Gameballs and Bananas Wk6 vs CAR

[spudbear]

While I'd like to slam some of the Bears play, particularly on O, they did win so we'll be happy and not dwell on the continued drama of the Nagy offense and OL struggles.

GAMEBALLS
DL - Difference maker in the game, where they put pressure on Bridgewater and helped contain their running game. While it looked like Davis was making a bunch of slashing runs, he was held to about 53 yds total.

Santos - Second week in a row. Nagy had no choice but to trot him out at the end of the first half for a +50 yarder and he nailed it. I hesitate to praise further as FG kickers have been known to trample the hearts of Bears fans, but for now it's nice.
(honorable mention - Mario Edwards Jr: shoe string tackle was a big play near end of the game)

BANANAS
Refs - Hate to single out the zebras but too many calls against the Bears that were at best questionable. It feels like the Bears are getting a rep for hard (cheap?) shots and the refs have an itchy trigger finger to pull the yellow hanky. The duo of EJax and Fuller bring back fond memories of when Doug Plank (#45) patrolled the Soldier Field sod.

Miller - This was supposed to be his breakout season but instead he's taking breaks on the bench. So disappointing. That bonehead play to go for more yards rather than get the first down was inexcusable.

This three game stretch coming up will determine if the Bears are contenders or pretenders. SF gave a blueprint for beating the Lambs: run the ball, keep Goff off balance. We'll see if Nagy can grasp AND implement those details. I'm hoping Goff has visions of 2018 dancing in his head after he looks up from the ground and sees Mack breathing on him.

[Arkansasbear]

I approve this message for the simple fact it lists the refs. The call on Fuller was total garbage and should have been a pick; robbed Jackson of another pick 6 (that's two they have taken from him this year) ad the PI call on Johnson was horrible , and the no call on Robinson was way more of a PTI than what they called Johnson for.

[wab]

[HisRoyalSweetness]

That's mighty impressive wab.

Game Ball

Nagy for leading his team to a fifth win in six games.

Bilal Nichols for setting the tone on the first series. A sack that was almost a safety, followed up by pressure that led to the interception.

Bananas

Nagy for his suspect situational play calling and for overseeing the one unit on the team that continues to underperform nearly 2.5 years into his tenure.

The offensive line. Why have they gone from looking promising in the first 3 games to looking awful in the last 3? Changes are needed...

The officials for some blatantly bad calls and several suspect ones (and not just against the Bears).

[Moriarty]

There's no doubt they are quality CBs.

However, when you see something that extreme, you know mayhem is happening up front.

[wab]

Good:
The defense overall. It's fun to see what they can do when playing with a lead.

Nagy. I don't care what people say, he's calling good games. The players are just a step off. I think the timing will get better and it'll come together by week 8.

Mooney/Kmet. It's nice to see the rookies on offense getting better each week.

Santos. Fingers crossed, but maybe the Bears finally found a kicker.

The Bad:
Leno and Coward. I can excuse Coward because he's not really even an offensive lineman. He's barely an NFL player, but was Leno even trying? He put Massie in a lot of bad spots by getting completely rolled by his man - causing Foles to continually drift to his right in the pocket. Massie looked worse than he was thanks to the entire left side of the line.

Refs. Not much else to be said, terribly inconsistent.

Execution on offense. Robinson had drops, Miller had his usual up and down game. Harris can't catch.

Also...and this is more of an observation overall...but I'm losing faith in Monty as an every down RB. He's great in space, makes guys miss, and fights for every yard...but he really doesn't seem to read blocks well.

Yes, the OL is terrible (although Foles wasn't sacked yesterday), but when there is a hole, Monty hesitates or reads the cutback lane wrong. There were holes there - they closed fast - but they were there. Too many times he hesitated and found himself with his arm out on the back of an OL trying to decide whereto go...instead of just hitting the hole and going.

It seems to really throw off the rhythm in Nagy's play calling, forcing him to throw a lot of those short passes that act as an extension of the running game.

[IE]

Game balls:

- Santos ... man he was kicking straight, and hard. It was beautiful.
- TEs outside of Harris (can my boy Jesper block yet?... I'm willing to take the risk to see).
- Foles except for a couple of bone-headed throws he's gotta avoid such obvious risks -but I like the danger boy style. He can hit guys on the run and throw them open. He doesn't (or rarely) turn a guy around and back into a contested catch. I believe it is coming together. Still a couple of tough games ahead... especially Rams D. But one game at a time.

Bananas:

- Johnson call ... that's just gotta be a no call. Fuller call... same exact play as last time, but opposite call & THEN Periera defended it after chest thumping last week about how good the refs are at getting that call right (textbook hit).
- Monty running. He's not quick enough for the NFL as an every down RB. He's a good backup/3rd down back at best. Ouch
- Where is Javon Wims in the passing game? Not really a banana as much as a waste of space. If there's a guy out there who is not going to get looks, it makes it easier on the defense. Let's not do that.

[The Cooler King]

Game balls:

- Santos ... man he was kicking straight, and hard. It was beautiful.
- TEs outside of Harris (can my boy Jesper block yet?... I'm willing to take the risk to see).
- Foles except for a couple of bone-headed throws he's gotta avoid such obvious risks -but I like the danger boy style. He can hit guys on the run and throw them open. He doesn't (or rarely) turn a guy around and back into a contested catch. I believe it is coming together. Still a couple of tough games ahead... especially Rams D. But one game at a time.

Bananas:

- Johnson call ... that's just gotta be a no call. Fuller call... same exact play as last time, but opposite call & THEN Periera defended it after chest thumping last week about how good the refs are at getting that call right (textbook hit).
- Monty running. He's not quick enough for the NFL as an every down RB. He's a good backup/3rd down back at best. Ouch
- Where is Javon Wims in the passing game? Not really a banana as much as a waste of space. If there's a guy out there who is not going to get looks, it makes it easier on the defense. Let's not do that.

Re: Wims, the snap count drop off is pretty stark:
As a % of snaps;
35.4, 44.6, 28.0, 16.1, 27.0, 19.7

Looks like most of those snaps have gone to Miller.