The Bear’s Den, October 9, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS

Bernstein: Points Matter More Than Feelings - 670 The Score - Jordan Howard appeared upset with his workload last game.

Emma: Bears' Backfield Balance Puts Team First - 670 The Score - Who's the Bears' feature back? Whoever can help them to victory.

Adam Gase on Khalil Mack: 'You're not going to slow him down' - 247Sports - "You're not going to slow him down," Gase said on Monday, via Antwan V. Staley of The Dolphins Wire.

Emma: Bears' Anthony Miller, Prince Amukamara Do Light Work Monday - 670 The Score - Anthony Miller and Prince Amukamara missed the Bears' last game.

Eurich: Jordan Howard to remain big part of Bears offense - 247Sports - "Jordan Howard is a big part of this offense," Nagy said on Monday. "I think that for us to continue to keep trying to grow—everybody in this offense has a role. This is not going to be an offense where it is just one person and goes through one person. I don't necessarily believe in that. It's great when you have everybody fulfilling different roles and it is hard for a defense when you do that."

Eurich: Bears open as 3-point favorite over Dolphins - 247Sports - The Chicago Bears are in a spot through the first five weeks of the year that few thought they would be in. Chicago sits with a 3-1 record and atop the NFC North standings. Following a bye in Week 5, the Bears will be on the road in Week 6 against the Miami Dolphins.

Mayer: Bears in ‘good spot’ at left guard - ChicagoBears.com - Rookie James Daniels likely will keep pushing veteran Eric Kush for the starting left guard position, but the Bears are pleased with how both players are performing.

Mayer: Nagy aims to duplicate Reid’s post-bye success - ChicagoBears.com - Hoping to replicate Andy Reid’s success in games immediately after a bye, first-year Bears coach Matt Nagy employed the same “less is more” approach during the off week he learned from his mentor.

Mayer: Analytics expert projects Bears as playoff team - ChicagoBears.com - Are the 3-1 Bears a contender or pretender? According to NFL Network analytics expert Cynthia Frelund, they will earn a wildcard berth in the NFC playoffs.

Stankevitz: What will Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen's roles be in the Bears' offense going forward? - NBC Sports Chicago - Tarik Cohen was used more heavily than Jordan Howard in Week 4's blowout win over Tampa Bay, but that won't necessarily be the case going forward.

Mullin: 3 tipping points as Bears begin 2nd 'half' of 2018 - NBC Sports Chicago - The math of an NFL seasons lends itself to thinking of two halves to the football year. But the reality is that the off-week represents a dividing line because it is a “reset point” in terms of player health, self-scouting and other internal operations and perspectives.

Cox: Competition behind Bears tightened up in Week 5 - NBC Sports Chicago - Things in the NFC North aren't shaking out quite like everyone predicted.

LeGere: Bears' Mack brings 'sense of calm' to defense - Daily Herald - Khalil Mack's importance to what has become a dominant Bears defense is much more than what he does when he's on the field.

Kane: Bears running back Jordan Howard - 'Nothing to complain about' when it comes to his role - Chicago Tribune - If Bears running back Jordan Howard is upset about his workload, he wasn’t letting on Monday as the Bears returned to Halas Hall after their weekend off.

Wiederer: Bears receiver Anthony Miller appears close to returning from shoulder injury - Chicago Tribune - The Bears hope to have rookie receiver Anthony Miller back when they return to action this Sunday against the Dolphins.

Campbell: ‘We need to find that sweet spot’ - Bears working to raise Mitch Trubisky’s comfort level - Chicago Tribune - Bears coaches are trying to get Mitch Trubisky comfortable enough on every play to elevate the offense and his career. Coach Matt Nagy, offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich and quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone offer their insight on his development.

Gallery: Every Bears touchdown scored during 2018 season - Chicago Tribune - Photos of every Bears touchdown scored during the 2018 season.

Potash: With starter Eric Kush’s help, Bears rookie James Daniels gaining ground in left guard battle - Sun Times - Kush played 37 of the 61 snaps at left guard against the Buccaneers. Daniels played 24. But it’s easy to see where the trend is heading.

Finley: Bears WR Anthony Miller progressing from shoulder injury - Sun Times - Matt Nagy said it won’t be “too much of a challenge” for Anthony Miller to play in games with a harness designed to keep his shoulder in socket.

Finley: First-place Bears say it’s too early to watch NFC North standings - Sun Times - At 3-1, the first-place Bears seem to be in good position within the division, even though they won’t play another NFC North game until Nov. 11.

Morrissey: Bears’ MItch Trubisky can’t go back to what he was before his big game - Sun Times - This isn’t about what we hope to see from him the rest of the season. It’s about what we hope never to see again — the Mitch of the previous 15 games.

Finley: Jordan Howard ‘I wasn’t frustrated’ after Bears win - Sun Times - Jordan Howard swears he wasn’t angry when he declined to answer questions and left the Bears’ locker room after the Bears’ 48-10 win in Week 4.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Cardinals sign Kendall Wright – ProFootballTalk - The Cardinals are following up their first win of the season by adding a veteran piece to their receiving corps. Wide receiver Kendall Wright agreed to a one-year deal with the team. Cornerback Deatrick Nichols was waived in a corresponding move.

