CHICAGO vs BALTIMORE

RAVENS WIN 30 – 16

• Story of the Game – A “Lamar Jacksonless” Ravens come away with a W as the Bears beat themselves… again

Despite a slow start for the Ravens’ offense and the Bears having 3 successful drive in the first half the Bears managed to walk into half down 10 – 6 as they stalled in opponents territory, which has been an issue all year. There were a number of issues with the offense in the redzone but I think it mainly stems from a lack of continuity among everyone which leads to negative plays. Whether it’s a miscommunication on routes, inconsistency in pass protection, or an inability to establish a run game that’s not outside and/or in space they find ways to kill drives that have not only been successful but explosive. The Ravens on the other hand played with much more of a Ravens style of play comparatively to the rest of the season as they seemed to feed off the energy that Tyler “Snoop” Huntley brought to the offense. Zay Flowers was very engaged all game and brought a consistent presence in the passing game and Huntley’s running ability allowed Baltimore to chip away on offense all game and really made an impact in the red-zone as he and Henry were able stress the defense with read options multiple times. While the Ravens finally played their brand of football and deserve a lot of credit for getting a big win without Lamar against a tough opponent Chicago has to be upset with themselves as they continue to find ways to beat themselves and have yet to put together a full game this season.  

• Key Notes for the Ravens 

Tyler Huntley brought an energy to this offense and while you can point to his running ability vs a Cooper Rush as the main difference I would say the energy and belief showed just as much as the running threat did this game. Huntley was able to break off a 29yd run late in the game but other than that run the Ravens’ run game was largely held to minimal gains for both Huntley and Henry (Keaton Mitchell broke off a couple very nice runs that were explosives) but the belief this team had in him in big spots whether it was run or pass was very noticeable. Zay Flowers and Huntley had a great connection all game as every time Baltimore needed a play in the passing game it felt like Huntley found a way to find Flowers. It wasn’t a perfect day for Baltimore offensively but it was night and day from the last 2/3 weeks of play as they chipped their way down the field and most importantly of all capitalized in the red-zone.  

With the offense more than likely getting Lamar Jackson back for the upcoming Thursday Night Game I’m very hopeful for what this team can accomplish on that side of the ball as there were some very promising signs that were not there in recent weeks.

Defensively this was a drastic difference compared to every other game this season. Their ability to come up with big momentum changing plays in crucial moments really dictated this game as they came up with crucial pressures with blitzes that forced intentional grounding calls, throw aways, and even an INT at one point that really put the game away for Baltimore was a great change of pace for a defense that hasn’t been able to stop a nose bleed all year. Just like the offense the energy and intensity of this side of the ball felt like a completely new team compared to recent weeks and has to have Baltimore feeling hopeful for what’s possible moving forward despite being 2-5 at the moment, especially with the play they had in the interior of their DL this game which has been ugly at times this year.

• Key Notes for the Bears 

The Bears offense once again stalled multiple times inside opponent territory this game as the run game was inconsistent at best downfield, their pass protection would fail as Caleb held onto the ball with the field being closed in, and once again… penalties set them back a number of times as well. It feels the offense looses its entire identity as the field gets smaller and smaller and until Caleb and his receiving threats get on the same page consistently, the OL can stop their penalties, and the run game can find a way to pick up tough yards in between the tackles I’m not sure they’ll find the consistency they need to pay off some of these beautiful and explosive drives they build on their side of the field. For all the issues on the opponents side of the field the way this offense plays in space is very impressive. D’Andre Swift in space whether it be with outside runs (Had a number of great cut backs this game) or screen passes he’s very dangerous in space and the Caleb + Rome connection has been fantastic all year with this game being no exception. They utilize play action and their deep passing attack to create explosives and while Caleb wasn’t and hasn’t been perfect he still has those games that break opposing defense’s back with his scrambles and “magic throws” that very few players can make.

The Bears defense overall did a solid job stopping the Ravens’ run game but struggled to get off the field in 3rd & short situations which allowed Baltimore to just chip their way down the field and eventually into the end zone as well. As Baltimore chipped their way down the field I felt that there were a number of times that Baltimore lined up and were just flat out more physical on the play than them which only worsened in the red zone. While it wasn’t a bad day from the defense they were unable to come away with any of turnovers which has been their main identity as of late. While it’s a solid group the lack of superstars or rather game changing players is still apparent at times as their pass rush is very inconsistent and the run defense is adequate but nothing that will dictate anything for an offense.

• Standout Performers 

BAL

Tyler Huntley – 17/22  186yds  1/0 – 8/53 rush

Derrick Henry – 21/71  2 TDs 

Zay Flowers – 7/63 

Roquan Smith – 12 Tackles (7 Solo) 

• Flew around the field all game long and impacted a number of screens, short passes, and runs 

Mike Green – 1 Tackle  1 Sack  1 TFL 

CHI

Rome Odunze – 7/114 

Gervon Dexter – 7 Tackles (5 Solo)  1 Sack  2 TFL 

Kevin Byard III – 6 Tackles (4 Solo)