The Chicago Bears appear to have finally figured out their offense over the past few weeks. They have let Justin Fields loose under center, and the results have been wildly encouraging. That hasn't kept the Bears out of the loss column, though, as they came up short in another hard fought contest in Week 10 against the Detroit Lions.
The Bears controlled the proceedings for most of this game, but ended up coughing up a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter that allowed Detroit to eventually win this game. Again, Fields had a spectacular outing, but it wasn't enough to lead Chicago to a much needed victory, and their record now slips to 3-7 on the season.
While Fields was great in Chicago's loss, the same cannot be said for everyone else on the Bears team, and there are a few players whose poor outings directly contributed to the Bears latest loss. Let's take a look at three of those players and see why their failure to show up for Chicago contributed to their Week 10 loss.
3. Chase Claypool
The Bears big trade deadline acquisition in Chase Claypool once again failed to make any sort of impact on this game, and while the offense ultimately wasn't any worse off because of it considering they scored 30 points, it's clear he needs to do more moving forward. Claypool finished this game with just one catch on two targets for eight yards, which simply isn't good enough.
Considering how the Bears traded a second-round pick for Claypool, which may end up being one of the top picks in the second-round, the team's usage of Claypool is confusing. This was the second straight week where Claypool played less than 40 percent of Chicago's offensive snaps, so while it's not totally his fault he's making no impact, he's not exactly giving his new team a reason to play him.
Claypool is a dynamic player when he gets the ball in his hands, but he hasn't really had much of a chance to make an impact so far. While some of that is not his fault, Claypool is going to have to find a way to make his mark on Chicago's offense, otherwise their deadline day deal for the talented wideout will end up going down as a major bust.
2. Jaylon Johnson
Jaylon Johnson has taken on the role of Chicago's top cornerback, and while he's done a good job for most of the season, he struggled mightily in Week 10. Johnson drew the matchup of Lions star wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown, and while St. Brown had been on a bit of a cold stretch recently, he had quite a return to form in this one, primarily at Johnson's expense.
St. Brown paced the Lions offense with 10 catches for 119 yards, and helped keep Detroit's banged up offense moving up and down the field throughout this one. Johnson was the primary culprit for St. Brown's big day, and he ended up finishing the game with four tackles while failing to do anything to slow down St. Brown.
Johnson had been dealing with an oblique injury in the buildup to this game, so he may not have been 100 percent healthy, but it still wasn't a great performance from a Bears defense that was certainly hoping to limit the Lions offense. Johnson's ascent into the Bears top corner hasn't come without its bumps in the road, and it looks like he hit another bump in Week 10 against St. Brown.
1. Cairo Santos
It's tough to be the player most responsible for a loss as a kicker, especially when you hit your only field goal attempt of the day. But Cairo Santos still found a way to earn the top spot on this list because he only managed to hit three of his four extra point attempts. In a game the Bears lost 31-30, that missed extra point lost his team the game.
Immediately after Fields threw a pick-six to Jeff Okudah that allowed the Lions to tie the game, Fields broke loose for a 67-yard touchdown run that gave Chicago a 30-24 lead. Santos missed the extra point, though, and the Lions would end up conducting a 91-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth to score a touchdown and the game-winning extra point.
This isn't solely Santos' fault considering the offense got the ball back with over two minutes left in the game after Detroit scored, but the game would have almost certainly gone to overtime had Santos made this extra point. It seemed miniscule at the time, but Santos cost his team a chance to win this game, and that earns him the top spot on this list.
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