Gruden: ‘My fingerprints are all over’ Raiders’ start - NFL.com - One sleep after coaching his Oakland Raiders to their fourth loss in five games, coach Jon Gruden was notably downtrodden at his Monday press conference. Ken’s Note: Jon Gruden is an idiot.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Miami Dolphins’ offensive line looks rough after Laremy Tunsil injury - Palm Beach Post - Roughly a month into the season, the Dolphins’ rebuilt offensive line is in tatters. Now Khalil Mack and the Bears come to town.

Report: Giants will trade or cut Ereck Flowers by tomorrow – ProFootballTalk - The Giants are done with Ereck Flowers. Flowers, the offensive tackle chosen with the ninth overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, will be cut tomorrow if the Giants can’t trade him first, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Teams starting rookie quarterbacks went 4-0 on Sunday, an NFL first – ProFootballTalk - The four teams that started rookie quarterbacks on Sunday all won, and that was something special. According to Elias, this week was the first time in the Super Bowl era that teams with rookie quarterbacks went 4-0.

The Takeaway, Packers-Lions: Mike McCarthy’s problem with Aaron Jones - Acme Packing Company - Despite Aaron Jones establishing himself as the Packers’ best option at running back, Mike McCarthy continues to bury him behind inferior players.

Packers cannot endure another repeat of disappointing 2015 season - Acme Packing Company - If this offense can’t find consistency, the scheme stays behind the modern game, and Green Bay can’t rally to be NFC contenders, it’s time for even more changes. Ken's Note: Can't endure another disappointing season? Really? Think so? How about we find out?

Silverstein: Green Bay Packers' difference-makers fail to deliver - Packers News - Packers GM Brian Gutekunst should be able to circle six or seven names of proven veterans who can make a play that tilts the field.

Trying game doesn’t shake Packers’ faith in Mason Crosby - Packers.com - Veteran kicker humbled by teammates’ show of support Sunday. Ken's Note: GOOD! He's the second coming of Adam Vinatieri...

Packers’ season-long penalty plague reached another low in Detroit - Acme Packing Company - Green Bay’s 12 penalties proved to be a back-breaker against the Lions, continuing a disturbing trend of undisciplined errors. Ken's Note: An increase in undisciplined play is a forerunner of a coaching change... or so my theory goes.

Dolphins Fans Should be Angry - The Phinsider - This week’s loss almost hurts worse than last week. These kind of Mondays are getting old. Quick. I know it’s only the Dolphins second loss, but they have been bad ones, and nobody is to blame but...

Miami Dolphins’ Adam Gase: ‘When you get kicked in the nuts, it pisses you off’ - The Phinsider - The Dolphins blew a 17-0 lead, and a chance at a 4-1 start in Cincinnati yesterday. Ken's Note: Yeah, I can see that it does.

Dolphins at Bengals result shows Miami needs improvements at the top - The Phinsider - The Miami Dolphins fell to 3-2 on the season following their complete collapse in the second half of the team’s Week 5 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals. In a game that the team lead 17-0, the...

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Wiltfong: Chicago Bears first quarter breakdown - Windy City Gridiron - In Lester’s latest T Formation Conversation podcast, he takes stock of the first quarter of the 2018 Chicago Bears’ season.

Wiltfong: Chicago Bears place Sam Acho on IR, sign Bryan Witzmann - Windy City Gridiron - With the Chicago Bears back at practice this week following their bye, they made a move to shore up their 53-man roster by signing offensive lineman Bryan Witzmann. The addition of Witzmann came...

Duerrwaechter: Arrival of the Mack: a case for earning the league’s 2018 MVP award - Windy City Gridiron - ECD breaks down the top plays and stats from Khalil Mack’s first four games as a member of the Chicago Bears.

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

2 Minute Drill - Website - iTunes - Andrew Link; Steven’s Streaming – Twitch – Steven Schweickert; T-Formation Conversation - Website - iTunes - Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; WCG Radio - Website - iTunes - Robert Zeglinski

THE RULES

Windy City Gridiron Community Guidelines - SBNation.com - We strive to make our communities open and inclusive to sports fans of all backgrounds. The following is not permitted in comments, FanPosts, usernames or anywhere else in an SB Nation community: Comments, FanPosts or usernames that are intolerant or prejudiced; racial or other offensive epithets; Personal attacks or threats on community members; Gendered insults of any kind; Trolling; Click link for full information.

The Bear’s Den Specific Guidelines – The Bear’s Den is a place for Chicago Bears fans to discuss Chicago Bears football, related NFL stories, and general football talk. It is NOT a place to discuss religion or politics or post political pictures or memes, and any posts that do this will be deleted and the poster will be admonished. We do not allow comments posted where the apparent attempt is to cause confrontation in the community. We do not allow gender-directed humor or sexual assault jokes. The staff of WCG are the sole arbiters of what constitutes “apparent attempt to cause confrontation”. We do not allow the “calling out” of other members in any way, shape or form. Posts that do this will be deleted on sight. Bottom line, it’s fine to debate about football, but personal jabs and insults are strictly prohibited. Additionally, if you keep beating the same dead horse over and over and fail to heed a moderator’s warning to stop, you will be banned.

Click on our names to follow us on Twitter:

WCG Contributors: Jeff Berckes; Patti Curl; Eric Christopher Duerrwaechter; Kev H; Sam Householder; Jacob Infante; Aaron Lemming; Andrew Link; Ken Mitchell; Steven Schweickert; Jack Silverstein; EJ Snyder; Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; Robert Zeglinski; Like us on Facebook.