Useless predictions: 2021 Week 14 picks

   Not too shabby a week, still I didn't realize I picked a lot of UNDERS and still hit on a lot of them, ah the NFL full of surprises. OK maybe the Texans will consistently suck from now on, finally some stability, now only need the Jets to accept it too. Congrats to the Lions for finally getting to know what is a win. The Football team refuses to be at the bottom half, they want to be considered good but are they able to achieve it? The AFC north is drunk. Belichick you old wizard you, so impressive yet so easy to hate. On to next week.

W13 Record: 4-9

Overall: 39-126 (23%)

Atlanta (+2.5) at Carolina    O41.5

   The Panthers are a Shell of they could be, they seem los without McCaffrey and that is all and good for the Falcons to pounce on their weaken rival. 

Dallas (-6.5) at Washington    U48

   The Football Team is giving everything they got as of late, I am not sure if the Cowboys can handle a hungry Team, still they have a more flashy Team that should cover. 

Seattle (-9) at Houston    U40.5

   Ok Texans, you suck now and there is no turning back, if the Seahawks cant get this done they dont deserve nice things. 

Baltimore at Cleveland (-2.5)    O44

   The Browns should feast against a banged up Ravens team that has been struggling offensively these past few games. 

New Orleans (-5.5) at NY Jets    U42

   Looks like the Jets are losing offensive weapons every game, if it wasnt for Kamara I wouldnt know who to pick. 

Las Vegas at Kansas City (-9.5)    U48

   The Real Chiefs should not have a problem beating a Raiders team missing key players on defense, its a wait and see which team takes the field. 

Jacksonville at Tennessee (-8.5)    O43.5

   The Jaguars have peaked soap opera levels of an organization, the Titans need to punch the gas early to demoralize them even more and nevel look back. 

NY Giants at LA Chargers (-9)    U43.5

   Some see this one ending in an upset but I cant take a team starting Mike Glennon seriously.

Detroit at Denver (-11. 5)    U42

   I really want to pick the Lions but their injury list looks to have no end this week, the Broncos defense should manage to tame them. 

Buffalo (+3.5) at Tampa Bay    O52.5

   Lets see if better weather can help the Bills have an all out air battle with Brady. 

San Francisco at Cincinnati  (+2)   U49

   Burrow looks to be much better with his injured finger and looks like Garoppolo will be missing some needed weapons. 

Chicago at Green Bay (-11.5)    O43

   Im not getting my hopes up. 

LA Rams at Arizona (-2.5)    O51.5

   This should be a good one, will go with the hotter team as of late but the Rams are loaded and are more than capable of winning every game they play, they just need to get it togheter. 

W13vsARI: Not weather proof

   It was the right call entering this game with low expectations, even if the loss was due to a bunch of bad luck and nothing going the Bears way, still there was too much of the same that has this team stuck in the mud and just turns your stomach to watch this offense trying to function, cant do anything but laugh at the shame of watching your team try to play profesional football.

   Andy Dalton ended this game with 4 interceptions, the one to Jakeem Grant was a bad pass, the one to Cole Kmet was thrown behind him, was it catchable? Yes, under those conditions? difficult. Next one was a tipped ball and the last one was a good defensive play where Dalton didn't see him coming and ended being a bad decision. So the weather affected his throwing no doubt and some could be considered bad luck, all of this I can understand but what I cant is the lack of deep throws and the lack of receiver using the entirety of the field, I saw easily 4 or 5 plays where receivers found open spots downfield for 20 or more yards but Dalton didn't see or didn't try to throw it to them and the reason can be obvious, Dalton isn't good throwing deep and wont even try in bad weather conditions, even so the plan was awful, there was a play that ended in a sack where they went trips formation and all three receivers went deep and left the other half of the field empty, there where other plays like this one where they didn't use the whole field and they just clumped up or guys got open deep, what for? Dalton isn't even going to try these throws. The Cardinals have a lot of agility and speed at LB and DB but honestly the defense counts on that athleticism to much and misses on assignments which the Bears didn't take advantage on, they had a chance to win this game and they sunk in turnovers and despair.

Upside players: David Montgomery was the best players in this game and still manages to frustrate me in some plays because he doesn't cut or bounce to the side, he did it once and I was like MORE!

Downside players: Dalton limited this offense and was manhandled by rain, that is sad. Cole Kmet didn't have a good game and was in on two of the turnovers, the pass he could handle and the other where he pushed the defender to Daltons throwing lane and ended on the tipped interception, just a bad day I hope.

The defense is still asked to much and on this game they were put in difficult situations all game, they made the Cardinals play hard but there isn't much to see or expect from them when the offense just gut punches you with a plethora of turnovers and bad field position. 

Upside players: Robert Quinn still manages to appear and make big plays. Roquan Smith playing hurt is impressive. Jaylon Johnson got robbed of an offensive pass interference that resulted in a TD, other than that he played solid.

Downside players: Xavier Crawford was the new victim in the secondary, missing a tackle resulting in the only TD allowed not coming after a turnover.

   Crunching the numbers for a bit and found out that the Bears can still make the playoff with a 7-10 record which is rather funny, a team reaching the postseason with a losing record is a joke and no other team would take them serious and its with good reason, only exception would be is that team is getting players back from injury which would not be the Bears case, if they really want to get in with the big boys they need  win all out which is not imposible, the Packers would be the toughest team they have left, losing this game would not automatically eliminate them but winning this game would start some momentum and boost the confidence of the team, forget the coaches they have already lost, this needs to come from the players, thank the football gods we get Justin Fields to play against the Packers on a primetime match, things could still turn ugly but I believe the possibility minimizes with Fields playing rather than with Dalton. The injury list for this game is promising with almost everyone being available, wouldn't surprise me if some of them are still hurting but cant let this one go by, it may be the last chance some of them get to give Rodgers something to remember.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 13 picks

   Another catastrophe of a week, what the hell Eagles? I know that the Giants defense is its best attribute but really? 1 TD? I'm starting to hate the Patriots again, one bad season wasn't enough. The Texans are the worst bipolar team in the NFL just feeding on anger and shame, then there's the Broncos who are still deciding if they are going to be good or bad this season. Seattle is never going to win again are they? On to next week.

W12 Record: 1-10

Overall: 35-117 (23%)

Tampa Bay (-11) at Atlanta    U50.5

   The Bucs have everything to dominate against a somewhat depleted Falcons team, still Matt Ryan can upset a known divisional foe but it shouldn't happen though.

Minnesota (-7) at Detroit    U46.5

   The Vikings are the better team, they will miss Dalvin Cook but it shouldn't matter against a very bad Lions team, if the Vikings consider themselves a playoff contender they cant get surprised by a team like this.

Philadelphia  at NY Jets (+5)   O45

   The Eagles re a very unstable team and the Jets are a bad team with some pieces in place just not the important one, still Zach Wilson is a talented rookie capable of putting points on the board, this game might be one.

LA Chargers (+3) at Cincinnati     U50.5

   The Bengals seem like the more cohesive team as of late where the Chargers have struggled to get it together, the Bengals are a little more banged up than the Chargers so I'm taking the points.

