I think you can put me up there on the list of most optimistic Bears fans there are right now. Just ask my buddies Joe and Jakub – I text them all the time about howHYPED I am for these Bears.
I love their youth, I love their newfound energy under Coach Swaggy Nagy and I think they’re all-around good dudes.
However…I’m also a realist. And for some reason, I just can’t call this game a “gimme” for the Bears. Do I think we’ll eventually pick the Bears easy in games like these? Fuck yeah…but eventually.
Which is why this week I’m calling this game like I see it with inspiration from everyone’s favorite Star Wars character meme – Admiral Ackbar. IT’S A TRAP (GAME)!
And with that, here are my thoughts on this week’s game.
This SHOULD be a Bears win, but that doesn’t mean I’m confident: As you can infer from the above, I’m part of the crowd who believes this game is a trap, not a gimme. EVERYTHING about the Bills says the Bears should roll into Buffalo and beat the shit out of them. At the same time though, the Bears haven’t been consistent enough for my head to be confident just yet. I saw the Bills hang in there with the Pats through three quarters this past Monday, even with Derek Anderson plucked off the street. I saw a Bills defense give Tom Brady hell for an entire game. Let’s support our boys, but let’s not forget about what happened against the Dolphins.
That being said…the Bills still suck: What a fucking disaster it has been in Buffalo this year. My god. Ever since rookie QB Josh Allen went out with an elbow injury, the offense has looked like a bunch of blind three-legged puppies hopping around on the field. Derek Anderson was starting to look alright before he got hurt against the Pats. And now the Bills have to go back to Nathan Peterman – who may be THE WORST QB in NFL history? Peep at his blistering stat line for this season: 1 TD, 4 interceptions, 108 yards, 40.6 completion percentage and an astounding 20.8 passer rating. Yuck. That being said…the Bears still need to prep like they’re facing Drew Brees and kick Peterman’s ass to ensure he doesn’t do what Brock Osweiler did. That would just be our luck…
Khalil Mack should sit again this week: Just as the Bears made the right call resting Our Outside Linebacker and Savior against the Jets, I think they should rest him again against the Bills. The Bears have the Lions, Vikings, and Lions again on Thanksgiving the next three weeks. Let’s save Mack for those key divisional games, not for an offense averaging 10 points a game. When’s he ready…we’re blasting Return of the Mack all day!
Perfect game for the defense, a good test for the offense: Not much analysis to be had on the defense: they’re going against Nathan Peterman. Just keep a hard eye on Shady McCoy and they should be good. Kelvin Benjamin may not be in the NFL next year, so no worries on him. The offense the other hand? They get to face an underrated, #6 ranked defense that should test their progress as a unit. I want Trubisky to have an end-to-end complete game this week as opposed to one good second half. I want Swaggy Nagy to stick with the run game like he did against the Jets. If the offense can explode this game against a defense like the Bills, then I will feel super confident heading into the second half at 5-3, ready to fuck shit up in the NFC North.
Who’s stepping up on O-Line?: I’m still really freaking sad that Kyle Long is down with a foot injury. Breaks my goddamn heart. But, this shit happens in the NFL and it’s next man up for the Bears. According to my man Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune, he thinks the Bears will keep rookie 2nd round pick James Daniels at left guard and plug in utility veteran Eric Kush at right, who is coming back from a neck injury this week. Who is behind Kush? None other than Bryan Witzmann, a 4-year vet who stands at 6’7 and started 13 games for the Chiefs last year in Matt Nagy’s offense. Even though I’m sad Panda about Kyle Long, I’m happy to know that the Bears prepped for this situation with capable subs in Daniels, Kush and Witzmann.
Not really a thought, but I officially love Matt Nagy: Well, I guess it is a thought. Did you see the Mic’d Up video of Matt Nagy the Bears released this week? This dude was pumping me up through my phone screen. I wanted to throw on pads and sacrifice my dad bod for this guy. That being said, I think he is soaring like a rocketship as a coach. Last week was easily his best-coached game and a huge reason was the leadership he showed to his troops in that Mic’d Up video. If there’s one thing I feel confident about going into this game, I trust Nagy to coach our boys well and get the W no matter what happens.
Prediction: Bears 20, Bills 3: I expect the defense to have their best game of the year and they should against a shitty Bills offense led by Nathan Peterman. But, I also feel like this game will be similar to the Jets game. I think the offense will look good and not great. But again, because I expect the defense to have an ass-kicking fest, this game won’t feel stressful, just like the Jets game. Even if the offense just puts up 20 points, I hope they do it efficiently.
We’re all awaiting for Our Outside Linebacker and Savior to return to the field, so join me and channel your Chicago energy by wearing this sick-ass shirt from the Branded Sports Store!
Follow us on Twitter @branded_sports and see if I’m eating my words during the game on Sunday @ekurbyunÂ
-Kurbs
Featured Image: Edited image from Know Your Meme