Bears need a Lions-like statement win to get back on track, and facing the team’s former head coach could provide the perfect motivation
The ideal opportunity to send a message.
Sometimes in the NFL, a team needs a little bit of personal motivation to get out of a slump. And the Chicago Bears are certainly in a slump following an 0-2 start with the Dallas Cowboys coming to town in Week 3.
Chicago was on the opposite end of a motivating effort to rebound in Week 2. The Detroit Lions got embarrassed in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers and all of the talk was about former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson coming to town leading the Bears. That’s all the motivation Detroit needed to send a statement and get their first win of the season.
“We knew coming into this game that this is personal, really, all these games are personal,” Lions safety Brian Branch said after a 52-21 win. “But this one was just, we felt like we’ve been betrayed from the staff to the players. We love Ben. We still love Ben. He’s a great coach. He’s a great mastermind. But yeah, it was time to get after them.”
That’s the kind of statement-win the Bears are searching for. And the ideal motivation is coming back to Soldier Field on Sunday.
Bears must send a message against Matt Eberflus’ defense in Week 3
The players and coaches likely won’t say it going into this one, but it would mean a lot to the locker room to not only beat Eberflus’ defense, but embarrass them the way the Lions’ offense embarrassed Chicago last Sunday.
Offensively, the Bears have a lot to clean up in order to fully run Ben Johnson’s scheme effectively. This is the ideal matchup to get that right. The Bears players know this scheme and Ben Johnson has experience going up against it. Eberflus is essentially running the same defense he ran in Chicago.
Now, of course, the personnel is different. But, schematically, it’s very similar. So, to see how the Bears can attack against Eberflus’ defense in Dallas, A to Z Sports’ Dallas expert Mauricio Rodriguez provided some important insight:
“It’s safe to say Matt Eberflus’ defense isn’t doing great two weeks into the season and both he and his players (and even the front office) deserve some blame for it.
The obvious blow to the Cowboys defense happened before the season even began. Since the Micah Parsons trade, the Cowboys have looked unable to pressure opposing quarterbacks when rushing four. When rushing four, the Cowboys rank 26th in pressure rate, per Sports Info Solutions. When blitzing, they rank 16th. Bears fans will not be surprised to hear Eberflus hesitates to call blitzes. But he needs to do something to manufacture some pressure.
But that’s not all: The Cowboys’ coverage has been problematic as well. Trevon Diggs was beat repeatedly by Giants WR Malik Nabers, getting sped by at least twice during the Cowboys’ dramatic 40-37 win in Week 2. Kaiir Elam also allowed big plays and once it appeared he missed his assignment, playing a Cover 2 technique while the rest of the defense appeared to be running Cover 3. But while a lot of the woes have been about execution, Eberflus is calling a predictable defense, playing zone coverage in almost the entirety of the team’s defensive snaps.
One area to exploit is the nickel cornerback, as DaRon Bland is considered a longshot to play in Week 3. Last week, the Cowboys started former Bears CB Reddy Steward in the slot. Giants slot receiver Wan’Dale Robinson set a career high 142 receiving yards.” – via Mauricio Rodriguez
As long as the Bears don’t shoot themselves in the foot, this should be a favorable matchup on offense for quarterback Caleb Williams and his arsenal of skill players.
I’d like to see some of the Ben Johnson creativity come out in this game. Chicago needs this game and the players need to come out playing with that “dominating” mindset Johnson has been hammering into them all offseason. It’s time to send a message.
Chicago Bears News
How to watch Chicago Bears vs. Dallas Cowboys Week 3: Ben Johnson looks to right the ship as Matt Eberflus makes his return to Chicago
Extra motivation in this one.
