Tag: Chicago Bears vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Chicago Bears vs. Cleveland Browns preview: Who has the advantage in Week 3?

We went deep into the Bears-Browns matchup with Browns Wire to determine who has the advantage at the five key factors.

The Chicago Bears (1-1) will face the Cleveland Browns (1-1) on Sunday, where Chicago will be looking for their second straight win. It will also mark rookie quarterback Justin Fields’ first NFL start following injury to Andy Dalton.

When it comes to determining who wins football games, there are a number of factors that contribute to a victory. Solid quarterback play, winning the line of scrimmage, protecting the football and taking it away, controlling important situations and overcoming or taking advantage of an injury situation.

In our weekly preview series, Alyssa Barbieri from Bears Wire and Jared Mueller from Browns Wire went deep into the matchup to determine who has the advantage at the five key factors for winning football games in the NFL.

Cole Kmet says he’s preparing for ‘backyard football’ with Justin Fields at QB

Bears TE Cole Kmet joked he’ll be doing extra wind sprints to prepare for QB Justin Fields’ running and scrambling.

The Chicago Bears are gearing up to face the Cleveland Browns, where rookie quarterback Justin Fields will be making his first NFL start with Andy Dalton sidelined with a knee injury.

There’s going to be a noticeable difference between Dalton and Fields under center. With Fields, his mobility adds another element to his game, where he has the ability to make something out of nothing. For tight end Cole Kmet, he’s preparing for some backyard football with Fields at quarterback.

“With Justin, there’s the play that’s called and then there’s the second play that turns into kind of some backyard football,” Kmet said. “You know I’m going to be getting some sprints in after practice.”

Fields saw his first extended action against the Bengals in relief of an injured Dalton, where he had his share of rookie mistakes, including miscommunication with the offensive line, timing issues with receivers and issues protecting the football.

But there are going to be growing pains with Fields, which is to be expected with a rookie quarterback. Though there were some bright spots in his extended debut, including some beautiful deep balls, some of which were dropped by receivers.

Still, Fields brings something to the offense that Dalton doesn’t: his ability to use his athleticism to make something happen out of nothing. And we could certainly be in for plenty of that Sunday against the Browns.

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Bears Report Card: How we graded Chicago’s offense in Week 2 win vs. Bengals

Here’s how we graded the Bears’ offense in Week 2’s win over the Bengals.

The Chicago Bears recorded their first win of the season with a 20-17 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, where it was more of the same with struggles on offense.

While rookie quarterback Justin Fields did make his debut, it was an overall rough outing by everyone on offense, except for Andy Dalton, who was impressive before exiting the game with a knee injury.

There were certainly some surprises on offense, including wide receiver Allen Robinson’s outing and Matt Nagy’s usage of his tight ends. But the Bears got the win. Now, the offense needs to find some rhythm, and it looks like it’ll be with Fields as the starter.

As we wrap up Week 2, here’s how we graded each position group on offense in Chicago’s win against Cincinnati:

Stock up, stock down from Bears’ Week 2 win

From Jaylon Johnson to Sam Mustipher, here’s a look at whose stock is rising or falling after the Bears’ Week 2 win against the Bengals.

The Chicago Bears recorded their first win of the season with a 20-17 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, where the defense rebounded with a dominating four-takeaway performance and where rookie Justin Fields took over for an injured Andy Dalton.

Now that the dust has settled, we’re taking a look at which players saw their stock rise and which players saw their stock dip during the win.

15 crazy stats from Bears’ Week 2 win vs. Bengals

Here are 15 crazy stats from the Bears’ 20-17 win over the Bengals in Week 2.

The Chicago Bears notched their first win of the season with a close 20-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2, where it was the defense that led the way with four takeaways.

Here are 15 crazy stats from the Bears’ win against the Bengals in Week 2.

Bears PFF grades: Best and worst performers in Week 2 win vs. Bengals

We’re analyzing the highest- and lowest-graded Bears players on offense and defense from Chicago’s Week 2 win.

The Chicago Bears recorded their first win of the season with a 20-17 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, where Chicago’s defense rebounded with a dominant four-takeaway performance and where Justin Fields replaced an injured Andy Dalton.

Pro Football Focus handed out player grades for those who took a snap in the Bears’ win, and we broke them down by offense and defense, analyzing the three highest- and lowest-graded players on each side.

There were a few surprises in terms of the highest- and lowest-graded players, both on offense and defense.

Bears fan looking to return Roquan Smith’s touchdown ball

In the excitement of the moment, Roquan Smith tossed his TD ball into the stands. Now, that Bears fan is trying to get it back to him.

