Bears
- Mark Potash at the Chicago Sun-Times quotes Bears head coach Marc Trestman:
“‘We’ve got to work on our running game,’ Trestman said a day after [Matt] Forte lost two yards on four carries against the Jaguars. ‘We’re not concerned about it. It’s more one guy here, one guy there. We’ve just got to clean it up.’”
Well, he might not be concerned about it but I certainly am. I’ll feel better if the Bears show us something against a physical Seattle front seven on Friday.
- Hub Arkush at chicagofootball.com apprently shares my concern about the running game. He is worried about the back up options at runningback.
“For my last general impression, I have to tell you I think the Bears have been trying to give the job to [Ka’Deem] Carey since the moment they drafted him. How else do you explain his 23 carries in two games compared to 25 carries for [Shaun] Draughn (4), [Senorise] Perry (9), [Michael] Ford (5) and [Jordan] Lynch (7) combined?”
The guess here is that its because Carey and, especially, Draughn have shown that they can pass protect whereas the other competitors haven’t. This seems to be a major issue with the staff when it comes to selecting runningbacks.
- Tony Andracki at CSNChicago.com highlights the play of Josh Morgan. Eric Weems has been a fine core special teamer but I think we’ve seen enough of him as the third wide reciever (and kick returner). It might be time to gve Morgan his shot.
Elsewhere
- Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune makes a point about Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles that also occured to me during the game:
“The Jaguars have been pretty consistent talking about Chad Henne being their starting quarterback this season and allowing Blake Bortles, the third overall pick, to sit and learn. But if Bortles keeps performing well, they’re not going to be able to keep him on the sideline for too long. I understand wanting to bring him along the right way and not rushing it…. Bortles (11 for 17, 160 yards) looked smooth, threw the ball well and moved the second offense. He’s going to have to get significant starting time this season. There’s nothing wrong with learning on the fly.”
I couldn’t agree more. Henne didn’t perform badly Thursday night but I frankly thought Bortles looked every bit as good. If its a tie, its got to go to Bortles. Mike Florio at profootballtalk.com passes on the fact that Bortles will get time with the first team next week. He might be on his way.