As the Chicago Bears took a 7-0 lead into the second quarter over the injury-depleted Green Bay Packers, it looked as if a hard-fought defensive upset could be on the horizon. It wasn't meant to be, however, as Green Bay stormed back to pitch a 17-0 shutout over the next two quarters, and would cruise on to win the game by a final score of 24-14.
The loss moves the Bears down to 3-3, which now ties them with the Minnesota Vikings for second in the NFC North, each behind the Packers by two games. Perhaps more importantly, though, is that Justin Fields is now 2-2 as a starter, a promising development for a rookie QB who figured to take some time to adjust to pro level competition. He will only get better as the season wears on, which is a great sign for Bears fans.
On the other hand, it was disappointing for Chicago to only score 14 points against a Packers defense that was without 5 of its starters due to injuries. Should Bears fans walk away with optimism for the coming weeks, or the fear that this anemic offense will continue its ways? Here are 3 key takeaways from their Week 6 loss.
3. The Bears run game is a force to be reckoned with
Even without top two backs David Montgomery and Damien Williams, the Bears were able to run for 140 yards on only 25 carries, good for a stellar 5.6 yards per carry. Throw in the fact that they had a negative game script for the majority of the second half, and this could've easily been a 200 yard day on the ground had they cashed in for points on more drives early on and had more than one capable back in the backfield. Khalil Herbert showed great burst and looked like a very solid lead running back, despite this being his first ever NFL start. Chicago has ran the ball with efficiency and effectiveness to start the year, which will be crucial for them as cold winter games approach loom later in the season.
2. Vaunted Chicago pass rush is back
The Bears racked up 3 sacks on Aaron Rodgers – a modest total. However, it's more promising to see who those three sacks came from. Robert Quinn, Khalil Mack, and Akiem Hicks all got home against one of the league's best, which is great because those are the lynchpins for this Bears defense, and they need to produce in order for Chicago to be successful. If they can all keep up their success as the season wears on and the Chicago offense finds its rhythm, this will be a great team on both sides of the ball.
1. This will be a great team when Fields hits his stride
With a four game stretch that saw dominant offenses like the Browns, Raiders, and Packers, it's promising that Fields was able to lead the Bears to 2 wins out of his 4 starts. This speaks more to the prowess of the Bears defense, however, as they've held opponents to only 18.3 points per game, while the Bears offense has only put up 16 per game over that stretch. If Fields can get Chicago to even the low 20s in terms of points per game, this team will be winning a lot of ballgames. Chicago has a bright future.
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