Can all the naysayers please sit down?
After a sub-par performance in his first preseason game as a Bear, Jay Cutler had to listen to a week of Chicago fans moan and groan about the offense’s slow progress. That certainly won’t be the case this week.
In a convincing response, Cutler showed us an elongated glimpse of what this Bears offense could achieve. However, Cutler wasn’t the biggest difference between game one and game two. In Buffalo, he was missing his two best weapons, Matt Forte and Greg Olsen. For Chicago’s home preseason opener, both players were available and anxious to make plays for their new franchise QB.
After a long Earl Bennett reception led to a field goal on their opening drive, the Bears’ first team offense was nowhere near satisfied. Matt Forte broke through a ginormous hole in the Giants defense for a 32 yard TD run, increasing the lead to 10-0.
Not to be forgotten, Cutler’s third a final drive left fans salivating for more. After a 12-yard scramble exploded Solider Field, Cutler tossed a 38-yard pass to Devin Aromashodu, who made a terrific one-handed grab. From there, a Cutler roll-out off of play-action led to a one-yard endzone catch for Desmond Clark, who could not have been more open. Cutler and the first-team offense left the field with a 17-0 lead over the first teamers of the New York Giants.
Solid performances from Bennett, Olsen, and Forte were made possible from a fantastic night for the first team offensive line. Orlando Pace looked young and spry against one of the best defensive lines in the NFL.
It wasn’t all perfect for the offense though. Devin Hester completely misread what would have been a 91-yard touchdown snag and slowed down after blowing by a defender, under-running a Cutler bomb. Obviously, he needs some work. (Like we all knew anyway.)
Defensively, the impact of the coaching staff changes was evident. With Lovie Smith calling the plays, the defense only gave up one field goal to Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride. That cannot be overlooked. Rod Marinelli’s influence on the defensive line was apparent, with his lineman accounting for four of the Bears’ five sacks.
New linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa made a number of plays on the ball-carrier, cementing his status in the starting role. Kevin Payne deflected a key third-down throw by Eli Manning, showing off some new pass coverage skills.
Still a weak against power running backs, the Bears had trouble bringing down Brandon Jacobs. Brian Urlacher himself was shed by the bruiser on at least two occasions, not getting low enough to bring him down. Despite these mishaps, the defense showed tremendous improvement from the Buffalo game. They made Eli Manning look purely pedestrian at times, which is a feat depending on with whom you speak.
In back-up notes, Caleb Hanie had another consistent performance at the no. 2 QB spot. Kevin Payne and Garrett Wolfe have yet to establish themselves as valuable back-ups to Forte, who needs to carry the ball less this season to avoid wear and tear.
Overall, it was an enticing effort. It was the first time I can remember the Bears offense being successful on purpose. Other times they’d succeed in spite of Run Turner’s inept play-calling or in spite of mediocre quarterbacking. Not this time.
With the Chicago Bears next preseason game coming in primetime on Sunday night in Denver, the buzz will be hard to ignore. I’ll be back later in the week to give you what to watch for against the Broncos. Happy Jay Cutler Day!