Indianapolis (-10) at Houston    U45.5

   What are the Texans but a bet buster, I wouldn't be able to comprehend if they show being capable of competing against the Colts unless they start hurting themselves.

Arizona (-7.5) at Chicago    U43.5

   The Bears should have a shot against a Cardinals team that will probably get back Hopkins and Murray to an offense that has been winning without them meanwhile the Bears will have to play Dalton once more which is not promising.

NY Giants at Miami (-4)    U41

   The Giants are in shambles offensively but can count on their defense to some degree, the Dolphins just have to be able to score which is not a given but could succeed unlike the Eagles.

Jacksonville at LA Rams (-13)    U48

   The Rams can get back on track hanging one more win against another bad team.

Washington (+1.5) at Las Vegas    O48

   This should be close game, both teams are very like and injured on the DL, which QB wants it more?

San Francisco  at Seattle (+3)   U45.5

   Seahawks at home against a known rival who has some key injuries at offense and defense, there's an opportunity here to break the funk the Seahawks have been carrying around the past weeks..

Baltimore  at Pittsburgh (+4.5)    O44

   The Ravens CBs are really banged up, the Steelers should take advantage of this.

Denver (+9.5) at Kansas City     U47

   I'm picking the Broncos that have played the last two weeks to make this one close against a Chiefs team that still look mortal.

New England at Buffalo (-3)    O41.5

   Early playoff ,matchup, can the Patriots keep up their steady growth, which Bills team will they face? the monster or the pretender?

W12@DET: Thanks... I guess

    The Andy Dalton led Bears barely got the win against a Detroit team that is just utterly lost in all formats, a win is a win but the Bears showed little to no development that says they are getting better and can beat good teams, to be fair if the offense showed improvement under Dalton it would mean very little for the future of this team.

   Dalton did a good job coming off the bench and finished the game throwing for more than 300 yards and still left some big pass play opportunities that he didn't see or just didn't want to risk it but strangely enough the Bears still only mustered a measly 16 points against an average defense who for most of the game seemed more focused on stopping the run and had success doing it limiting David Montgomery for less than 50 yards. It wasn't that they didn't move the ball, that hasn't been the main issue this year, its once they reach midfield they self destruct, players and coaches alike, they just don't know what to do or how do it right and get in the end zone or stop themselves from getting penalties, negative yards or even worse stop giving the ball away and come off the field with points, they are not even in the scenario were the problem is converting FGs into TDs because there are a lack of FG opportunities and even when they are Cairo Santos falls short on a 53 yarder, common you gotta make that! I mean is anyone interested in scoring on this team? The Bears are at the bottom of the barrel in most if not all offensive categories but the most striking one that influences on the lack of scoring opportunities is YAC, Ryan Pace got Marquise Goodwin, Damiere Byrd and Jakeem Grant to go along Darnell Mooney who all can go really fast and this team still can not use speed to its advantage, lately Grant is being used in what seems to be Tarik Cohens type of role when placed as a receiver and that is a good idea but that's where the bus stops, other that trying reverses and bubble screens that are poorly executed, there is no showing of speed from this offense or at least not enough with 1 or 2 successful plays sprinkled here and there this season, one more failed project as of now from this coaching staff. 

Upside players: Dalton did his part backing up for Justin Fields, if I considered him the started though I wouldn't place him here for this game. Darnell Mooney is a dangerous receiver, I am not concerned with his so called drops but evidently he isn't a possession receiver that will catch everything thrown his way.

Downside players: I'm not sure anyone deserves to be placed here this time, if any I would still call out Cody Whitehair for playing just average.

   The defense is hurting but still does enough to keep the score close, although it was against a bad team. Kindle Vildor was benched for Artie Burns who was almost immediately welcomed back to the NFL allowing a big TD pass to the Lions on the first drive, there wasn't anything major after that maybe because the Bears got back Eddie Jackson but there where opportunities for Jared Goff to go deep in some occasions but he is not a good QB, what I found extreme was the team giving zero snaps to Vildor and instead choosing to put Marqui Christian at NB, maybe because he has more practice time at the position but Vildor should get a crack at it sooner rather than later. The secondary problem is real and the front seven will not be able to cover it up with Khalil Mack out and now probably without Roquan Smith down for what Matt Nagy reported today to be not IR related, which means he probably will end up on IR, which is not ideal with the star power fading on the defensive side of the ball.

Upside players: Robert Quinn remains the prime player of this defense with the lack of key player due to injury. Alec Ogletree keeps playing good football and will be counted now more than ever to fill the shoes of Smith. Angelo Blackson was a terror for the Lions OL.

Downside players: Right now it will be whoever fills the CB2 role, this game was Burns, it would be good to see him get better but he isn't the future for the team.

   The Bears are too damaged to be taken seriously and next up against the Cardinals will very probably result in disaster and to make matters worse they will most likely be counting on Kyle Murray and DeAndre Hopkins to come back from injury, perfect timing eh? Nagy reporting that Fields is still being limited at practice and Dalton is taking the first team snaps, there is just no news that makes this game interesting and even less promising for the Bears to pull out a miracle win, the only interesting item left is whether Tevon Jenkins will make his debute, still waiting for Jason Peters to break the good news because you cant even count on Nagy for that.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 12 picks

   Took a week off, don't remember anything, lets get this back on track.

W10 Record: 4-8

Overall: 34-107 (24%)

Tennessee (+7) at New England     U43

   The Titans are coming in down their two top receivers and running back, the Patriots are in a streak, only shot the Titans have is playing good defense against Mac Jones and keeping the score close, I am trusting Mike Vrable.

NY Jets at Houston (-3)    O44.5

   What a coin toss of a game, who is worst, will it we a shootout or an offensive struggle, anyone's guess is as good as mine.

Carolina (-1) at Miami    U41

   Cam has better control of this team that what Darnold gave as the QB, this will be a defensive performance but McCaffrey ant the Panthers will get it done.

Atlanta (-1.5) at Jacksonville    U46

   The Jaguars are down their starting corners so I will go with Matt Ryan and Kyle Pitts to make it happen.

Tampa Bay (-3) at Indianapolis    U53

   Should be a good game but I don't believe the Colts defense will be enough to take on Brady.

Philadelphia (-3.5) at NY Giants    O45.5

   The Giants are without their top receivers, the Eagles should benefit from this.

LA Chargers (-3) at Denver    O47

   I like the Chargers more than the Broncos but this could go either way depending on what mood the Broncos are this time of year.

LA Rams (-2) at Green Bay    O47

   Go Rams.

Minnesota at San Francisco (-3.5)    U49

   The Vikings are down some key DL guys so the niners should take advantage and run this team down.

Cleveland at Baltimore (-3)    O47

   So many injuries, questions and vibes, I really cant say who is in better shape.

Seattle (-1) at Washington    U46.5

   The Seahawks gotta win eventually right?

W11vsBAL: Never ending story

    The Bears losing streak continues and has reached five now, the team now stands at a 3-7 record giving fans another disappointing season in the making. They gave this game away, they had a legit chance of beating a Lamar Jackson-less Baltimore team but the story keeps ending the same way over and over again, too little points to back up a defense that keeps them in the hunt but cant do it for a whole game which is expected, this team entered this season with more questions than answers at defense and promise at offense that would struggle with a weak OL. The OL got help and the rookie QB has taken steps forward but everything else just hasn't gotten better, one could argue it has gotten worse be it by injuries, planning and/or coaching. The changes have come too slow and too little as has been the help from new players on the team aside from a few like rookie Larry Borom saving the right side of Justin Fields and expectations are that Teven Jenkins can do the same, still there are WRs and CBs that could be tested right now to see what the team has in store for next season, but the waiting continues.

