The Bear’s Den, September 19, 2023

WE WANT YOU!

Would you like to show your Chicago Bears spirit to the world? I’m starting a feature where Windy City Gridiron readers can share pictures of themselves and their families and friends in Bears attire. Simply email a picture to me at the following address: denmasterken at aol dot com. The pictures need to be clear, and full resolution (i.e. full size from your phone if that’s how you take them). Include any description information you like along with the photo!

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

Matt Eberflus claims he sees ‘improvement’ in 0-2 Bears - 670 - Despite the Bears riding a 12-game losing streak and struggling on both sides of the ball, coach Matt Eberflus claims he sees “improvement” in his team.

Parkins is ‘so utterly disgusted’ with Bears amid 0-2 start - 670 - It’s getting late early in Chicago for quarterback Justin Fields and the Bears, who dropped to 0-2 with an ugly 27-17 loss to the Buccaneers in Tampa on Sunday.

DJ Moore is still thinking playoffs despite Bears’ 0-2 start - 670 - The Bears have stumbled out of the gate, but that hasn’t impacted top receiver DJ Moore’s mindset. He plans to be playing well into January, as he told the Mully & Haugh Show on Monday.

David on Bears’ screen: ‘Everybody knew what was was coming’ - 670 - Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David explained that his team knew exactly what was coming when Tampa Bay intercepted a screen pass by Chicago quarterback Justin Fields with the game on the line Sunday.

Bears setting records for futility in 12-game losing streak - 670 - The Chicago Bears have now lost a dozen straight games after falling 27-17 to the Tampa Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium.

The Chicago Bears are broken - Windy City Gridiron - Jeff & Lester are back to discuss the Chicago Bears on a new Bear & Balanced here.

Bears WR Darnell Mooney: I’ll play vs. Chiefs despite knee injury - Chicago Sun-Times - He was unable to play late in Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers after he aggravated a knee injury from Week 1.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus explains why Justin Fields hesitated on a making a key throw - Late in the second quarter, Justin Fields appeared to have an opportunity to throw a touchdown pass to Roschon Johnson. Instead, Fields took a sack, and Matt Eberflus provided an answer on why that happened.

10 quick thoughts: Poor start turns the screws on Bears leadership - CHGO - Good morning Chicago. The Bears are somehow worse than last year and the Cubs can't win a game when it matters most. Meanwhile, the Sox haven't played a meaningful game all year and the Bulls are gearing up for a run at the seventh seed in the East if all goes well — though it most

Bears vs. Bucs game may have come down to these three missed plays – NBC Sports Chicago - Justin Fields, Jaquan Brisker and the rest of the Bears defense all had several chances to win the game for the Bears in Week 2.

Bears’ Matt Eberflus diagnoses what went wrong on pick-six screen pass vs. Bucs – NBC Sports Chicago - The screen pass that ended the Bears' comeback hopes vs. the Bucs had good and bad, according to Matt Eberflus' day-after autopsy.

Justin Fields’ key failure vs. Bucs highlights Bears’ larger issues – NBC Sports Chicago - Justin Fields' failure to hit an open Roschon Johnson vs. the Bucs is a symptom of the Bears' larger issues on offense.

Bears snap count: Darnell Wright keeps ‘shooting himself in foot’ – NBC Sports Chicago - Trust. Confidence. Being locked-in. Bears rookie Darnell Wright knows the path to success, but he has to clean up a lot of things to get there.

Justin Fields, Bears’ offense face long, tough journey for answers – NBC Sports Chicago - The Bears' offense has no plan, no rhythm, and no clear path forward after a brutal performance against the Bucs.

Schmitz: Notes from Bears @ Buccaneers - Da Bears Blog - This Bears season has gotten off to the worst start possible — they haven’t just lost two winnable games, they haven’t just watched the coaching staff struggle, but the QB that carried the weight of the franchise into the 2023 season looks like the most worry-fraught version of himself imaginable. Right now, every part of this football team is ugly to watch.

Jaylon Johnson still has strong belief in Justin Fields - 670 - Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson acknowledges that he doesn’t know the source of quarterback Justin Fields’ struggles in the team’s ugly 0-2 start, but Johnson is certain about this much. He continues to hold a steadfast belief in Fields.

Matt Eberflus still running Bears’ defense - Chicago Sun-Times - He continued to act as the Bears’ defensive coordinator Monday, running meetings while Alan Williams remains out because of personal reasons.

Regardless of Bears’ flaws, turnovers land on QB Justin Fields’ shoulders - Chicago Sun-Times - Fields now has as many career pick-sixes (four) as Aaron Rodgers has in 19 seasons. His decision-making is a significant piece of the offensive struggles.

Bears ‘still trying to figure out what works for us’ on offense - Chicago Sun-Times - Sunday’s 27-17 loss to the Buccaneers was filled with small mistakes that bad teams don’t overcome — and one screen call from the Bears’ own end zone that ended in disaster.

Struggling Bears defense sees ‘great opportunity’ vs. Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes - Chicago Sun-Times - The boost from offseason upgrades has not produced results in the Bears’ 0-2 start — they have one sack and no takeaways. “We’re tired of shooting ourselves in the foot,” cornerback Jaylon Johnson said. “We’re tired of not capitalizing. We’ve got to learn how to win.”

Bears coach: Screen pass wasn’t wrong call - Chicago Sun-Times - Quarterback Justin Fields threw an interception to Shaq Barrett, who felt a screen was coming by the way he was blocked, pirouetted and picked off a pass.

Bears next opponent: Chiefs’ defense rescuing struggling offense - Chicago Sun-Times - The Chiefs have been dealing with dropped passes, wide receivers that have been unable to get open, an inconsistent run game and far too many penalties to effectively keep drives alive.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

10 Bears Takes: Nothing is going right, so what’s next for this struggling team? - Windy City Gridiron - The Chicago Bears are (0-2) after a 27-17 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon. When considering disastrous starts to the season, this would have been labeled close to a worst-case scenario. Is there any hope moving forward or is this yet another lost season?

The Bears telegraphed game-deciding pick-6 so badly the Bucs knew it was coming - SBNation.com - The Bears’ pick-6 was so poorly designed the Bucs said they knew it was coming after the game.

Bears vs Bucs: Inside the snap counts, stats, and Groundhog Day Syndrome - Windy City Gridiron - Here are all the snap counts for the Chicago Bears, a spotlight on some of their individual statistics, a few team stats from their 27 to 17 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, plus a little more...

Notes: Bears fall to 0-2, does it even matter anymore - Windy City Gridiron - The Bears lose on the road against the Buccaneers to fall to 0-2.

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