A buzz started to develop at the back of the Soldier Field press field because the Minnesota Vikings wrapped up their 29-13 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday. Some reporters ditched their chicken’s-eye views of Bears gamers exiting the sector after their tenth straight loss to huddle in entrance of a TV.
About 180 miles southeast of the Chicago lakefront, Lovie Smith was making his newest contribution to soccer in Illinois. His Houston Texans, with the No. 1 decide within the 2023 NFL draft inside their grasp in the event that they misplaced for a 14th time this season, had been refusing to concede to the Indianapolis Colts.
On fourth-and-20 within the remaining minute, with three Colts defenders closing in, Texans quarterback Davis Mills launched a 28-yard move that someway discovered tight finish Jordan Akins in the long run zone. Mills’ 2-point conversion throw additionally landed in Akins’ fingers.
And with it, the Texans pulled off a 32-31 victory, Bears followers acquired to finish one of many worst seasons in franchise historical past with a celebration and reporters scrambled to sort up what all of it means.
For the primary time since 1947 and simply the third time in franchise historical past, the Bears will personal the No. 1 draft decide on April 27.
The loss left the Bears at 3-14, in possession of the worst file within the NFL together with essentially the most losses ever by a Bears workforce. The Texans victory gave them a 3-13-1 file — with a earlier tie additionally to the Colts, the previous workforce of Bears coach Matt Eberflus. Smith advised reporters postgame that teaching his workforce to a win was all the time his aim.
“This is the option I had. You’re saying, ‘Hey, guys playing this last game, all that you’ve been working for all your life, you play to win. Forget that. Lose the game on purpose?’” stated Smith, who coached the Bears for 9 seasons and Illinois for 5 seasons.
“I think that would be a hard one to get by. They wouldn’t expect me to say that. I didn’t. Each week our game plan has been to win the game. And that’s what we followed through on today.”
The dueling video games to determine the highest decide, coupled with Bears quarterback Justin Fields sitting out due to a hip pressure, made for an odd expertise at Soldier Field.
Many Bears followers within the stadium cheered when backup quarterback Nathan Peterman hit Cole Kmet for an 11-yard landing move to chop the Vikings result in 23-13 within the third quarter, both not understanding in regards to the stakes or just unable to not cheer for a landing. But many on social media tensely adopted every rating change in each video games.
Afterward, Bears gamers and coaches nonetheless had been clearing their heads from one more loss, unable to share many ideas in regards to the decide and what this offseason may maintain for common supervisor Ryan Poles. Eberflus stated he didn’t have a response, noting he was anxious about exit interviews for his gamers Monday.
Bears rookies Jaquan Brisker and Braxton Jones stated they weren’t even conscious the workforce acquired the highest decide till speaking about it with reporters.
“Upper management, I’m sure they’re very stoked about that,” left deal with Jones stated. “But for me, I had no idea. I’m just out there trying to win the game, protect the quarterback, protect the runner.”
“It’s not like we’re going in, we want to lose, we’re going to get picks,” security Brisker stated. “It’s not that type of energy. We talk about winning every week, try to get better, try to prepare us for next year, try to lead us to a ‘W’ for next year. That was the first time I heard about that.”
There is, after all, no assure the No. 1 decide will give the Bears a franchise-altering participant or perhaps a higher choice than the No. 2 decide they’d have landed if the Texans had misplaced. The Bears’ different two No. 1 picks — halfbacks Tom Harmon in 1941 and Bob Fenimore in 1947 — mixed to play 10 video games for the franchise.
But in a season with a lot loss, the Bears entrance workplace walked away Sunday with a draft victory: the selection of how you can deal with the highest of the draft.
Eberflus stated he has “high confidence” that Poles, with extra draft capital and salary-cap house, can assist construct a workforce the coach can win extra video games with.
“The first thing of a personnel manager is the ability to pick players, and he can do that,” Eberflus stated. “The place where he came from (in Kansas City, and) he has shown that this year already. And we look at guys the same way. We like long, lean, fast, physical players. We’re excited about getting that going.”
Perhaps when core Bears gamers decompress, they’ll additionally have the ability to dream a few future that doesn’t embrace followers cheering for a loss within the remaining recreation.
“Whoever comes in, we’re going to change things around, so (he should) have his mentality right,” Brisker stated. “Whoever we get — hopefully it’s somebody great — it’s time to turn it around. We really don’t want to be on the side of having the No. 1 pick, but since we’re here, it’s that time to make the team better, get the organization better and change this thing around.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com