   The offense this year has been a different type of frustrating, its a bit less disappointing and lot more heartbreaking, they manage to move the ball more than on previous seasons creating more scoring opportunities but they keep finding ways to to miss on them and not even getting FGs out of them, how do you manage to be better and still be a team that cant score? One way to see it is that the improvement overall has been so small that even that quantity is enough to perceive a difference on this teams performances, which in result is so sad to know how bad your team has been and still is. Against Baltimore the Bears on their first series got to FG range but were frozen in place because David Montgomery continues to refuse to stretch running plays outside, instead he continues to slide inside trying to split the defense like hes Moses or Mike Alstott, Montgomery is strong but come on! bounce it outside once in a while, so in comes Cairo Santos who decides to create his own streak by missing the FG and increasing his number to two, hope he isn't trying to break the record. Next visit to Ravens territory, they decided to leave the effective running attack aside and instead have Jason Peters wiff a block that gets Fields sacked and striped for a loss fumble. for the second half Fields gets injured and in comes Andy Dalton who did a great job AS A BACKUP, he should not I REPEAT! SHOULD NOT be replacing Fields if not because of injury. Dalton scored two TDs, one was because Darnell Mooney put the defense on skates on a bubble screen and the other was a HE SHOULD BE THERE toss to Marquise Goodwin on a zero blitz, he was not accurate enough and made Darnell Mooney look bad, my point being that he is not better than Fields but I am glad to have him as the Bears Backup, he is mobile and is QB smart enough to go in and give the team a winning chance, but he should not be considered the starting Bears QB ever again, do not give me this Chase Daniels, Brian Hoyer, Matt Barkley, Josh McCown, Caleb Haine BS again, Dalton is a reliable backup and nothing more. I was disappointed to see Khalil Herbert limited in this game, I demand to see a more balance load between him and Montgomery, they do not play the same but are equally tough and can disrupt a defenses playing scheme, for some reason the coaches forgot how to take advantage of Fields and lessened the PA and screen plays until Dalton hit the field for some reason. Getting the thanksgiving spirit early, I would like to thank Matt Nagy for showing me what a HC should not necessarily be and what really should be, which is someone that has his team and coaching staff ready for any moment that should happen in the game. Nagy is not a good HC, he might be a good play designer and leader of men but hasn't shown he can call plays which is not a necessary responsibility for the HC, what is necessary however is managing situational football, properly managing the clock and the timeouts, communicating with anticipation what to do if a first down is made or not made after a 3rd down attempt or if going for one or two points when scoring, these were misses this past weekend. So again, Matt Nagy has shown he is not a good HC and has shown little knowledge of evolving a football team.

Upside players at mid season: Justin Fields, Larry Borom, Khalil Herbert, Cole Kmet, James Daniels.

Downside players at mid season: Allen Robinson, Jimmy Graham, Cody Whitehair, Sam Mustipher.

   The defense is still being asked to win games and this group is not solid enough to do it like in other past seasons, it has a massive weak link in Kindle Vildor as their CB2 who is just getting man handled by big receivers and burned by speedy ones, he was talked to being a potentially good NB and for some reason was the best option to plug at CB when Kyle Fuller was let go, the coaches are still waiting for him to click but I believe it has reached a point where it has to be called a failed project, be it because of lack of physical attributes or bad coaching, maybe both. Vildor cost the defense a much needed stop to win the game due to the continued lack of points on offense, for this reason I don't blame Sean Desai for these loses who is pushing his players to continue fighting and keep games close, his inexperience has taken a toll against good teams that have talented players and/or are better coached resulting in allowed 4th quarter comebacks by the opponent. This group needs the offense to respond and it hasn't done its part leaving the defense constantly against the wall. The loss of key players is just insult to injury but it gives young guys like Khyiris Tonga and Trevis Gipson chances to show their skills and grow. How I see it, the defense is what it is and probably wont get much better even if they sit Vildor for someone else, but they really should start trying it out immediately.

Upside players at mid season: Robert Quinn, Jaylon Johnson, Roquan Smith, Alec Ogletree.

Downside players at mid season: Kindle Vildor, Mario Edwards Jr., Danny Trevethan, Bilal Nichols.

   With the rumors going around about Nagy getting fired after concluding the Detroit game, there are some that say its stupid to tell him beforehand he is no longer going to be employed, for me the problem is not the way it is supposedly handled by setting things straight instead of coming in bluntly, but the decision coming at a very bad moment for the team being on a short week, on this I agree. What I would presume happened was something in the lines of the team talked to Nagy and put the options on the table to finish preparing for the upcoming game and establish a transfer of power or for him to leave immediately, which the professional thing to do is to do your job and support your colleagues. For me, the most important thing to establish would be that even if the Bears won against the Lions, the result would have not mattered in the decision to let Nagy go making it clear that his performance in that game wouldn't impact in the decision and its about the evaluation of everything before this. If Nagy loses this game because he was more focused on his future dismissal than winning the game, that tells me more about Nagy's character more than the decision made by the team and if the Bears lose because of it so what? It would put an end to a disappointing season and himself so the team can move forward and evaluate the present state for next season. Now Nagy has been interviewed and has negated these rumors, after this it was said that he met with ownership and then proceeded to basically ignored everyone. This tells me that the rumor spread before Nagy could be told about the ownerships plans, that there was no intention of firing him prior to the end of the season or he was lying of not knowing anything. Either way this has gone from an organizational decision to a dramatic mess because rumors could not be controlled inside the organization, them being true or not does not matter, the damage is done and now the Bears are mixed in an internal scandal which doesn't make them look good.

   The Bears have one lost game more than I expected which was the stolen game against the Steelers, so by my calculations they aren't going to reach the playoffs. Statistically they can still make it even if they still lose two more games not being the Vikings and this next one against the Lions but a lot would need to go their way and winning against the Vikings is not a given. If they manage to win the Vikings series, tomorrows Lions game, against the Giants and one of the Cardinals, Seahawks and Packers games, then there is a very slim chance that the Bears could give fans some ugly and stressful postseason hopes but first, and I cant believe I'm saying this, we need to wait the outcome of tomorrows thanksgiving game against the winless Lions and see if the Bears are capable of beating them with Dalton at the reigns, so hard to be thankful for football right now.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 10 picks

   Almost a perfect week but I had to get one right, better unlucky next time. It was a backwards week this past one with big upsets, I personally was really upset. I just going to get to it. On to next week.

W7 Record: 1-12

Overall: 30-98 (23%)

Tampa Bay (-10) at Washington    O50.5

   The Football Team might get better protection for his QB, they might cover but they haven't played like the competitive team they showed at the beginning of the season and against the Bucs it might be too much to get back on track.

