It’s been about sixty hours since the beatdown at Soldier Field occurred. Those sixty hours seem like a lifetime full of questions, doubts and annoyance. The texts from friends and fans of other teams identifying what’s wrong with the Bears after a smothering don’t exactly help the mood. But here we are, the Bears about to enter Week 8 at 3–3 for the second year in a row, and no identity to associate with the team.

When every phase of a team fails on Sunday, finger-pointing typically begins before the team reaches the locker room, media puts a coach on blast and coaches put the players under the spotlight. The Bears haven’t quite fallen that far at this point, but Matt Nagy’s press conferences in the aftermath of Sunday and ever since haven’t exactly inspired confidence in turning this ship around.

The reigning Coach of the Year proved his worth in 2018 in his rookie year. There’s a chance 2019 is a minor sophomore slump, but the major regression in the offense, his baby, is alarming to say the least. The aggression and forward-thinking phase that graced our screens on Sundays a year ago seemingly vanished into thin air, so where did it go?

Hitting the Ground Running

Nagy claims to have the answer: “I know we need to run the ball more. I’m not an idiot.” Personally, I love the blunt answer from Da Coach, but it’s something he’ll get eaten alive over by Chicago media. It’s a sign of weakness you can’t have when you’re trying to get back on track. After a tough loss to the Oakland Raiders in London before the bye week, Nagy said the team needed to commit to the running game.

The Bears attempted seven rushes this Sunday at Soldier Field. Tarik Cohen accounted for three rushes and totaled ten yards. His longest carry went for nine of those ten yards. David Montgomery contributed six yards on two touches and fumbled on one of those, too. Anthony Miller went for one carry, negative-one yard and, to add insult to injury, one lost fumble. Cordarrelle Patterson had the seventh designed run for the Bears. Seven designed runs, seventeen yards and two lost fumbles giving the Saints the ball inside the thirty-yard-line.

Nagy stopped trusting his backs early, and while that proved to be a large mistake, his backfield didn’t exactly pull their weight in revitalizing that part of the offense. Running east, west and south appears to be a bigger priority than running north with the correct back in the right situation.

Tarik Cohen is a weapon…that’s efficient and effective when he’s bouncing outside the tackles and getting space past the line. Forcing Cohen up the middle is counterintuitive considering he’s half the size of the linemen he’s lined up opposite. Don’t question his heart, nor his strength or ability: Question the situations in which he’s placed.

David Montgomery is shifty, which is more than okay with me. Use him in between the tackles and in the passing game. Cohen is a weapon, but a gadget. Montgomery’s the feature back based on size alone.

Mike Davis exists, too, or at least I think he does. Davis is probably the closest thing the Bears have to what Jordan Howard provided in 2016 & ’17: capable back getting enough for a first down when called upon. He’s not seeing the field and the Bears aren’t moving the chains as a result.

Swing (& Miss) Tackles

I’ve never been a big fan of Bobby Massie shoring up the right side of the pocket-protectors, but we’re six weeks in and he’s the lone bright spot a part of the line. Kyle Long struggled mightily before winding up on the IR for the third consecutive season. Cody Whitehair made the switch to left guard in the offseason and James Daniels shifted over to the center position. In the right guard void left by Long, Rashaad Coward likely awaits a benching for the likes of golden-domer and rookie Alex Bars. Although Trubisky was sacked on the play, Coward would’ve been penalized for an Illegal Man Downfield on a failed RPO.

Bars, promoted to the 53-man roster from the practice squad ahead of the Saints matchup, didn’t see the field on Sunday. Considering the line can’t open the necessary lanes to get the ground game churning, and the fact Mitchell Trubisky is facing consistent pressure and closing pockets at all times, the writing is on the wall for Bars to make a grand entrance to the starting lineup sooner than later.

That’s not the only change I feel is necessary pertaining to the line: switch Whitehair and Daniels to their 2018 positions. Whitehair struggled a few times with clean snaps to the QB last year, and while that particular issue hasn’t reared its head for Daniels, the issue of pass-blocking sits at the forefront. I’m not sure if it’s because there’s focus and emphasis on snapping the ball, or if it’s the shift in personnel lined up opposite of the center, but Daniels was a stud at the guard position in 2018.

As a unit, the Bears incurred 21 offensive line penalties all of last season. Through six games this year, Charles Leno Jr. has 8 and the unit as a whole has 11. Massie accounts for 0. Penalties aside, they’re simply not overpowering anybody in the fashion it seemed they could a year ago.

Do we have to talk about the quarterback position?

That brings us to the most painstakingly awful part of today’s discussion: Mitch Trubisky. Myth Trubisky, Mitch Tru-bust-ky, Worse than Cutler…whatever you call QB1, he’s still the best bet the Bears have at making the playoffs in 2019. Sitting at 3–3 leaves this team right in the hunt; some good fortune from the wild card or even the division. There’s a lot of football remaining on the schedule. December cholk-full of heavy opponents such as Green Bay in Lambeau, Minnesota in Minneapolis, and the Cowboys and Chiefs in Chicago doesn’t inspire a lot of hope, but we’re a ways away from then.

