By Terrence Tomlin
Sports By #TheBIGS
CHICAGO — Before the season started, all signs pointed to the Bears being the doormat of the NFC North.
Both fans and pundits alike were all but ready to punt this season away in hopes that the team formally known as the “Monsters of The Midway” would be in line for another top 3 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Fast forward to the halfway mark of this season, those same fans and pundits are eating their words as the Bears sit at a respectable 3-5 and have suddenly resurrected new life into their season. It’s now time to see just how long the Bears can ride this momentum of being one of the surprisingly solid teams this year, but before the guys start their 2nd half push, let’s take a quick look back on how we got here and pass out some midseason grades.
THE OFFENSE: C-
It’s very easy to forget the Bears offensive performances during the first 4 weeks of this season. Mike Glennon, better known as “The Checkdown King,” was touted as the perfect quarterback to ease us into the Mitch Trubisky era. The Bears plan was to slowly develop their prized rookie QB while Glennon lead the offense. Glennon was supposed to be a good decision maker, he was supposed to protect the ball, he was supposed to give this squad a chance to win by making minimal mistakes– he did none of those things. Instead, what we got was a “Jay Cutler Jr-ish”player, who made the same mistakes but had none of the arm strength of his predecessor. Mix this with the timid play calling that has come to be a John Fox/ Darryl Loggains staple, the offensive grade could have been a big fat F…but the decision was made in Week 5 to scrap the failed Mike Glennon era and get an earlier-than-expected look at the future of the organization…Mitch Trubisky. The Bears are 2-2 in the “TRUUU” era, hence the grading curve. At the very least, Trubisky has given the Bears a true NFL level quarterback behind center, something they didn’t have with Glennon, and the Bears now have a chance to make some noise in a wide open NFC North division.
THE DEFENSE: B
In the first half of the season, the Bears have faced some of the best quarterback talent the league has to offer…and have lived to talk about it. Matt Ryan, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, Jameis Winston, Cam Newton and Drew Brees have all had their chance to turn this Bears defense into cubs but with the exception of a Week 2 spanking versus the Bucs and the annual blowout at the hands of Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, this Bears defense has stricken fear into the souls of their opponents and have Bears fans asking the question, “Are The Monsters of The Midway back?” Ferocious hits and timely turnovers have been a consistent theme of this group, and all signs point to this unit only getting better in the second half of the season.
COACHING: D
Let’s just say head coach John Fox has a half of season to earn his keep, although many insiders believe he already has one foot out the door of Halas Hall. Whether it be the coaching staff being too timid with the offensive playcalling or frustrating fans with blind trust in huff quarterbacks, the fanbase is gearing up and starting to wonder, who will be the next coach of the Bears? With a young quarterback and young weapons all over this squad, John Fox’s seat should only get hotter.
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