Detroit (+6) at Pittsburgh     U40.5

   The Steelers will go without Ben and Claypool, this gives a chance for the Lions to cover this game but isn't a sure thing and the Steelers might be better without their Ben just managing the game and maybe be more aggressive with whoever plays QB, this might turn in to a turnover fest and the running game will determine the game.

Buffalo (-13) at NY Jets    O48

   The Bills will have a taste of MVP candidate Mike White, they already choked against the Jags so what will keep them from not blowing another winnable game? Im starting to believe my own words, this cant happen again can it?

Jacksonville at Indianapolis (-10)    U47.5

   The Jags managed to get the upset probably of the year, the Colts will have their guard up and probably end up crush them in the process.

Cleveland (+2.5) at New England    U45

   Are the Patriots considered a good team now? I mean they have played solid recently but its not like they have won against a good team other than the Chargers, well here is another test for them lets see how they go against a banged up Browns team.

Atlanta (+8) at Dallas     O55

   The Falcons aren't a bad roster, they are just a bad team that show how good they can be when they get out of their own way, the point might just be to many and I believe they can cover.

Minnesota (+3) at LA Chargers     O53.5

   This has the look of a dramatic game ending in heartbreak and who else better to be the heartbreaker than the Vikings in field goal range.

Carolina (+7.5) at Arizona     O41.5

   The Panthers have their star RB back ad have benched turnover cancer Darnold, this might bring new life or just confuse the injured riddled Cardinals enough to cover.

Seattle (+3) at Green Bay     O49

   FU Aaron Rodgers, I'm glad you stubbed your toe.

Philadelphia (+1) at Denver     U44.5

   I don't know where Denver got their mojo back from but I believe it was a one day dose, the Eagles defense will get it done today.

Kansas City  at Las Vegas (+2.5)   U52.5

   Will the real Chiefs ever appear? The impostors will go down against a streaky Raiders team purified by the leadership of Derek Carr.

LA Rams (-3.5) at San Francisco    U50

   The 49ers are getting worse by the day while the Rams went thrift shopping once more getting OBJ and as quick enough they lost Woods for the year which is not ideal, still they have offensive weapons galore and should be enough to win, Stafford just has to overcome his PTSD and remember he isn't with the Lions anymore.

W9@PIT: The away game against the stripes

    I never was interested in knowing the name of an NFL ref before, I can react to names I have listened before like Ed Hochuli for example not being sure how his name is properly written because I am not interested in having that knowledge, now I may never forget a name and it will be linked to a feeling of anger for some time, I am pretty sure it will pass but not the name, the name I believe will stick until he ceases to exist in the league, maybe longer but I hope not, it would only bring me unhappiness which I don't need. Anthony Joseph Corrente along with his crew ruined a Monday night football game with multiple questionable and incorrect calls followed by some questionable and incorrect non-calls, the vast majority of these calls and non-calls where against the Bears and that obviously PISSED ME OFF, it destroyed what should have been a very dramatic 4th quarter and very possibly a comeback win for the Bears to a very stained and ugly game. To make matters worse the NFL committee was content with this referee and his crews job, so NOTHING WORNG HERE MOVE ALONG. This is a really bad joke, its like going against the employee that spat in your food in front of you then comes the manager to say nothings wrong, here is your food and you will like it because you have nowhere else to eat but here. I hope Tony Corrente loses his car keys daily, eats stale cereal and runs out of hot water for the whole winter. Same goes to Matt Nagy for defending him and the taunting rule instead of his guys. The rule is broken, I dreaded the day it would do something like this, tip the balance of a close game, it was like I imagined it times ten because it happened to the Bears, why is it 15 yards? Why is it equal to a personal foul? Its equal to someone trying to HURT SOMEONE, is it a penalty for hurting the others feelings? I'm all for it when it gets players or personnel kicked out of the game for repeated violations for acting like a spoiled child, even once could be enough if the rule is solid and understood, but come on! don't tarnish the game with "I FELT IT WAS", its stupid even if it goes someone's way its just not right, get them out of the game and continue playing football. They played Cassius Marsh wrong, the penalty never looked like it was for what it is said it was for, Marsh never should have stayed in the field as much as he did but other than that HE DID ZERO, NOTHING to offend anyone, Corrente's hip check on the other hand is way out of line, that was obviously intentional and it wouldn't surprise me that he threw the flag with the intent of penalizing Marsh for that hit but got caught on camera and changed the narrative. Hearing Justin Fields talking in game to the officials asking them to call it equally for both teams after getting a late hit early in the 3rd quarter wouldn't surprise me if this was the trigger Corrente needed to start this whole mess, it might even get worse and Fields just placed a target on the Bears for the refs, the same organization that got rid of the pass interference challenge in one year because of their big ego.

   Anyway, the offense couldn't get it together in the first half, it took them until mid 2nd quarter to start moving the ball successfully and once they did manage to get past mid field they just couldn't get out of their own way failing to get some needed points on the board, the real success started on the second half  when they started with possession at their own 7 yard line and rumbled all the way to the 1 yardof the Steelers, then the ref ball started, getting penalized 15 yards for an illegal block that clearly wasn't there, then some major hits to Fields that weren't enough to get called stopped the Bears at a 4th and goal at the 4 yard line, now its Nagy's time to shine not helping himself not get fired, down by 11 on a big drive he decided to go for a chip FG destroying every ounce of momentum the drive created, what happened with more TDs less FGs "BE YOU" Matt Nagy? Sending in Cairo Santos for a 65 yard FG to end the game, really? THROW THE BALL, this man is so done. Fields looked very good in this game, almost topping 300 yards through the air and some extra with his feet, he truly excels when PA is called and when he scrambles to make time but most importantly he also shows that when there is a pocket he can hurt defenses even more. He has still things to get better at in terms of quicker and better decision making and not giving up searching for receivers when scrambling out of the pocket but shows that he is capable of doing it all and his accuracy is legit, I think I watched the whole game not being nervous that one of his passes was dangerous, on the contrary he made a pair of tight window passes that were jaw dropping even when under duress and made them in the 4th quarter down in the scoreboard, if given more time at the end or even with one time out in the bag he could have gotten the Bears the win, what he has shown is what the Bears have been missing for a century (sorry Cutler, you were close), still early to say but on this game he showed its a very likely possibility.

Upside players: Fields obviously. Great to have David Montgomery back, even if the run game had to be limited because of the score, he looked 100% and didn't look he is missing a beat. Cole Kmet appeared often in this game and is growing as the double threat we would like him to be. Larry Borom didn't have a perfect game but controlled T.J. Watt's pass rush very well al night and that was no easy task. Sam Mustipher wasn't great but he made plays for once, he wins a chance to prove it for one more game, still prefer to see what James Daniels can do at C but there is still time.

Downside players: Honestly there wasn't someone that was an obviously choice but I still expect more from Cody Whitehair.

   The defense was missing key players from the start without Khalil Mack, Eddie Jackson and Alec Ogletree then Akiem Hicks fell to injury at the last half. Sean Desai and the remaining players fought hard but came up short, the holes left by these injured players could be hidden well enough, the lack of pass rush exposed the weak secondary enough for Ben Roethlisberger to find the creases using the short and quick passing game like the field manager he has become with age. Also the defense got outmuscled often by the Steelers rookies Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth, on the other hand the same could be said of rookie C Kendrick Green who was tortured regularly by Eddie Goldman which helped stop the run and even rookie LT Dan Moore Jr. had some growing pains against Robert Quinn. Sacks were made but the Steelers game plan made it that there were not many chances to get to the QB, still there where times that the front seven just didn't get enough pressure in key situations, the return of some or all of the injured players might turn things around.

