As the Chicago Bears tied a bow on their Christmas reward to the town — Sunday’s 27-16 victory over the Arizona Cardinals — they added a splash of beneficial perspective. Yes, Chicago, there may be significant progress being made.
Believe it or not, this was the Bears’ fourth consecutive victory at Soldier Field. That’s a pleasant contact on a season propelling the workforce upward within the NFL hierarchy.
That Sunday’s win got here per week after a dispiriting defeat to the Cleveland Browns was additionally the most recent testomony to this group’s unity and psychological toughness.
“This is just about being resilient,” coach Matt Eberflus stated. “There was an attention to detail on some things that we have to do better. And you have to do that in the fourth quarter. You have to bring it to the guys’ attention and the coaches’ attention and keep doing a better job.”
Added defensive sort out Justin Jones: “This team is growing, man. We really are.”
Sunday’s introduced attendance was 59,978 on what felt like a mid-October day beside Lake Michigan. And those that selected to spend their Christmas Eve afternoon inside Soldier Field have been handled to a Bears victory during which they by no means trailed and led for the ultimate 51:16.
Justin Fields’ 3-yard landing scramble began the scoring within the first quarter, ending a drive that was jump-started by the quarterback’s extended-play 53-yard bomb to tight finish Cole Kmet.
On the transfer, Fields purchased time, spied Kmet in one-on-one protection in opposition to 5-foot-11, 190-pound security Jalen Thompson and launched.
“The DB was just panicking back there,” Fields stated. “He hadn’t even looked back at me. So I just threw it up, gave Cole a shot and he came down with it. I fully trust Cole. He’s a great player. That was a pretty easy decision for me.”
That was a pleasant begin to a optimistic day.
The Bears’ lead grew as huge as 21 factors within the second quarter when Fields threw a 1-yard TD move to Marcedes Lewis. That rating got here with the Bears quarterback faking a handoff to Roschon Johnson after which an end-around to Darnell Mooney.
Lewis had slightly problem along with his launch in opposition to linebacker Jesse Luketa and Fields was flushed out of the pocket. But the specter of a Fields scramble lured Luketa up and Lewis, who teammates know as “Big Dog,” was on their lonesome behind the “O” within the north finish zone.
“Boom,” Fields stated. “Just threw it to him. I’m glad we could get ‘Big Dog’ a touchdown today.”
Added Lewis: “All I did was just play football. I went where (Luketa) wasn’t.”
For the veteran tight finish, who’s in his 18th season and quick closing in on his fortieth birthday, that was his fortieth profession landing catch.
“The guys were excited about that,” Eberflus stated. “They all started barking when he scored. Because he is the ‘Big Dog.’ In many ways. He’s a big human. And he’s a great leader too. The guys love him for who he is.”
The Cardinals, with a leaky protection and much an excessive amount of sloppiness, gave the Bears slightly glimpse into the place they as soon as have been, within the NFL’s backside tier and dealing by means of an abundance of battle and frustration. So maybe, as a lot as something, that’s what Sunday’s victory signified, a present of progress of the place the Bears have climbed from this season.
But there may be nonetheless, clearly, a protracted technique to go. And Bears basic supervisor Ryan Poles appears totally conscious of that actuality. On the workforce’s official pregame present Sunday on WMVP AM-1000, Poles lamented the Week 15 collapse in Cleveland with the Bears blowing a 10-point fourth-quarter lead in that brutal street loss.
While saying he was inspired by some particular person performances in that loss in addition to his protection’s continued capacity to take the ball away, Poles nonetheless desires extra as he pushes the Bears towards championship competition. “There’s still a lot of room to grow and improve as a football team,” Poles stated. “I’ve said it I feel like for two years now. The ability to finish and put games away is critical. We have got to get to that point.”
Two weeks from now, Poles will discover himself strolling right into a pressure-filled offseason that will even be full of alternative. His big-picture analysis of the workforce would require him to make huge choices on what the long run holds for Eberflus in addition to Fields. Creating course is a should.
“(We’ll) look at everything in its totality,” Poles stated. “Because oftentimes we’re all emotional during the season. We ride the roller coaster where everything is perfect after a win and everything is awful after a loss. So a lot of times you have to come down and be levelheaded in the way you evaluate the season and individuals. And that’s going to help guide us to making good decisions to make this roster into a championship-caliber roster.”
Poles is aware of he can have a season’s price of snapshots from the curler coaster to review intently and interpret.
“It’s important to go back and look at those tough losses and those close games and see what you need to improve,” he stated. “If it’s from a schematic standpoint, if it’s from a player standpoint, that’s going to be the important piece. When I take a peek back a year, to 2022, you can kind of see the improvements from how many of those tough losses we’ve had. So we’re starting to close the gap. We just have to do it at a higher rate.”
On Sunday, the Bears once more acquired a sound efficiency from their protection and matched that with a gritty dashing assault that chewed up a season-high 250 yards. Running again Khalil Herbert turned 20 carries into 112 yards, together with a nifty 11-yard landing run early within the second quarter. Fields added 97 dashing yards to his 170-yard passing day.
Kmet, in the meantime, contributed 4 catches and 107 yards earlier than leaving the sport late within the first half with a knee concern.
Again, Sunday’s win wasn’t almost as resounding as some might need preferred in opposition to a struggling opponent. The Bears offense sputtered for a protracted stretch of the second and third quarters and the Cardinals clawed inside eight factors when Kyler Murray beat a blitz with a 38-yard landing move to Greg Dortch with 6:37 remaining.
But Eberflus didn’t fear that any form of “Here we go again” feeling would torpedo his workforce.
“It’s attention to detail on your job,” Eberflus stated. “And believing in yourself and believing in the guy next to you. Then just take it one play at a time. That’s big-time coach-speak. But that’s what gets it done.”
Indeed, in opposition to an inferior opponent, the Bears completed the job. And they headed to rejoice Christmas with optimistic emotions concerning the enhancements they’re making.
“We obviously let a couple wins slip out of our hands this year,” Jones stated. “But honestly, bro, if we can start to get a few of these things to bounce our way, we can be a serious contender. That’s my opinion.”
Jones emphasised how the tight bond of this workforce has been the gas for his or her enchancment this season.
“It’s how much time guys are spending together outside of the facility,” he stated. “That’s huge. It’s the camaraderie you’re building when you’re going to watch ‘Thursday Night Football’ together, when you’re going to each other’s houses to eat. That’s what makes a group special.”
Little by little, the enhancements are coming. Progress is going on.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com