The Chicago Bears (3-7) head to Justin Fields’s homestate of Georgia to take on Marcus Mariota and the Atlanta Falcons (4-6). The Bears are coming off a disappointing 31-30 loss to the Lions Sunday while the Falcons look to bounce back from a 25-15 loss against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football. The Bears will look to see progression out of Justin Fields and Jack Sanborn. With Khalil Herbert headed to the Injured Reserve List (IR), David Montgomery will have to carry the team on his back again. Former Bear Cordarelle Patterson will look to score on his former team.
Justin Fields
All Bears fans will have their sight set on their TV screens when Justin Fields and the offense take the Field. Fields, who is playing some of the best football of his career right now, will look to make the Falcons regret passing him up in the 2021 NFL Draft. Over the past 4 games, Fields has put up 13 touchdowns (8 passing and 5 rushing), and also ranks 6th among season leaders in rushing yards with 749 yards.He’s the only quarterback in the mix. Breaking records, the Lamar-Jackson like quarterback has definitely progressed into the quarterback Bears fans have hoped for. Be on the lookout for another competitive performance from QB1 as he looks to halt the Bears’ 3-game losing streak.
Trestan Ebner
The NFL’s best rushing attack took a hit when second year running back Khalil Herbert was designated a minimum of 4 weeks to the IR with a hip injury. David Montgomery, the physical back who refuses to go down with just one tackle, will have his workload full, handling the majority of running plays. Who will be his relief? Bears rookie running back out of Baylor Trestan Ebner. Ebner will have big shoes to fill as he looks to keep the Bears running game going strong. Ebner has had minimal carries this year, sporting 18 carries for 46 yards and 2.6 yards per carry. The hope is that Ebner can play to the level of his 2021 Baylor statline where he averaged 5.4 yards per carry and 2 touchdowns. Hopefully, he progresses well like Montgomery and Herbert both did and can be a reliable depth for Chicago.
Jack Sanborn
Another great story in the making involves Bears UDFA out of Wisconsin, Jack Sanborn. The Bears linebacker was drafted after the 2022 NFL Draft and impressed the coaches enough during practice and the preseason that he was signed to the final 53-man roster after final cuts. The hometown kid has played well so far, recording his first 2 career sacks on Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Tacking on 24 total tackles in 6 appearances for the Bears this year, Sanborn will definitely see a bigger role in the Bears future as Roquan Smith was traded to the Ravens in October. Look for Sanborn to make plays in his spot in the Bears 4-3 defense.