Upside players: Goldman had a fieldtrip against the rookie limiting Harris runs for short gains. Angelo Blackmon and Khyiris Tonga helped to limit the Steelers running game as well.

Downside players: Danny Trevathan isn't the same guy anymore and this year might possibly be his last at least as a starter. Kindle Vildor and Deandre Houston-Carson had bad performances getting man handled and giving to many big plays.

   The post season might be out of reach for the Bears at this mid season-ish point, with a 3-6 record the most probable way to revive their playoff hopes is by winning every game against their division rivals, beating the Giants and at least one of the rest between the Ravens, Cardinals and Seahawks. Its a tough task and the only thing that would keep this tiny flame alive is Fields continuous progression, anything is posible with a good QB, when the ref don't get in the way.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 9 picks

   Horrible week, I will just leave it at that. Oh I'm sorry! I thought Flacco was playing and not future hall of famer Mike friggin White, the Bengals converted to their old ways like instant coffee. I'm starting to think the Chargers are not all that good more than the Patriots are not all that bad. The same could be said about the Football team, where is that elite front seven I was promised? How did the Saint win against Tampa? HOW? And how are the Chiefs THIS BAD? On to next week.

W7 Record: 2-12

Overall: 29-86 (25%)

Atlanta at New Orleans (-6)    O41.5

   The Saints are inflated in confidence after beating the NFL champs, I still don't know how they did it, it wasn't because of Jameis Winston and will not matter that he will be not playing this game instead it will be Trevor Siemian who is even less trustful than Winston but not by much, luckily this week is against the Falcons who come from a game they totally Falconed and will continue to climb the draft ladder this week.

Buffalo (-14.5) at Jacksonville    O48.5

   Its doable, the Jaguars are a struggling team even when they are fully healthy, the Bills on the other side are banged up at OL, putting pressure on Josh Allen is the Jags only hope, cant trust they will.

New England (-3.5) at Carolina    O41.5

   The Patriots are finding the end zone more frequently these past weeks, the Panthers are the opposite, they could have McCaffrey back for this one, even if its limited he is the heart and soul of this offense and could be a wild card for this game, I will wait this game out to really believe he can turn this team around.

Minnesota (6) at Baltimore     U50.5

   The Vikings are a hard team to read, they can go toe to toe with anyone, even the basement teams, I believe they will stick enough with the Ravens to cover.

Cleveland at Cincinnati (2.5)    O47.5

   The Browns are getting healthier but I will go with the down but not beaten Bengals to rebound from their disastrous game against superstar Mike White.

Denver at Dallas (-10)    U49

   Dak looks to be back and its enough for me to believe he will lea the Cowboys to ultimate victory.

Houston (+5.5) at Miami     U46.5

   Tyrod Taylor is back and will lead the Texans out of football hell and lead them to purgatory once more.

Las Vegas (-3) at NY Giants    U46.5

   Will the Raider get distracted by their resent news about Ruggs and Arnette or will David Carr show they the way to beat the lowly Giants? 

LA Chargers (-1.5) at Philadelphia    O49.5

   This game will show us what the Chargers are really made of facing of an Eagles team that I'm not sure they know how they win when they do.

Arizona at San Francisco (-3)    U45

   Kyler Murray's status is what would turn this whole game around, looks like he will be limited with an ankle injury, Murray not running is just not good.

Green Bay at Kansas City (-7.5)    O48

   I hate the Chiefs for giving me hope of a victory against an Rodgerless Packers team. 

Tennessee at LA Rams (-7.5)    U52.5

   The king is dead, long live the king.

Chicago (+6.5) at Pittsburgh     U39

   So the Bears just cant get the job done, this game is one more shot of getting a win before things get really ugly. I cant say I'm hopeful about it.

W8vsSF: Clicking

   Once the game was over I remembered I had the Bears probably losing to the 49ers mostly because of experience, it ended up being somewhat true but not as I expected. The Bears had their chance to win this one and arguably they should have, they couldn't maintain the lead surprisingly because the defense just got outperformed, outcoached and just plain shot themselves in the foot.

   The offense pretty much controlled the game eating a lot of clock and moving the ball with good enough rhythm, not efficient but effective, they just didn't got it done in the scoring department enough to overcome the lack of defense. Justin Fields had a good game, showed he can be a QB and a weapon, the Bears called vastly more PA that benefited Fields to make plays, he is still missing the long passes but he might be getting there in terms of confidence, there wasn't much need to go long although its something I am waiting/wanting for him to exploit against defenses, take some more risks, ill be patient though just because games like this give me hope that Fields is constantly progressing and shows how poised and dangerous he can be with the ball when given time and even when the play breaks down also showed he can make something out of nothing. Khalil Herbert and the OL had a very good first half but struggled in the second, the 49ers just found a way to take the run game out of the Bears plans, although this is not ideal, it showed Fields could still make plays in spite of it. 

Upside players: Larry Borom wasted no time to show he is legit, plugged in at RT in front of Nick Bosa  who is not your average Joe pass rusher and didn't lose a beat, excited to see the day him and Teven Jenkins play on opposite edges, just imagining them both being hits and anchoring the OL for years to come protecting Fields would be so awesome. Fields did his part and more on this game, arrow still pointing up making it extremely easy to have patience with his growth.

Downside players: James Daniels had a rough game against Arik Armstead who is no easy task for anyone, it wasn't a complete disaster but he did struggle, got to get better against the good ones. Still waiting for the Bears to reshuffle the interior so they can bench Sam Mustipher.

   Normally 22 points would have been enough for the Bears to win against a banged up team with an above average QB, not this time. The Bears defense were on bend but don't break mode for 3 qrts of the game ultimately braking once they entered the 4th allowing two 49ers TDs to seal the game. Sean Desai got outcoached and probably missed having Eddie Jackson patrolling the outfield, the defense couldn't make the 49ers punt once and got torched on some plays that maintained the 49ers alive the whole game. It is very strange to see them get beat by the run game when having their front 7 almost completely healthy except for Khalil Mack, some mismatches on pass plays and the lack or no pass rush at all just killed any shot they had of stopping them from getting points. 

Upside players: Alec Ogletee played with good effort and its something you would like to see in all of the players on the field. Akiem Hicks is an example for anyone that wants to play at the DL, plays hard and never quits.

Downside players: The defense as a unit crumbled without their center fielder and prime pass rusher, Desai just didn't look to have an answer for his players to fill the void Jackson and Mack left, creating no pressure and not finding a way to stop the quick passing game.

