 2nd half.

[Superman(DH23)]

35 minutes ago, Madmike90 said:

Only got through the first half last night...Trubisky was the obvious high point but the OL was excellent against an expensively assembled DL...Whitehair's snapping looked solid...very impressed with the series that Daniels played at LG...thought Burton had an excellent half as a move blocker as well...Gabriel played really well and Trubisky seems to have adjusted to throwing between some of the 6-3" guys and Gabriel at 5-8"...looking forward to catching the 2nd half.

Daniel's had a good game.  He had one play where he got caught leaning and didnt drop his hips and anchor, but for the most part that left side was a stone wall today.  KUDOS much deserved for the whole offensive line.  

[Sugashane]

17 hours ago, JustAnotherFan said:

Oh cmon now....you know Bears fans ALWAYS have something negative to say lol. 

True.

I find it weird Nagy often wears a visor when he is bald. 

[BEAR FACE DOWN ARROW]

22 minutes ago, Sugashane said:

True.

I find it weird Nagy often wears a visor when he is bald. 

If Kyle Long goes to fat when he retires he is going to look like a troll from under a bridge. I find him way more intimidating when he smiles btw. 

[HuskieBear]

3 hours ago, Superman(DH23) said:

Daniel's had a good game.  He had one play where he got caught leaning and didnt drop his hips and anchor, but for the most part that left side was a stone wall today.  KUDOS much deserved for the whole offensive line.  

He had a missed block on a screen that got blown up in the backfield for an incompletion too. other than that I thought he looked really good, especially when he was pulling and moving in space. had a good pull block for one of TC29's runs around the right side. 

[Superman(DH23)]

1 minute ago, HuskieBear said:

He had a missed block on a screen that got blown up in the backfield for an incompletion too. other than that I thought he looked really good, especially when he was pulling and moving in space. had a good pull block for one of TC29's runs around the right side. 

That pull on the stretch was just stupid. That's not a block that many guards can make.  That safety was 10 yards from the sideline on the LOS and Daniels got there before Cohen turned the corner.  That's ridiculous.  A WR or a flex TE has to make that block.  To get an OG out there....that's a yo.

[Sugashane]

14 minutes ago, RunningVaccs said:

If Kyle Long goes to fat when he retires he is going to look like a troll from under a bridge. I find him way more intimidating when he smiles btw. 

True. He is the perfect blend of Hagrid and Lord Voldemort. Definitely scary.

[beardown3231]

This me-making-game-threads thing is working out for the Bears.

[TankWilliams]

My only real disappointment with that game yesterday is that Floyd has not done much of anything as a pass rusher this year, in fact, he seems worse than in previous years.  As a pure pass rusher, I think Lynch has been playing at a higher level so far in his spot action, was really hoping the addition of Mack would open up Floyd to improve a lot playing across from him.

[beardown3231]

13 minutes ago, TankWilliams said:

My only real disappointment with that game yesterday is that Floyd has not done much of anything as a pass rusher this year, in fact, he seems worse than in previous years.  As a pure pass rusher, I think Lynch has been playing at a higher level so far in his spot action, was really hoping the addition of Mack would open up Floyd to improve a lot playing across from him.

Yesterday I tried to focus in on Floyd, and while I'd be lying if I said he's never rushing the passer, he is doing it sparingly now. They are dropping him into coverage quite a bit. The leaping deflection was a very impressive & athletic play.

[TankWilliams]

Just now, beardown3231 said:

Yesterday I tried to focus in on Floyd, and while I'd be lying if I said he's never rushing the passer, he is doing it sparingly now. They are dropping him into coverage quite a bit. The leaping deflection was a very impressive & athletic play.

You are correct that it is less so, and I had my attention divided by all the other parts of the defense yesterday so I will rewatch, but I do remember specifically watching him rush on a number of plays and falling flat. 

[WindyCity]

Thoughts and Observations: Week 4 Bucs

Offense

-Where to start this breakdown? This was what the Bears needed, Nagy needed, Trubisky needed, and fans needed. They needed a sign that this thing could work and what they got was a explosion and beat down of the Bucs and an offensive explosion that most of us have never seen. This won't be what it always looks like all the time, but if they can consistently be 75% of that the Bears are a playoff team.

-Mitch needed this game. Mitch needed some affirmation and reward for his hard work and something he could build off of. It is like he exercised most of his demons in one day. Struggling with staying in the pocket, he looked confident and had nice footwork. Struggling with deeper passes, he completed 8 over 20 yards and 6 over 30 yards and was dropping them in. This was Mitch beating up on a bad defense, but he needed it.  Everyone wanted to see the flash game and they got it.

-I thought the play calling was exceptional and the best part about it was that Mitch was not missing them. The wheel routes abusing the Bucs Pro Bowl LBs, the perfectly timed screens, the always getting Gabriel deep from the slot, the misdirection, it was all what modern offense looked like. I have begged for years to have a play calling advantage in our coach and that is what it looks like when you play caller depantses the opposing coach.

-Jordan Howard was not highly involved, which killed my fantasy team, but was more of a creation of Nagy finding a mismatch with Cohen and the passing game and mercilessly pounding the Bucs with it.

