The Bear’s Den, September 30, 2020

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

Receivers Look to Get on Same Page with Nick Foles - SI.com - Allen Robinson thinks quarterback Nick Foles helped the Bears overcome Atlanta’s lead Sunday with his mouth possibly as well as he did with his arm.

NFC North: Lions rookie CB Jeffrey Okudah off to abysmal start - Bears Wire - The Chicago Bears didn’t face Detroit Lions first-round pick Jeffrey Okudah in the teams’ Week 1 matchup, which seemed at the time like a break for the Bears offense. Maybe Chicago would’ve scored more points had he played.

Roster Moves: Chicago Bears place RB Tarik Cohen on IR, elevate RB Artavis Pierce from practice squad - ChicagoBear.com - The Bears promoted rookie running back Artavis Pierce from the practice squad to the active roster Tuesday to replace Tarik Cohen, who will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL he sustained Sunday in Atlanta.

Bears Defense Must Fix Run-Stopping Issues to Meet Expectations - Da Bears Blog - The Chicago Bear recipe for a successful 2020 season always included one absolute necessity: great defense. Three games into the season, they’ve been far from great.

Lunch With Larry & Urlurker: 9.29.20 - Bears Senior Writer Larry Mayer and our own Urlurker discuss Nick Foles being named the starting quarterback, replacing Tarik Cohen and the biggest challenge in Sunday’s matchup with the Colts during his weekly Q&A with fans.

Ken’s Note: I’m sharing The Athletic stuff now even though there’s a paywall, they’ve got a $1 a month deal... and no, they aren’t paying me a dime to drop the link... they are just really good and it’s cheap.

Colts' Frank Reich explains what makes Bears' Nick Foles a unique NFL player - RSN - Colts head coach Frank Reich only spent one season with Nick Foles, but the two know each other pretty well. Reich was the Philadelphia Eagles' offensive coordinator during that magic 2017 season that saw Foles take over for an injured Carson Wentz and deliver the Eagles their first Super Bowl title in team history.

Envisioning a Chicago Bears' Gale Sayers Uniform Tribute - Chicago Audible Blog - The Chicago Bears can pay tribute to the late Gale Sayers in a number of ways. Here's what it could look like.

Jahns: 5 takeaways from Bears’ win vs. Falcons, including a new QB outlook – The Athletic - Will we see more from the tight ends going forward? And how about Akiem Hicks' start to the season?

All-22: Inside the plays that keyed another Bears fourth-quarter comeback – The Athletic
The Bears explained the thinking behind the plays that made up their comeback in Atlanta Sunday.

Nick Foles: Reviewing Chicago Bears QB's Week 3 performance - Chicago Tribune - With apologies to Nick Foles and his brilliant game-winning touchdown pass to Anthony Miller, it was Mitch Trubisky’s third-quarter interception that stood out as Sunday’s defining moment.

Chicago Bears: 3 observations from Week 3 win - Chicago Tribune - One of the Chicago Bears' top offseason missions was improving the pass rush, and that showed up Sunday as they rallied by shutting down an Atlanta Falcons offense that topped 300 yards in less than three quarters.

Chicago Bears: 3 observations from Week 3 win - Chicago Tribune - One of the Chicago Bears' top offseason missions was improving the pass rush, and that showed up Sunday as they rallied by shutting down an Atlanta Falcons offense that topped 300 yards in less than three quarters.

Column: Don’t be angry at Mitch Trubisky, Chicago Bears fans - Chicago Tribune - From draft night until now, Mitch Trubisky has always appreciated the opportunity the Bears afforded him. He has fallen in love with Chicago and pushed himself to be at his best for a passionate fan base whose hope he worked to reward. He just hasn’t been good enough.

Chicago Bears: Checking in with each position coach - Chicago Tribune - Chicago Bears tight ends coach Clancy Barone commended veteran Jimmy Graham for his self-motivation, and that energy apparently extends to his teammates on game days.

Chicago Bears concerned by Tennessee Titans COVID outbreak - Chicago Tribune - A COVID-19 outbreak prompted two NFL teams to shut down their facilities, but several Chicago Bears said they're still confident in the league's safety measures.

Chicago Bears podcast: What Nick Foles brings to QB position - Chicago Tribune - The Bears have a new starting quarterback, and Dan Wiederer and Brad Biggs waste no time breaking down what the change means to the offense on the Bear Download podcast.