  This game is an opportunity for Desai to learn and get better and an eye opener for the offense to realice that they have ways to go to be considered a good offense, compared to last year they have progressed but it would be comparing them to mediocrity, less three and outs and consistence in moving the ball passed mid field are things that should be a standard by a good offense, they need to get with the times and focus on how to get Fields in better positions to help his offense score more points. The Bears lost their chance to be on top of the division when they lost to Green Bay, now they lost their chance to better their chances to be in the post season by losing to the 49ers, if they lose at Pittsburgh on Monday they cut their chances to even get the last wild card spot to barely none, either way they shouldn't lose their focus even if the regime that is now in control of the team shouldn't be considered for many, if not any, to return next season unless the unexpected happens and even then the results should be evaluated meticulously, but who am I kidding right? By deciding or failing to get any trade value for the veterans on the team before the trade deadline and not stocking for a rebuild for 2022, Ryan Pace and the rest are set to squeeze every drop of energy and fight this team has and see where it can get them to. Now there is nothing more to do but watch this season unfold with what they have. As like last week, the Bears have a shot to beat the Steelers low powered offense, talent isn't the problem with Chase Claypool, Diontae Johnson and Najee Harris having enough playmaking ability to make anyone pay, it seems the problem relies on the OL and the aging Ben Roethlisberger, the Bears need to get pressure to stop this offense. The Steelers defense in the other hand is not too shabby with T.J. Watt and the front seven terrorizing QBs, the Bears OL will have a challenge in their hands to give Fields enough time. Looking at it closely this could end up being the 49ers game all over again, can the Bears and their coaching staff be ready this time around?

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 8 picks

   Did ok for one more week how bout that? Don't know why I picked OVER on the NO/SEA game that was stupid. What the hell is happening to the Chiefs? The Bengals are a really good team, wonder when are they going to implode. The Lions and their freakin YOLO tactics are going to ruin a lot of games. On to next week.

W7 record: 5-7

Overall: 27-74 (27%)

Cincinnati (-11) at NY Jets    U43

   Flacco? Really? Bengals, all day.

Tennessee (+2.5) at Indianapolis    O51

   OK, here is the deal, I like the Titans but the Colts are getting back in shape injury wise, its going to be a tough game.

LA Rams (-16) at Houston    O46.5

   The Rams should pull this one off if they don't fall for the 4th down shenanigans again.

Pittsburg (+4.5)  at Cleveland    O43

   Cleveland is the better team but they are very hurt and led by a broken Mayfield, this might cost them to be able to cover.

Philadelphia  at Detroit (+3.5)   U48

   You cant trust neither of these teams, who wants it more? 

Miami at Buffalo (-14)    O48.5

   The Bills are too much for a Dolphins team that just hasn't grown enough and are visiting hostile environment.

San Francisco  at Chicago (+4)   U39.5

   Ok... lets try this again, the Bears should win this one going against a very banged up team.

Carolina (+3) at Atlanta     O46.5

   The Falcons have shown they have offensive talent but they still struggle to win games because of their defense and because they are still the Falcons.

New England at LA Chargers (-4.5)    O49.5

   The Patriots have found a way to put points on the board, can their expensive defense stop the Chargers offense? I would think not.

Jacksonville (+3.5) at Seattle     U44.5

   Its time for my underdog pick of the day, don't trust Geno so I'm giving the rookie QB a chance to pull the win.

Tampa Bay (-4.5) at New Orleans    U48.5

   Bucs by 5? Why? 

Washington (+3) at Denver     U44.5

   I don't get why the Broncos are favored in this one, The Football team isn't the most consistent team but they at least show they have a team.

Dallas  at Minnesota (+3)   O51.5

   This one should be a good game, the Vikings play it close to the chest every game, might just get enough to cover.

NY Giants at Kansas City (-10)    O52

   Can the Chiefs get so bad to lose to the Giants? this is going to be my Monday night? sigh.

W7@TB: Fed up

   Didn't expect a blowout of that proportion but the Bears got their behinds handed to them by the Buccaneers, the loss was expected but the result was, well, really not THAT bad as the score makes it look. Either way, Matt Nagy and the whole offensive regime has to go, like right now wouldn't be THAT bad.

   For starters, the offense ran the ball extremely well with Khalil Herbert getting almos all of the workload breaking the 100 yard barrier on the ground plus change on the air. The problem wasn't even that Fields and the offense couldn't move the ball, its just that they got bit by the turnover bug way to hard that ultimately cost them posible scoring drives. The first recovered fumble by Fields was just bad communication all around from the play they picked to not redirecting assignments, the two lost fumbles where just stupidity at its fines, once more the coaches had the brilliant idea to call obvious pass plays while letting their number five emergency swing tackle who had no practice the whole week cover 2019 sack leader Shaq Barrett and pro bowler Jason Pierre-Paul... WHY?! Why take the chance? why think it will all go well? why put your franchise QB at a potential risk? Are these Nagy's WHYS?! He can take them home along with his offensive personnel and boring scheme that Andy Dalton has played for his whole career behind his ex coach Bill Lazor, no wonder Nagy was so patient getting Fields in when you got everything placed for the average veteran QB, it all makes sense but at the same time it doesn't, Dalton gives the best shot to play a good offense (not necessarily win because of it) on game day because of the coaches and system established on the team, this obviously would give time for Fields to be on the bench and learn BUT what was he going to learn? the boring offense? The "pre snap defense evaluation pick your guy and hope for the best" offense? The "it doesn't matter if our Oline crumbles because we don't max protect send 5 hitches get the ball away in two seconds or you die" offense?  The "if you aren't good enough to read properly and you pick the wrong guy just throw it away, hope a defender slipped or run for your life" offense? The "I know you didn't play this kind of offense at college but your going to learn it here and like it" offense? The "welp our guy got hurt time to see if you learned enough I DONT CARE IM NOT GOING TO CHANGE ANYTHING FOR YOU" OFFENSE? I'm obviously no formation expert but its obviously NOT WORKING, ok I'm done. Fields had a bad game and threw 3 picks, one he threw it too high for Mooney but it hit both of his hands so its questionable, the other two were bad placed balls and the deep one to Allen Robinson was gut wrenching, to see a bad deep ball from Fields when that was advertised as his strength just made me feel sick for a second but its still too early to judge him behind a very bad offensive structure.

Upside players: there's not much to go around here besides the obvious, Khalil Herbert slashed through one of, if not, the toughest front sevens in the league behind an imbalances Oline. Honorable mentions to James Daniels and Jason Peters for just being solid players on the field and off the field Peters gives A+ effort by giving Bears fans some news to feel good about this week for a change.

Downside players: Darnell Mooney had a bad game, still young and hopefully will get better because of it. Sam Mustipher and Cody Whitehair are still struggling to anchor the middle, its time for change.  

   The defense had no chance but kudos to them for fighting till the bitter end, they got steamed rolled via the run game making Tom Brady's job easier, the DLine really isn't the same with out Akiem Hicks. The pass rush failed miserably, they rarely even touched Brady enough to make him uncomfortable, the result could have been even worse but Brady left points on the field with some bad red zone throws. Missing Robert Quinn and with Khalil Mack nursing an injury and trying to fight through it doesn't surprise me that the rush failed, Trevis Gipson was the closes to get to Brady but he isn't there yet and should have been the one that helped the others get to the QB but for some reason I'm still missing to see why the interior of the DL is failing to get pressure, maybe they were just to worried about the run and the heavy numbers the Bucs were using at the line of scrimmage, they obviously wanted to run and maybe where hiding the plays too well. 

Upside players: DeAndre Houston-Carson looked pretty good filling in at SS, made some good tackles and played even better covering receivers, might make Sean Desai think twice before plugging Tashaun Gipson back in when he is healthy. 

Downside players: The desperation is spreading and it took a toll on Bilal Nichols when he lost his cool and ended punching a Bucs defender getting himself ejected from the game, I cant blame them for feeling frustrated when they aren't getting no help from their offense but it can not reach this level where they take it out after the whistle has blown, keep it for the next play.

   Next up, the 49ers travel to Chicago in what should be a winnable game for the Bears, although they will still be somewhat limited on defense with Mack potentially not playing and Quinn not yet out of COVID protocol, Hicks is practicing but a groin injury doesn't fade away so easily and it could get worse when you re-injure it like he did at the Packers game. Honestly I wouldn't be opposed to the decision to place Mack on IR and get him rested until after the BYE week, I would even consider placing Hicks as well, the Bears have to start performing at offense if they want to be relevant or just for the sake of getting their young guys better and taking some of the load off the defense. Fields has commented he will be focusing on improving his communication with his receiver which is on point something they are in desperate need. This next game is a very good stepping stone to get things moving in the right direction offensively but again, like a broken record, things need to change more than they have, the Oline needs to be reshuffled to relieve Mustipher from his duties and go to the bench as a backup where he is needed and try Whitehair or Daniels at center with Alex Bars at G although Germain Ifedi or returning T Larry Borom would have to be healthy enough to play RT for this idea to have a chance or just go with Elijah Wilkinson if available or Lachavious Simmons with practice just to get the idea rolling, I prefer to go with this rather to just keep going with the same decaying formula, this season is about knowing how to get better and its not going to get figured out staying the same and making the same mistakes.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 7 picks

   Last week was not too shabby, managed a decent record but still missed on some games because I still believe in defenses to make the under, not too many surprises though, the Chargers getting the snot beat out of them was not expected, Lions, Giants and Texans reaching an all time low, the Cowboys giving me a heart attack because who knows what the Patriots are  and the Titans clawing for the win against the Bills was the close game everyone didn't know they wanted. This week looks tough with teams matching up with similar talent or the lines of good teams against bad ones just being absurd.

W6 record: 5-8

Overall: 22-67 (25%)

Kansas City (-4.5) at Tennessee    O57.5

   The Chiefs defense has struggled mightily and can continue against Henry and the Titans, the Chiefs are getting DL help back while the Titans are still banged up at defense, The Chiefs will need Mahomes to score points and it should still be his speciality.

Washington at Green Bay (-8)   U48.5

   I don't trust the Football Team to make noise against Rodgers and the Packers when they got their on OL injuries to deal with.

Cincinnati (+6.5) at Baltimore     O46.5

   Every week the question is if Lamar Jackson can come up with the win against a good team, he just might do it this week as well but will be close.

Atlanta (-2.5) at Miami    O47.5

   The Dolphins might have some internal issues with their QB being rumored to be in the trading block, going to trust the Falcons offense and see if they can piece it together this week.

Carolina (-3) at NY Giants    U43

   The Giants are really bangged up on offense, might be just enough for he Panthers to take advantage and get the win.

NY Jets at New England (-7)    O42.5

   I don't know if the Patriots can separate themselves from the Jets on the scoreboard but the Jets havent been looking good and there's nothing telling me that is going to change.

Philadelphia at Las Vegas (-3)    O48.5

   Very similar teams going against each other but I believe the Raiders are the team to beat.

Detroit at LA Rams (-16)    U50.5

   The Lions are that bad huh? Will Campbells words make Goff amp his game up? I'm not betting on it.

Houston at Arizona (-17.5)    U47.5

   Yeah those are the Texans I was talking about.

Chicago (+12.5) at Tampa Bay     U47

   Yep I'm going full homer on this one, not saying the Bears are going to win, just not losing by that much with the Bucs having Gronk and Brown out for this one.

Indianapolis (+4) at San Francisco    U44

   The Colts have battled hard on every game while the 49ers have left a lot of questions, taking the points.

New Orleans (-4.5) at Seattle    O42.5

   The Seahawks are just not the same team without Wilson.

W6vsREFS: Still paying rent

    Aaron Rodgers remains a thorn in Bears history, has always been and it seems that he will continue to be until he retires, the only thing that made this game winnable was because the Bears made attempts to change things for the better and the Packers had enough injuries to consider it an advantage for the Bears who can still not be considered a good team, so when a game is officiated as bad as this one it does affect the end result, you can argue that there where bad plays called for both teams but what is not up to debate is that there were HORRIBLE calls against the Bears and it doesn't take many bad calls to bring down an unstable team playing a rookie QB led by a coach that cant get his head out of his ass. Still the Bears fought through adversity but ended coming short as usual, the end result was more of the same and it sucks and its tiring. But looking at the process, the plays and players, there is something good to come away with even if it wasn't the win that Bears fans so much wanted against this team and its QB.

   The offense got their shoe laces tide together when that offside wasn't called for a free play, making Justin Fields get picked when he threw the ball deep to Allen Robinson who in two occasions stopped his route instead of going to the end zone, almost ending in interceptions on both plays. They continued to stumble after that until the 4th quarter where they managed to score once more since their first drive, the game was close thanks in great part because of their defense of course but ultimately couldn't keep up and the offense AGAIN couldn't do enough for a comeback. So as I said, it ended being more of the same in a nutshell, but looking closely there were things that can be salvaged. The Bears left point in the field, the penalties and stupidity by the refs all mixed up in this game were in part the reason why they couldn't capitalize, putting all that aside they managed often to move the ball across midfield and had a chance to make enough FGs to tie or even win the game but three things failed on offense, the IOL, the play calling and Fields. I'm having problems trusting Sam Mustipher and Cody Whitehair including new plugged T Elijah Wilkinson, if they aren't getting beat by the big nasty NT and DTs they are just getting sloppy or not finishing their blocks, they are a big reason the Bears don't have splash plays because they don't give Fields enough time making him hesitate or don't sustain the blocks enough for the running back to get bigger gains, where did the nasty blocking from las week go? This brings me to the play calling specifically when trying to go deep, knowing that the Oline is getting blasted from the inside, how is Fields suppose to get time if you got your Olinemen are blocking one on one resulting in your G/C getting pushed and destroying the pocket? Why implement boot legs in PA plays and make them so long to develop if Fields is going to have a defender in his face when turning to look for the WR because his Olinemen are losing? This brings me to Fields which I don't blame him much, he doesn't NEED to change things but he HAS to understand and react to these problems, he cant continue to take sacks and get taken out of FG range. I feel like Fields is trying too hard not to make mistakes or force the ball to much, on the play where Robinson got open on the PA boot after Fields evaded the in coming defender it did look like he spotted Robinson and winded up for the throw but at the last second decided not to do it and ran, possibly because he got worried the defender he evaded was too close to him and might punch the ball lose. But then on his second long end zone throw it did look like a desperation pass where he THOUGHT Robinson was going to keep running deep but it wasn't the route so it looked like he was getting a bit desperate in the 3rd quarter and then calmed down for the 4th quarter TD drive, so maybe he didn't want to make difficult throws when it wasn't necessary with a close score in a big game. These are things that I presume he is experiencing and will learn from, the Oline and play calling are definitely not making it easy, what I would expect him to get better at short term watching this game is for him to keep calm and not forget to throw with a good base when there isn't any pressure around and to get rid of the ball when in FG range on a close game. 

