By Jim Coffman
So much bad ridiculousness, so little time that should be spent analyzing what can best be described as a brutal waste of three hours on a Sunday afternoon.
Then again, some detailed mockery must be made of the Bears’ 10-3 loss to the Chiefs. There is no denying Matt Forte’s injury was a huge setback but so many Bears had so many chances to make a play or two that would have made a huge difference in a close game, and they all failed.
It was a bad day for Caleb Hanie. It was a worse day for his receivers and line.
That has to be it for Roy Williams, doesn’t it? His inability to corral what would have been a huge fourth-quarter touchdown pass was a killer. The guy is a receiver who doesn’t receive the ball well enough. In other words, he can’t be trusted, especially with the game on the line. Worse is his insincerity in taking responsibility.
Yes, Roy, it’s on you. We believe it, even if you don’t.
Hanie favorite Johnny Knox wasn’t much better; twice he failed to slip forward for a couple critical yards-after-catch on the Bears’ first possession after Adam Podlesh’s punt glanced off a Kansas City blocker and was recovered by Zack Bowman. It turned out to be the Bears’ only takeaway of the day and all they needed was a first down or two to at least set up a field goal attempt.
A fourth-down failure (see gallery photo No. 31 – a pass to Earl Bennett that had little chance for success even if Hanie and his receiver had made the connection) gave the ball right back to the Chiefs. Knox also took some heat from analyst Solomon Wilcots for not better contesting Brandon Carr’s interception midway through the third quarter.
The line’s shortcomings were excruciating. The Bears gave up seven sacks to the defense that was last in the league in that category for gosh sakes. But one of the sacks in particular – and one that happened at a critical time late in the third quarter – was all on Hanie.
On second-and-10 from inside the 10, Hanie faced some pressure from the right but had a clear path forward. If he had just taken a couple quick steps up he had a clean pocket waiting for him. Instead, he faded further backward right into the arms of Tyson Jackson. A few minutes later, Robbie Gould was missing a 41-yard field goal and the Bears were in big trouble.
As for the other side of the field, an observer might have been inclined to give Kansas City coach Todd Haley credit for staying the course, for keeping his team focused and competitive despite a series of injuries worse than those suffered by the Bears. Where the Bears now have second-stringers, the Chiefs are often employing third-stringers.
Except Haley lost his mind at the beginning of the second quarter and brought in Kyle Orton to run a flea flicker. That was a great idea except A) the primary reason Orton washed out of Denver is that his accuracy goes out the window on passes of 20 yards or longer and B) Chiefs QB Tyler Palko had spent the first quarter avoiding the big mistakes that had plagued him in the past. Oh, and Orton has very little mobility, which was a problem when Major Wright came racing up the middle on a delayed blitz. The dislocated finger that resulted from Orton’s panicked heave as Wright leapt toward his arm was quite the squirm-inducer wasn’t it?
Then again, Haley is a play-caller and he called enough good plays eke out a win, even if the game’s only touchdown was a Hail Mary that Brian Urlacher and Christ Conte utterly failed to properly defend.
“To be honest, once I saw how he was going to hit the ball down, I knew it was coming right to me,” lucky recipient Dexter McCluster said. “So, I just prepared myself for it. It fell right into my lap.”
How ridiculous is that?
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The Official NFL GameDay Highlights.
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Comments welcome.
Posted on December 5, 2011