FOXBORO — As eight-point underdogs with a restricted offense and younger, athletic quarterback, the Bears had two pathways to victory Monday evening.
Somehow, they took each.
Second-year quarterback Justin Fields broke the Patriots with key scrambles on third down, and working backs David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert pounded away at their smooth defensive entrance, serving to pile up 243 dashing yards in a runaway 33-14 win.
Fresh off shutdown performances in opposition to the Browns and Lions, the Pats protection regressed exhausting in primetime and allowed one of many league’s lowest-scoring offenses to out-work and out-coach them.
“We’ve got a pretty good team, but tonight we played like (expletive),” mentioned Patriots defensive lineman Davon Godchaux.
Thanks partly to his scrambles, which helped Chicago go 11-of-18 on third down, Fields led the Bears with 14 dashing makes an attempt and 82 yards. The Bears offense included way more designed quarterback runs than it had beforehand proven on tape, performs that showcased Fields’ expertise as a 6-foot-3, 225-pound runner with 4.4 velocity. That wrinkle, in live performance with others, like extra blitzing on protection, helped Chicago race to an early lead.
“It’s obviously a poor performance tonight. We were badly out-coached, out-played,” Bill Belichick mentioned.
Many of the Bears’ run designs had been just like what the Ravens executed throughout a double-digit win at Gillette Stadium in Week 3, when Lamar Jackson turned the primary quarterback to hurry for greater than 100 yards versus a Belichick-coached Patriots protection.
“Quarterback runs are killing us right now. Baltimore did it, Chicago did it tonight, and I’m sure other teams are looking at it and they’re going to want to do the same thing,” Godchaux mentioned. “So we’ve gotta repair this as a result of like I mentioned, no person’s going to really feel sorry for us. … Teams are nonetheless going to attempt to assault us, groups are going to attempt to embarrass us — you noticed they had been nonetheless making an attempt to attain the ball with a minute left within the sport — so groups are nonetheless making an attempt to attain the ball.
“Teams will try to put their foot on our neck and try to score the ball and try to embarrass us, and you saw the results of that tonight.”
While Fields commanded the Bears offense, the Patriots’ quarterback scenario drew loads of consideration on the alternative sideline. The Pats offense went scoreless within the second half behind Bailey Zappe, who changed Mac Jones after three collection. But, security Devin McCourty mentioned, whoever is enjoying quarterback received’t matter if the protection can’t plug the holes that even Chicago uncovered.
“I know for me, defensively, we gave up thirty-three points. I don’t think anybody on defense needs to worry about who the quarterback is going to be at all,” McCourty mentioned. “We need to worry about what we need to do and figure out how we’re going to get stops and play better. I think that needs to be the key for everybody on defense.”
Asked about how the Patriots broke down so badly in opposition to Fields, edge rusher Matt Judon referenced dashing lanes and third-down performs, however finally admitted the protection was at a loss.
“I think he was just keeping the chains moving. I think we kind of had no answers for him,” mentioned Judon, who had 2.5 sacks. “We have to look at the film and get that corrected.”
Godchaux, then again, had a extra concrete thought.
“They just wanted the game more,” he mentioned. “That’s just what it comes down to.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com