Upside players: Khalil Herbert had a huge game and was part of the reason why Fields didn't need to pass the ball so much and that is always a good thing, I expect Herbert to debunk Darrel Williams as the RB2. Cole Kmet had his chance to catch the ball and didn't disappoint, he looks to be on his way to become the two dimensional player that the Bears envisioned him to be. 

Downside players: It might be to soon to judge Wilkinson but Mustipher and Whitehair need to step up and keep Fields clean and keep pushing in run blocking. Robinson and Fields need to be on the same page on broken plays, they can seriously do major damage when they are in sync.

   The defense held the Packers for most of the game but I expected them to have the running game more in control with all of their starting players on the field, but once Aaron Jones reached the second level and Roquan Smith was out of the picture there was no stopping Jones to gain huge gains making Rodgers job less complicated. I do believe that Jaylon Johnson is a good CB and that it was a good idea to let him follow Davante Adams all around the field, but you can expect him to do it by himself all day especially at the end of the game where Johnson already was beaten badly by Adams when lining as a slot receiver, if you aren't blitzing Rodgers then double team or bracket Adams right?  It was a difficult game for the defense but they could of had a better game especially if they managed to stop Green Bays on their last TD score.

Upside players: Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn are trying their best and are getting results, still they need some help from the middle guys. 

Downside players: There wasn't a player on defense that had a worst day than Tashaun Gipson, everybody is blaming Eddie Jackson for bad tackling but if someone is going to get heat for not making a tackle is the guy playing SS, Gipson missed so many important tackles that resulted in huge gains and even a TD, if he was hurt which maybe was the case and why Marquee Christian was playing snaps with Deon Bush also hurt, then I can understand. Mario Edwards and Jaylon Johnson didn't have a bad game but showed poor attitude, Edwards needs to cool down and stop hurting the Bears because he is continuing to fail at handling his temper when the other teams start taunting him (oh yeah which should be PENALTIES AGAINST THE OTHER TEAM), on the play where Johnson gets beat by Adams in the slot on the Packers last drive where Jackson shows his inability to take people down, Johnson displayed what I only can describe as nauseating hustle, he stopped running like three times in that play hesitating to make up his mind if he needed to finish the play himself, WHY?! JUST GO GET HIM! DO! NOT! STOP!

Side note, speaking of not stopping, I got no beef against WR coach Mike Furry, I like his intensity but he has GOT to make his players keep with the play and not stop to just watch the outcome, TEs included even if Mooney and Kmet seem to get it, it just makes the future look a little bit brighter.

   Next up for the Bears is a trip to Tampa Bay, boy is that going to be fun to watch. The Bucs may still be down some DB help but the Bears showed little against the Packers to warrant that they will take advantage of a depleted secondary. Even if Williams returns to help Herbert, the Bucs have one of the fiercest front sevens in the league which is not ideal for the Bears strength on offense. Defensively the Bears will go against Tom friking Brady with only Rob Gronkowski maybe missing this one, still its going to be really difficult to slow this team down, they managed to do it somehow last year, that would be a major surprise if they somehow pull it again probably without Akiem Hicks and whoever can play SS. Still its a game the Bears will not be favored to win, the worse that can happen is if it turns out to be another Browns game which wouldn't help at all with Fields growth, this one may be too tough to watch.

Useless predictions: 2021 Week 6 picks

 

   Lesson learned, 

- OVER is way more probable than UNDER.

- you can't trust the Jets more than once a month.

- Texans, Panthers, Saints and the Football team are teams I don't understand, who are you and what's with the mood swings?

- The Lions and Vikings are cursed, ties are not an option.

   Bengals I hate you for not taking advantage and let the Packers get away with it. The Broncos and Raiders got exposed and were shown to be average teams on the flip side the Chargers and Cardinals are creating momentum. On to next week.

W5 record: 2-13

Overall: 17-59 (22%)

Miami at Jacksonville (+3)   U47

   Is it a sin for the NFL to TRY and program an international match between teams that have high possibilities to be good? No team has a clear advantage, the Jaguars have a promising rookie struggling to put his team on his shoulders and the Dolphins are getting back Tua which is a better option than Brissett but it doesn't drastically tip the scale in their favor, Xavier Howard not playing is the only reason I will side with the Jags and their favored points.

Minnesota (-2.5) at Carolina    O46

   The VIkings have played hard on every game they have played but keep struggling to win even against iffy competition, the same is happening to the Panthers lately with declining play from the defenece and Sam Darnold, with McCaffrey on IR I will side with the Vikings.

LA Chargers (+2.5) at Baltimore    O52

   Two hot teams with even hotter QBs that have played their hearts out and keep getting better, I was impressed on the way the Ravens came from behind to beat the Colts but was it because Indianapolis played it safe and paid the price? Did they give Jackson too much space? I will pick the Chargers offense to get it done but it would surprise me to see Jackson do it again this week.

Cincinnati (-3.5) at Detroit    U47.5

   How will the Lions react to their coach opening up with the media last week? Will it create the spark they are missing to achieve their first win? I'm not keeping my hopes up, gonna go with the more steady and balanced team.

LA Rams (-8) at NY Giants    O48.5

   The Giants are down their star RB and Golladay, expecting too much of Daniel Jones who got rocked last week, give me the Rams controlling this game start to finish.

Kansas City (-7) at Washington    O55

   I trust the Chifes beating an average team as the Football Team, more so when they have their backs against the wall.

Houston (+10) at Indianapolis     O43.5

   The Colts are going to play without their kicker, the Texans are getting to many points. if they get some plays bounce their way like last week, they might just cover.

Green Bay at Chicago (+6)   O44.5

   The Packers are far from a perfect team with significant loses to their secondary, the Bears are gaining confidence, can Fields be the first rookie to hang an L on Rodgers? It's posible, so I will at least take the points.

Arizona (+3.5) at Cleveland     U49.5

   This will be a good game and it's hard to tell if it will be a shootout or a defensive struggle, the Browns will be down their star RB but they have Kareem Hunt to take the lead, the Cardinal are down their starting C which is not ideal and will probably rely on Murrays ability to scramble more than necessary. It all will come down to the play of Baker Mayfield who has played ok behind a heavy run attack, how will he fair this time around with limited run power?

Dallas (-3) at New England    U50.5

   Dak all day, he will be too much for Belichick.

Las Vegas (+4) at Denver     O44.5

   This is a though one, both are very inconsistent teams who are capable of playing good defense although very different styles, the Raiders I fell have a more potent offense than the Broncos but if Carr gets flustered by constant pressure he is bound to make some mistakes, so I guess I will go with the points and hope for the best.

Seattle at Pittsburgh (-5)    U42.5

   The Seahawks should be a very different team without Wilson in a bad way, gimme the old man to win this one.

Buffalo (-5.5) at Tennessee    O54

   Can Henry wear down the defense to give his team a chance? When the Bills are full throttle I don't think anyone can stop them.