Unless Ryan Pace decides Andy Dalton, who threw three interceptions on six pass attempts in the fourth quarter on Sunday, Eli Manning, Marcus Mariota or some unknown backup is the answer to Chicago’s woes, Mitch Trubisky is QB1 through 2019 at the very least. We’ve all seen first-hand what a week of game-planning for Chase Daniel does to the magic of #4.

So what’s the fix? Open up the playbook expecting Trubisky starts throwing dimes downfield? Not exactly. But it’s not foolish to believe spreading the offense out a little bit more could help in the accuracy department. The Bears seemed to line up in a bunch formation more often than not in the first three quarters against the Saints. With Chase Daniel under center two weeks prior, the formations looked completely different, including pre-snap variations, defensive call-outs, and tremendous clock management. Why the big difference in look? Lack of confidence, preparation or intuition?

Trubisky is averaging 5.2 yards per pass attempt in 2019. In the first half of games, it’s closer to 4.4 y/a. In 2018, his game average was 7.4. Selected to the Pro Bowl a year ago (as a replacement for Jared Goff), the drop off in Trubisky’s success rate is frightening to any Bears fan. On 3rd & 10, he’s checking down for 4 yards or finding Trey Burton open two-yards short of the line to gain before bringing Pat O’Donnell out to boot it downfield. They’re not moving the chains. The aggression is lacking in a major way and the fix isn’t dumping the ball off to a check down, or a quick five-yard slant route from Allen Robinson.

That’s a correction Nagy and Trubisky must focus on together. Spreading the offense out, using the whole field to attack and finding the inevitable openings in the defenses in zone coverage. The offense is making other squads appear like the ’85 Bears’ dominating 46 that suffocated the quarterback and attacked the ball carrier.

Speaking of Defense…

Where the hell did Pagano’s boys go? Seemingly back to the destructive ways of 2018, the Bears D turned off “Share My Location” in London and we haven’t seen them since. Not turning the ball over, not stopping the run, allowing Derek Carr and Teddy Bridgewater to pick a part the secondary? It feels more like a nightmare than a reality. The value of Akiem Hicks and his absence from the stalwart defensive front is on display for the whole nation and it’s taking its toll in every way, shape and form.

Khalil Mack went 0–19 in pressures when lined up against Ryan Ramczyk this past Sunday. And when Khalil Mack isn’t getting much on the quarterback, it’s almost a certainty Leonard Floyd isn’t making much headway either. An ineffective front presence allowed for plenty of comfort and time in the pocket for Bridgewater. Corners and the secondary as a whole playing off their targets and linebackers trying to balance pressure and coverage allows for quick-hitters to Michael Thomas to open up those splash plays to Ted Ginn Jr. down the seem.

Without the ability to get to the quarterback, the defense loses it’s firepower and identity. Next week’s goal is sack Phil Rivers or die trying. That’s the best bet for a positive outcome at Soldier Field.

Punting Away the Game Early

It didn’t help the cause on Sunday that Pat O’Donnell had two punts blocked. That number was three for his entire career entering Sunday’s action. The early 2–0 deficit set a dangerous tone in the early stages on the eventual blow out.

Cordarrelle Patterson’s 102-yard kick return sparked enough energy for a defensive hold. Then it poured on. If not for an O’Donnell swat in the end zone to accept the safety and avoid the touchdown, or a holding penalty on a punt-return for a touchdown on the Saints that called the play back, that’s fourteen points instead of two allowed by Chris Tabor’s bunch.

It’s silly to assume those issues persist, however, in a game when nothing’s going your way, special teams failures hit you like a freight train.

Scheming for a Victory

There’s a different atmosphere surrounding this team right now. 2018 was full of optimism, and for good reason, too. Stepping out of the shadows of the John Fox era into the mind of a forward-thinking head coach in a changing landscape of the NFL was a big deal for the Bears. 2019 seems like a step toward the darkness the franchise was just able to overcome from the Fox-era. Telegraphed play calling, predictable routes: this playbook lacks the creativity that pushed them to 12–4 a year ago.

I think that’s where a lot of the frustration stems, too. It’s not like the offense lost a major playmaker on offense over the offseason. It’s the same group finding much worse results. When a player would go in motion pre-snap in 2018, our immediate thought was “ooh, what does Nagy have up his sleeve?!” In 2019, when seeing Cordarrelle Patterson or Anthony Miller in motion, it’s now “oh, another jet sweep?” There’s no trickery; not a lot of fun in the offense right now. It’s up to offensive-genius Matt Nagy to replace that confidence in the capable offense.

Ten Games Left, One Game at a Time

Los Angeles Chargers in town this weekend. Nagy’s not an idiot and knows what needs to happen on Sunday. Pressure Rivers, stop Melvin Gordon, establish a pocket for Trubisky, run wild, throw downfield when it’s available and win the damn ball game. Wishful thinking? We’ll see.