The Chicago Bears defense dominated in a 20-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, where they had four consecutive takeaways in the second half.

Bears linebacker Roquan Smith had the play of the game when he intercepted Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and returned it 53 yards for a touchdown. In the excitement of the moment, Smith flipped the ball into the front row of the end zone, where a fan got a nice memento.

After the fact, Smith wished he’d kept the ball, his first NFL touchdown.

“In the moment,” Smith said. “I wish I would have kept it. But I’m sure I made his year. … I’ll just keep the jersey and I’ll keep the memory.”

Well, good news, Roquan. It sounds like you have a chance to get that football back.

Courtney Fong, the lucky recipient of Smith’s touchdown ball, is looking to return the football to Smith.

“You made my year,” Fong wrote on Twitter, tagging Smith. “It was great to be home. Let’s connect so I can be the second to return your first NFL TD.”

Smith continues to show why he’s one of the best linebackers in the NFL, and he had a banner day against the Bengals. Smith led the Bears with 8 tackles, including a tackle for loss, and added a pass breakup, sack and his interception return for a touchdown.

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Bears QB Andy Dalton believed to have bone bruise in knee

Bears QB Andy Dalton is believed to have a bone bruise in his knee, which could open the door for Justin Fields to be the permanent starter.

Bears quarterback Andy Dalton suffered a knee injury in the second quarter of Sunday’s Week 2 win against the Bengals, and his status is uncertain heading into Week 3.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, when the Bears did manual tests on Dalton’s knee, it looked to be “strong and sound.” Following Sunday’s game, head coach Matt Nagy said he was “pretty sure” Dalton didn’t suffer a serious ACL injury.

Rapoport said Dalton is believed to have a bone bruise in his knee, which would likely sideline him for at least Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns. The Bears will know more when they run more tests Monday.

Dalton could miss at least a couple of weeks, which would open the door for rookie Justin Fields to cement himself as Chicago’s permanent starter.

Fields has been “tearing it up” in practice, according to Rapoport, where “there’s been a lot of wow moments. They’ve seen all the growth they’ve wanted to see.”

Translation: This could be the start of the Justin Fields era in Chicago.

Dalton suffered the knee injury on a second-quarter scramble, where he pulled up limping. Fields stepped in briefly. Dalton attempted to return on the following possession, but he was pulled shortly after. Dalton completed 9-of-11 passes or 56 yards and a touchdown before leaving the game.

Fields played the remainder of the game. And while he had his share of rookie mistakes and a rather unflattering stat line, that was to be expected for a rookie who was thrown into the game without any reps with the starters during training camp or preseason.

There are going to be growing pains with Fields, which is fine, but the best place for him to learn is on the field. With Dalton potentially sidelined for at least a couple of weeks — if not permanently with Fields stepping in — Fields should get plenty of reps moving forward.

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5 takeaways from Bears’ narrow 20-17 victory over the Bengals

From continuing to roll with Justin Fields to locking down Roquan Smith, here are our takeaways from the Bears’ Week 2 win vs. Bengals.

Wins don’t normally come easy for the Chicago Bears, and Sunday’s victory against the Cincinnati Bengals was no exception. The Bears won 20-17 thanks to an efficient first-quarter offense, a dominant defensive performance at all three levels, and a clutch run from Justin Fields to ice the game in the fourth quarter.

Fields saw more time than usual after a knee injury knocked out starter Andy Dalton. With the veteran’s status in question heading into Week 3, the debate to start Fields is sure to ramp up in the coming days. But for now, we’re enjoying the first Bears victory of the season, and I had a few takeaways from the home opener on the lakefront.

Bear Necessities: The Morning After…the Bears’ Week 2 win vs. Bengals

We’re recapping the Bears’ Week 2 win vs. Bengals and the Justin Fields-Andy Dalton debate.

This is our online morning newsletter, Bear Necessities. Subscribe to get the latest Bears news delivered to your mailbox every day.

The Chicago Bears defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 20-17 in their home opener, where Chicago’s defense was downright dominant with four straight takeaways in the second half.

While the defense calmed any significant concerns following an embarrassing Week 1 outing, the big story of the day was the injury to Andy Dalton. Dalton suffered a knee injury in the second quarter, where he was replaced by rookie Justin Fields. Fields had a rough debut, which included rookie mistakes, dropped passes and an ill-advised interception, you have to wonder if we’re seeing the beginning of the Fields era.

There was plenty to digest from Sunday’s game. Our Bears Wire staff is sharing their immediate reactions to Chicago’s first win of the season: