Sunday night’s matchup between the Rams and Bears features two teams that have fallen well short of expectations after putting together strong 2018 seasons. Both teams have regressed this year, specifically with the quarterback play from Jared Goff and Mitchell Trubisky declining.

To preview the game, we talked to Bears Wire managing editor Alyssa Barbieri about what’s gone wrong with Chicago and how this matchup will go.

Is Mitchell Trubisky the biggest reason for the Bears’ struggles?

There’s plenty of blame to go around when it comes to Chicago’s disappointing season. Whether it’s play-calling on Matt Nagy’s front, poor offensive line play or Bears leading the league in drops, it’s more than just Trubisky. But with that said, Trubisky is the biggest part of why this Bears offense is struggling. Despite showing flashes this season, Trubisky has failed to take a step forward, instead regressing drastically. Nagy isn’t doing him any favors shying away from what made Trubisky successful last season — utilizing his mobility. As a result, his confidence has taken a hit. The Lions game was the first time Trubisky looked confident back there, as Nagy scaled back the playbook. Surely they’ll look to continue the trend and try to build off last week’s encouraging performance.

Besides Khalil Mack, who is the Bears’ best player?

Two of my answers fall on guys currently on or headed to injured reserve in defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and linebacker Danny Trevathan. But what that said, receiver Allen Robinson has proven himself to be a special talent that is being wasted by mediocre quarterbacks. Robinson is easily the most productive player on Chicago’s struggling offense, and he’s managed to be productive with opposing teams knowing that Trubisky will be looking for him every time. Robinson’s fast approaching his season totals from a season ago — on a worse offense — and with still seven games left to go. Although he’ll face a tough challenge against [his] former Jaguars teammate, cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

What can the Rams do to have success against Chicago’s defense?

While Khalil Mack has been hailed as the player that makes the Bears’ defense go, Chicago is learning the hard life is without Akiem Hicks, who has been the anchor on that line. The Bears defensive line has been gashed since they lost Hicks to injured reserve after Week 5. While they certainly have talent up front in Eddie Goldman, Bilal Nichols and Nick Williams, who leads the team in sacks, they’ve struggled to find stability in the middle of the line, where without Hicks teams have been able to attack with success.

What’s been the biggest difference for the Bears from last season to this year?

Last season, everything seemed to go right for the Bears. They caught every break, whether it was with injuries or the schedule, they didn’t have to really face much adversity. This season is a completely different story. They’re feeling the effects of significant injuries and they’re struggling with living up to expectations following last season’s success. Their flaws are multiplied as the heat is turned up on a 4-5 team that was supposed to be Super Bowl contenders.

What’s your prediction for this game?

While I expect the Bears’ defense to take advantage of the Rams’ offensive struggles, ultimately it’s going to come down to which offense struggles more. With that said, it’ll likely be Chicago’s. Rams 17, Bears 13