W - Bears 34, Seahawks 17
W - Bears 27, Buccaneers 24
The tale of two Bears was evident this week as they rolled through the defending champion Seahawks but barely outlasted the Buccaneers. After a first half of the season marked by adversity, the Bears somehow ended up with an excellent 7-2 record heading into the bye. There have been flashes of greatness: they dominated the Panthers, Eagles, Jets, and Seahawks. Mostly, they have found ways to win despite a multitude of reasons not to:
Caleb Williams missed 3+ games
Shorthanded secondary for all 9 games
Two 5 turnover games
Five games with 8+ penalties
Cole Kmet and Braxton Jones out for the year
Big drops, untimely fumbles, blocked kicks
This reset comes at the perfect time. Ben Johnson will thrive with an extra week to prepare for the Saints, but most importantly, to strategize for the remainder of the season. The Bears have an identity, and they are already a top contender in the NFL despite their frequent mistakes.
The first half showed that they control the line of scrimmage, stop the run, wear down opponents, excel on 3rd down on both sides of the ball, and their quarterback has taken the next step. Don’t let a 4 interception game fool you: Caleb Williams is still elite. He’s ready to lead them to an even better second half.
After the bye, the Bears will play divisional foes in 4 of their 8 remaining games, along with the Bills and Jaguars. The schedule won’t be a cakewalk. I expect their NFC North fortunes to turn for the better even though the last place team from Wisconsin is 3 games above .500.
L - Avalanche 5, Blackhawks 2
L - Panthers 5, Blackhawks 3
L - Lightning 4, Blackhawks 1
L - Hurricanes 9, Blackhawks 2
Waived G Arvid Soderblom
A scheduling nightmare turned into an organizational catastrophe. Nobody expected wins against consecutive elite teams, but a 9-2 embarrassment was the worst case scenario. As the Blackhawks head into a four day hiatus at 4-13-1, every question under the sun is being asked. In the midst of this midseason turmoil, it was already reported that Jeff Blashill will remain the head coach for the time being. That seems like the wrong move for a Blackhawks team completely devoid of an identity.
In 18 games, they haven’t succeeded at anything:
Offense is absent: 3+ goals in only 6 games, 22.9 shots/game
Power play is incompetent: 32nd in the NHL - 9.8%
Zero complete games: 2 wins by 2+ goals
Inexperienced centers: 32nd in the NHL at faceoffs - 41.9%
Either the young core is hopeless, the schedule would have been too much to overcome for any less-than-elite team, or the systems are failing the players. I believe there is a lot of talent in that locker room. After almost a quarter of the season, they still look like a youth hockey team where guys don’t know where to be on the ice at any given moment. They can’t possess the puck, clear the zone, or forecheck in the neutral zone. The basics of the game aren’t just a struggle; they’re unattainable. A coaching change seems to be the only way to turn the ship around.
A four game homestand begins on Thursday against all near-.500 teams. This should be just what the doctor ordered, but without any major changes, they’ll probably keep their losing streak alive.
L - 76ers 126, Bulls 107
L - Knicks 135, Bulls 105
L - 76ers 127, Bulls 121
Tiago Splitter wanted to implement an identity where the team played hard every single night. The disappointing games to start the season have turned into laughable no-contest blowouts that allow for big picture questions. Who is this Bulls team in year one of the new regime?
Yesterday’s loss to the 76ers was the most respectable game since October 28th, and they still lost. Splitter decided to switch up his combinations, partly due to Nic Claxton’s availability to make his Bulls debut, and he unlocked quite a few bench players. Noa Essengue can be a valuable rotation player and continues to show defensive stability. Josh Giddey had his best game of the season (19p/15a) after struggling in the new system. If Giddey starts to settle in, the offense should flow more freely. Matas Buzelis (19p/5r) also played well after a subpar start to the season.
I did not anticipate a 1-8 start to the season. This is a historically bad Bulls team to this point. They have allowed 124+ points in every game! Their ugly shooting percentages should earn some positive regression, and the lineup combinations will start to gel. We should see a turnaround soon.
Three more games against winning teams stand between the Bulls and a reprieve. The rest of the calendar year looks a lot more relaxed than the unimaginable stretch of contenders they played to start the season. Expect a bounceback in the win column.
Pete Crow-Armstrong won the Platinum Glove Award as the best defender in the National League. He should just keep it in his house since nobody else will ever win the award.
Caleb Williams will throw less than 4 interceptions the rest of the season.
Last week, Williams broke Aaron Rodgers’ record for consecutive games (36) with 20+ pass attempts and 1 or less interceptions. Last night, he threw 4 interceptions in a single game.
I’m not sure if his arm was fatigued and stopped his throwaways from getting out of bounds. Maybe the wind picked up during those plays. Or he got the yips. Or he got too excited about his bye week plans. Whatever the case, it was the flukiest game for the franchise quarterback.
Williams’ season interception totals in college and the NFL: 4/5/5/6/7
With only 8 games left, he will return to his normal ways and protect the football. It’ll help to get the run game going again, too!
Caleb Williams
After his uncharacteristic 4 interception night, he reflected on the only other 3+ interception games of his career: 1 game in high school and 1 game in college. He focused on how he can be better to help the team win. He’s one of the least turnover prone quarterbacks in the NFL, and he won’t lose any confidence after a poor performance.