-For the first 3 weeks I think that people wondered if Cohen was being used in the right ways, this game seemed to be the perfect usage. I think 13 carries is a bit more than we want long term, but he was having success on the ground and a bunch of those came killing the clock before the field goal at the end of the half.

-One of the staples of the Chiefs offense is that they go vertical from the slot. Albert Wilson, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill, all did this under Matt Nagy. This forces teams to cover vertical routes with a S, LB or NB, unless they want to disrupt their defense and move a top CB inside. Gabriel again was causing issues for teams with the vertical routes from the slot. We have seen Mitch miss him against Seattle and Arizona, but he hit him today. This is such a difficult concept to cover.

-Trey Burton on the vertical was a really nice play and showed the physicality mismatch and then Mitch did a nice job of finding him uncovered and with a ton of room to run. It is such a critical position to the offense and seeing the big plays was a nice start.

-The throw to Allen Robinson was a dime.

-I have been one that has written off and given up on Kevin White and he is never going to be a top 3 WR for this team, but his blocking was exceptional yesterday, his effort was exceptional and he had key blocks on a number of big passing plays. Good for Kevin contributing even if he is not catching passes.

-Dion Sims is still useless.

-Charles Leno continues his strong play at LT. The sack was really Bobbie Massie's quick pressure forcing Mitch into JPP. The rest of the game we did not hear from JPP unless he was making tackles down field. Leno has been another shrewd early re-signing from Pace because he is playing better than a 9 million dollar OT.

-Seeing James Daniels was nice. I thought he had some really nice blocks and the fact that they are starting the transition from Kush to Daniels should only make the offense better. There was one play where Daniels pulled right and sealed the edge with a beautiful athletic pull and you saw what could happen in the outside run game and screen game with him in the game.

-Bobbie Massie gets beat, but he usually does to the outside and it usually is not quick pressure, which QBs can work around.

[WindyCity]

-Khalil Mack has changed not only how fans and media think about this team, but it has changed how they think about themselves. I said when the trade was made that it would show the locker room a massive amount of faith from the front office in terms of what they could be and it seems to have had that trickle down effect. Mack is incredible and it is creating sacks, TFLs, and interceptions for other players. All of a sudden those players are walking a couple inches taller, playing a little more aggressive, and making big plays.

-Akiem Hicks 1 on 1 vs a RG is probably one of the most unfair matchups in the NFL right now. His ejection was stupid, but what can you do we know he runs a little hot.

-Bilal Nichols appears to be another day 3 draft steal for Pace who is doing it every year right now. He comes off a huge 3rd down-game saving run stop against the Cardinals and then comes in and goes sack, huge TFL against the Bucs. is power and explosion are perfect for this system and the contributions he is giving are awesome.

-RRH continues to show up and prove that he is more than most OGs can handle in 1 on 1 pass blocking situations. Huge UDFA find for Pace.


-Bullard and Goldman were solid against the run.


-Aaron Lynch is like finding a 20 in the couch cushions. I had written him off in camp when he could not get on the field. I didn't think he would bring much to the team and against GB he seemed to confirm that with a pretty lame effort. In the last 3 weeks he has 2 sacks and an interception and seems to ahve cemented himself as the 3rd OLB. The Bears went from having 0 OLBs you can rely on, to having 3 play at a high level.

-Leonard Floyd is not getting on the sack sheet, but he is doing a lot of things well. He has played the run exceptionally well. He has been good in pass coverage and at times has had nice rushes. I think with health he will start to produce the sack numbers we are expecting. It is also difficult to sack the QB when Mack and Hicks are already there.

-People will talk about the quiet start for Roquan or a lack of splash plays, but he is doing exactly what he is suppose to do. He tracks down run plays and he is elite in coverage. A huge reason that the Bears have been so dynamic on defense is that their ILBs can take away underneath throws and force the QB to hold the ball and take more risks.

-Trevathan with another strong game and continues to be in place to make plays.

-Eddie Jackson might be a star. He should have 3 interceptions this season and he continues to lurk at FS and just attack the ball in the air. Another huge day 3 pick for Pace.

-Amos is solid and unspectacular. My guess is his next contract will not reflect that and I do not think it will be with the Bears. Good player, but I think the guy next to him will be great.

-Bryce Callahan should be approached about a contract extension. His play in the slot is very under rated.

-Kyle Fuller with another strong game.

-Kevin Tolliver to me was a pleasant surprise. We knew the Bucs would target him and I thought he held up really well. The deep Jackson pass was a really nice play and he peaked in the backfield a little, but other than that I thought he was there to contest throws and was physical in tackling and punishing dudes for catching the ball. Good start for him.

-I think one of the truly under rated things about Pace is his ability to find contributing players as UDFAs, and not just guys who play a year or 2 [Timu, Anderson, HJQ], I mean guys who are legit players and 2nd contract guys.

Year 1: Meredith, Callahan
Year 2: RRH
Year 3: Coward
Year 4: Tolliver?

[Sugashane]

18 minutes ago, beardown3231 said:

Yesterday I tried to focus in on Floyd, and while I'd be lying if I said he's never rushing the passer, he is doing it sparingly now. They are dropping him into coverage quite a bit. The leaping deflection was a very impressive & athletic play.

I very well might be wrong, but with Mack being here it seems Floyd has taken more of a SAM role in the defense. Not in the same position since he isn't over the TE, but in responsibility.