Bears finally make the right call at QB - Chicago Sun-Times - If Trubisky had been taken as the second pick in the fifth or sixth round of the 2017 draft instead of the second pick in the entire 2017 draft, he might never have hit the field as a starter. Ken's Note: News flash, the whole "If some totally different situation happened, then a totally different outcome would occur" is one of the dumbest arguments ever. OF COURSE things would be different if they were different.

Bears’ Mitch Trubisky will be defined by how he handles benching - Chicago Sun-Times - The Bears will need Mitch Trubisky, eventually. He’s already saying the right things. Now he needs to follow through. Ken's Note: Huh? I kinda thought he would be defined by how he played quarterback, but what do I know?

Bears put Tarik Cohen on IR - Chicago Sun-Times - Rookie running back Artavis Pierce was promoted from the practice squad to take his place.

Bears 1st-and-10: Can Nick Foles take the heat off Ryan Pace? - Chicago Sun-Times - After Mitch Trubisky’s failure, critics don’t think the Bears’ GM should be the one to find the next franchise quarterback. But Foles’ performance Sunday is — for now — an indication that not every quarterback decision Pace makes turns to dust. Ken's Note: Critics don't pay Ryan Pace, the McCaskey family does. Critics opinions of Pace are, in fact, entirely irrelevant. Just an FYI.

2020 Opponent Scouting Report: Bears Offense - I don’t think who plays QB matters - Stampede Blue - On October 4th, 2020 the Indianapolis Colts will travel north to take on the Chicago Bears In this Week 4 match-up, I sought to understand our opponent and get a better idea of how they... Ken's Note: Who plays QB doesn't matter? Ummm... OK, well that's an interesting thought... good luck with that...

Offensive Player Rankings, Week 4: Eyeing six QB situations - NFL.com - Today, I'm taking a look at six teams' quarterback situations and assessing whether each team is making (or has already made) the right decision when it comes to their QB1. Here we go...

POLISH SAUSAGE

Vikings-Texans, Steelers-Titans off the board at sports books - ProFootballTalk - Sports books are not taking bets on the Vikings’ and Titans’ upcoming games until more information is known about the COVID-19 situation surrounding both teams.

Goodell to team executives: Titans’ results show we need to remain diligent - ProFootballTalk - In a memo to club presidents and executives, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said today that it is vital that they follow all league guidelines about protecting everyone at the team facility from the virus.

Report: NFL could move Titans-Steelers to Monday night - ProFootballTalk - The NFL “wants and intends” to play the game as scheduled Sunday, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN, but a contingency plan is in place to move the game to Monday night. That would allow for additional testing and contact tracing to occur.

‘Put it on my shoulders’: Chiefs’ Eric Bieniemy knows he must carry on – The Athletic - Bieniemy has interviewed for seven head-coaching jobs, but even his exceptional will hasn’t been enough to get him there.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

Vikings release statement in conjunction with COVID-19 testing - Daily Norseman - Again, no positive tests for the Vikings. . .yet.

Three Titans players test positive for COVID-19; Vikings suspend in-person activities - Daily Norseman - We’ll need to keep an eye on this

Unbelievable! - More Than Expected, Still A Loss - Daily Norseman - BJ Reidell and Drew Mahowald share their thoughts on the Vikings’ 31-30 loss to the Titans.

4 takeaways for the Atlanta Falcons after Week 3 - The Falcoholic - Another week, another discouraging defeat for the Falcons.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Infante's Film Study: Bears pass rush was phenomenal against Falcons - Windy City Gridiron - We take to the tape to break down the Bears’ tenacious pass rush from this Sunday.

Wiltfong: Bears place Cohen on IR, elevate Pierce, and add 2 to the practice squad - Windy City Gridiron - The Chicago Bears announce a few roster moves today...

Wiltfong's NFL Power Rankings: Will the Foles’ led Bears get some more respect? - Windy City Gridiron - We check in on what the power rankers have to say about the undefeated Bears.

Householder's Stock up, stock down: Chicago Bears vs. Atlanta Falcons review - Windy City Gridiron - Another week, with a QB change and another frantic late come back. Who is in the spotlight this week?

Wiltfong: 10 Thoughts on the NFL - Windy City Gridiron - Check out our Thoughts on the NFL this week, and be sure to leave a few of your own in the comment section.

THE RULES

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