Ten Thoughts on the NFL and the Bears

1) The Pittsburgh Steelers dropped a tough one in their home opener, 28-26 to the Seattle Seahawks, but losing their quarterback for the remainder of 2019 is likely going to doom their entire season. Ben Roethlisberger went on injured reserve with an elbow injury, which will make it next to impossible for them to climb out of the 0-2 hole they find themselves in. Backup QB Mason Rudolph had some nice moments in relief of Big Ben, but to expect him to get the Steelers back in the AFC North race is a tough sell.

2) Right now it’s the 2-0 Baltimore Ravens that lead the AFC North, but I’d like to see them play a better defense before anointing Lamar Jackson as the next big thing. They’ve knocked off the Dolphins and Cardinals so far, and they get the Chiefs next.

3) Speaking of the Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes went 30 of 44 for 443 yards, while chucking 4 TDs with a 131.2 passer rating in their 28-10 win against the Oakland Raiders.

He’s now on pace for 6,568 passing yards and 56 TDs this season.

4) The Green Bay Packers came out hot on offense scoring 21 straight points against the Minnesota Vikings in about 16 minutes, but then they went cold with quarterback Aaron Rodgers going 13 of 24 for 75 yards in the final three quarters.

They still got the win, and Rodgers denied there was anything to the discussion.

“It was about the look on defense,” Rodgers said via ESPN. “I was actually kind of surprised that he was coming over to talk about that, but we got it all sorted out over there on the sideline. It actually wasn’t a big deal. ... We’re a little animated at times. I can’t say we were yelling how much we love each other, but we definitely weren’t MF-ing each other or anything. It was talking about the look there and getting on the same page.”

Rodgers and LaFleur have an interesting relationship.

5) As do Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone and starting corner Jalen Ramsey.

Following the Jags 0-2 start, and likely accelerated by this incident, Ramsey has requested a trade. He’s one of the best cover corners in the NFL and the Jaguars should be able to get at least what the Dolphins just got for Minkah Fitzpatrick.

6) And speaking of the Dolphins, who’s their next player to get shipped away for some draft picks?

Will they fire head coach Brian Flores?

Will they win a game this year?

Will Josh Rosen ever get a fair shake in the NFL?

7) Drew Brees has only missed 4 games since 2004, but with his injured ligament on his thumb of his throwing hand, he’s not expected to back for at least 6 weeks.

In the meantime the New Orleans Saints will turn to back up quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, the highest paid QB2 in the NFL, to keep their 2019 season on track.

8) Should the 0-2 Giants bench quarterback Eli Manning for rookie Daniel Jones?

I think it’s time to do it.

9) Yes, the gloves make it easier to catch the football, but this is still pretty good.

9a) One more Browns video clip.

10) After the Bears beat the Broncos on a last second bomb of a field goal from Eddy Pineiro, All-Pro outside linebacker Khalil Mack said this.

He went on to say that head coach Matt Nagy has them practice for last second situations like the one that came up in Denver, but his quote about Pineiro was the best of all.