The Chicago Bears are now 0-3 after falling to the Kansas City Chiefs 41-10. There are few bright spots on this football team and many negatives after three weeks of Bears football.
Stock Up – DJ Moore
DJ Moore found the end zone for the first time as a Bear on Sunday. Through three weeks, Moore has accumulated 170 receiving yards and one touchdown on 11 receptions. Despite being the Bears’ best player, Moore ranks 34th in the NFL in receiving yards. He averages a little over 56 yards per game but needs to get more involved. I don’t expect him to be a touchdown machine, but I expect him to get the ball more than four times per game. DJ Moore is the best player on the Bears’ roster. Chicago won’t part ways with him any time soon.
Stock Down – Justin Fields
What was supposed to be a breakout year for Fields passing, has quickly become a disaster. He had a minuscule 99 passing yards and a passer rating of 58.9 against the Chiefs. A starting quarterback in today’s NFL shouldn’t have that stat line, no matter his situation or surrounding cast. Fields has averaged a mere 175 passing yards per game and has three touchdowns compared to five turnovers. His completion percentage is down from 60.4% in 2022 to 58.0% through the first three games of 2023.
His production on the ground is even worse. In 2022, Fields averaged 76.2 rushing yards per game and 7.1 yards per carry. This season, he averages 36.3 rushing yards per game and 4.5 yards per carry. The coaching staff has turned him into something he is not: a pocket passer.
The Denver Broncos just had 70 points scored on them. SEVENTY! Fields should have no problem leading the offense down the field this Sunday. Even if he ends up having a great game against the Broncos, Fields must have consistently good performances. The former 11th-overall pick shouldn’t be struggling this much in year three.
Stock Down – Luke Getsy
Five. That’s how many touchdowns the Bears’ offense has scored so far this season. For comparison, former Bears running back David Montgomery has five touchdowns in three games, all on his own.
The Bears’ scoring is down from last year despite adding DJ Moore, Nate Davis, Robert Tonyan, D’Onta Foreman, Darnell Wright, Roschon Johnson, Tyler Scott, and Mercedes Lewis to their offense during the offseason. Three weeks into this season, the Bears’ offense averages 15.7 points per game, ranking 27th in the NFL. Last season, the Bears averaged 16.3 points per game after the first three weeks, which helped them have a 2-1 record.
So, what does this regression point to? Obviously, the offensive coordinator. Luke Getsy calls the plays every week for the Bears, and he hasn’t succeeded. Last season, many fans let him off the hook because Chicago lacked a true number-one wide receiver. Well, now they have one, and he’s only touched the ball 11 times.
Another aspect missing from the offense is the quarterback run. Last season, the Bears had a four-game stretch in which they averaged 31 points per game. Fields rushed for 467 yards and five touchdowns on 50 attempts in that span.
Stock Up – Roschon Johnson
The former Longhorn is averaging 5.3 yards per carry and is still the only running back on the Bears roster with a touchdown. Johnson is averaging 48.6 scrimmage yards per game, which ranks third on the Bears behind DJ Moore and Khalil Herbert. The Bears’ front office should be very pleased with the performance of their fourth-round rookie.
Stock Down – The trenches
The offensive and defensive lines have both been a weakness of the Bears so far.
The Bears’ offensive line has given up 13 times through three weeks, while the Bears’ lone sack came from Yannick Ngakoue in week one. The sack tally for the Bears should be up to three, but Ngakoue let Baker Mayfield slither out of his arms twice in week two. The Bears’ defensive line needs to step up in the coming weeks.
Lucas Patrick has been one of the worst signings of the Ryan Poles era. Since signing a two-year, $8 million contract with Chicago, Patrick has played ten out of 20 possible games. Last season, Pro Football Focus (PFF) gave Patrick a grade of 55.9. This season, Patrick’s PFF grade is down to 44.0.
Cody Whitehair hasn’t been any better. In 2022, Whitehair gave up four sacks and posted a PFF grade of 65.9 in 12 games. Whitehair has a PFF grade of 51.4 this season and has allowed two sacks in just three games.
Stock Down – Medical and Training Staff
Here is the list of all the players on the Bears’ roster that are injured:
Teven Jenkins (On IR with a leg injury)
Braxton Jones (On IR with a neck injury)
Kyler Gordon (On IR with a broken hand)
Darnell Mooney (Bruised knee)
Josh Blackwell (Hamstring)
Jaylon Johnson (Hamstring)
Tyrique Stevenson (Concussion protocol/illness)
Eddie Jackson (Foot)
That list consists of seven starters and a backup cornerback. Health and availability have been problems for the Bears since OTAs. Despite being active in weeks two and three, Darnell Mooney hasn’t caught a pass since week one. Tyrique Stevenson left Sunday’s game in Arrowhead because of a head injury but eventually returned. On Wednesday, he was listed on the Bears’ injury report with an illness but was a full participant in practice. The rookie from Miami should be good to go for week four. Eddie Jackson was placed on the injured list (IR) last season because of a Lisfranc injury, an injury to the middle of a person’s foot. Unfortunately, Jackson might’ve reaggravated that injury against the Buccaneers.
The Bears’ list of injuries might speak volumes about the Bears’ medical and training staff, especially considering that Jaquan Brisker left during the first quarter against Tampa Bay because of dehydration. Brisker returned in the third quarter, but the Bears’ medical and training staff should’ve had him ready for the heat and humidity that comes with playing football in Florida.
Stock Down – Matt Eberflus
The Chicago Bears have lost 13 straight games under head coach Matt Eberflus. That is the longest losing streak in franchise history. Losing that many games is unacceptable! Eberflus is to blame because of his lackluster defense.
Last year, the Bears’ defense gave up the most points in the NFL (463). Eberflus’ defense has given up 106 points this season, trailing only the Denver Broncos. That isn’t a reassuring sign for a man who was hired because of his defensive prowess.
The Bears are currently one of four NFL teams that remain winless. If results don’t improve, Chicago will find themselves out of playoff contention very soon.
