Tag: Chicago Bears vs. Kansas City Chiefs

WATCH: Patrick Mahomes reminds Bears that he wasn’t drafted until No. 10

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes reminded the Bears exactly what they’d missed out on by passing him up in the 2017 NFL Draft.

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes let his play speak for itself on Sunday night against the Bears, where he reminded them exactly what they’d missed out on by passing him up in the 2017 NFL Draft.

But he went out of his way to make it clear following a second-quarter touchdown pass to tight end Travis Kelce. Mahomes ran to the sideline counting to 10 on his finger, a clear gesture toward him being selected 10th overall in the same draft where the Bears elected to take Mitchell Trubisky second.

Mahomes tried to downplay the celebration, which was clearly a dig at the Bears and the eight other teams that passed on him in the 2017 NFL Draft.

“I don’t think about celebrations and stuff like that,” he said. “I just go out there and enjoy the moment. That’s who I am. I play with a lot of passion and I like to go out there and just be out there with those guys.”

While Mahomes was passed over for Trubisky as the No. 1 quarterback selected in the 2017 NFL Draft, Mahomes acknowledged that he ended up in a great situation in Kansas City.

“Anyone that goes about it as a competitor wants to be the first guy, but you know that there’s a process to it,” Mahomes said. “Not everyone’s gonna be picked first. I ended up in a great situation in Kansas City, a situation where I wanted to be and an organization that took me and made me the best player that I could be at this time. I’m just excited that I’m here now.”

While the Chiefs have their quarterback of the future and beyond, the Bears have some tough decisions to make about Trubisky’s future with the team beyond 2020.

[lawrence-related id=433944,433919,433886,433906,433855]

Bears’ loss vs. Chiefs can be summed up in one word: ‘Embarrassing’

The Bears’ 26-3 loss to the Chiefs was a microcosm of their 2019 season, a complete disappointment all around.

When describing the Bears’ 26-3 loss to the Chiefs on Sunday night, one word sums it up: Embarrassing.

But don’t take my word for it, let the players explain.

“Last home game, prime time, it’s embarrassing,” Eddie Jackson said.

Khalil Mack elaborated further.

“You play games like that on TV, prime time, you want to go out and ball, especially at home,” Mack said. “It’s embarrassing to us. We embarrassed our fans. And ultimately that’s unacceptable.”

It was a fitting end at home for a season that began with an embarrassing loss to the Green Bay Packers on a primetime stage. Only no one could’ve known that loss was a foreshadowing of what was to come for the Bears in a season that was once ripe with Super Bowl expectations.

The Bears secured their early offseason with a loss last week against the Packers, which shortly after led to their elimination from playoff contention. And yet, there was still plenty to play for. Pride. Jobs. Contract extensions.

But the Bears looked like a group uninspired as they faced off against one of the best teams in the league in the Chiefs — a squad that Bears fans could only dream of their team becoming.

While the Bears offense put on another embarrassing clinic on how not to play football — including abysmal play from quarterback Mitchell Trubisky right down to the offensive line and to play caller Matt Nagy — in a sad way, it was expected. After all, that’s what this offense has shown they are all season.

But it was the defense’s sloppy play that was frustrating. While no one expected them to stop Patrick Mahomes, they certainly helped him with their self-inflicted mistakes, including costly penalties that kept drives alive and allowed Mahomes to do his thing.

“It was definitely sloppy,” Mack said. “There were a lot of things we gave them, especially up front, rushing wise, on the touchdown scramble and a couple third downs he was able to extend the play a little bit. Ultimately, it’s not the type of ball we want to play.”

The Bears still have one game remaining this season before they head into an offseason with plenty of questions to be answered. One of this questions: What type of ball do they want to play?

[lawrence-related id=433944,433919,433886,433906,433855]

5 takeaways from Bears’ primetime loss to the Chiefs

The Bears were embarrassed in all facets of the game by the Chiefs on Sunday night. But there are five things that really stand out.

The final game at Soldier Field for the 2019 season was a lot like the first back in September. The offense only put up three points, penalty flags rained all over the field and the fans showered the team with boos throughout the whole game as the Chicago Bears lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 26-3, dropping them to 7-8 with one final game to go in arguably the most disappointing season this decade.

The Chiefs were able to stifle the Bears offense and the defense was able to slow down quarterback Patrick Mahomes, but they couldn’t stop him. Here are my takeaways from Sunday night’s embarrassing loss.

1. The entire offense was abysmal

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the Chicago Bears offense didn’t exactly set the field on fire. For the third time this season, the Bears were held to single digits on the scoreboard. Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky missed throws, his receivers dropped his passes when they were on target and the playcalling was suspect once again.

It’s the 10th time this season the offense has failed to score a touchdown in the first half, as well as being held to under 300 yards for the entire game. Everyone is to blame for the lack of production, but one player still looms large…

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Instant analysis of Bears’ embarrassing 26-3 loss to Chiefs

It’s hard to believe the Bears team that dropped a 26-3 loss to the Chiefs in Week 16 were once believed to be Super Bowl contenders.

As the Chicago Bears faced off against the Kansas City Chiefs, they were facing the very team that they could only dream of becoming. They were facing a team with legitimate Super Bowl potential while they were merely pretenders this season.

Matt Nagy is no Andy Reid. Mitchell Trubisky is certainly no Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs’ offensive weapons are far superior to what the Bears have on offense. And the Bears defense, while battling injuries, couldn’t hang with a legitimate NFL offense.

The Bears lost in embarrassing fashion to the Chiefs in their home finale, where they couldn’t even muster a touchdown in a 26-3 loss that seemed to sum up a disappointing season.

There was a numbing feeling about the loss. It’s hard to believe that this Bears team that dropped an embarrassing loss to the Chiefs is the same team that was once believed to be Super Bowl contenders back in Week 1. Where a season that was once bright with Super Bowl expectations was nothing more than a unachievable goal that was long out of reach before this disappointing affair.

While the Trubisky vs. Mahomes narrative sounded loud and clear through NBC’s telecast, it soon became more about the Bears’ overall struggles as a whole. The problems on this team — the problems on this offense — they extend far beyond Trubisky, who had his worst performance in the last month and a half — a performance that will linger well into the offseason, even with one game remaining.

Trubisky completed 18-of-34 passes for 157 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He added six carries for 20 yards early in the first quarter, but that would be the extent of his success in a game that you figure held significant meaning to him.

The Bears offense ended their home finale just as they started the season: Scoring a mere three points and held without a touchdown. The offensive output was embarrassing all around — quarterback play, play calling, dropped passes, pass protection.

While the Bears defense was one of the lone saving graces of this season, they were part of the problem Sunday night against the Chiefs. While they were missing several starters on defense — including Akiem Hicks, Roquan Smith, Danny Trevathan and even Eddie Goldman, who left the game early on with a concussion — the Bears defense had no answer for the Chiefs offense.

Nagy was out-coached in every facet of the game, and his mentor Reid embarrassed him on a national stage.

While there’s still one game left this season — a road game against a playoff-bound Minnesota Vikings team — this offseason is going to be an important one in terms of self reflection and decision making about the future of this team.

[lawrence-related id=433846,433840,433831,433814]

Finally, a double-doink goes the Bears’ way

For once, the Bears were on the right side of a double-doink — this one by Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker.

Nothing has gone right for the Chicago Bears against the Kansas City Chiefs. But there was one thing that did in the fourth quarter — something that brings back bad memories for Bears fans.

Following a Patrick Mahomes touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill, Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker stepped up to kick what should’ve been an easy extra point. Instead, Butker’s kick bounced off the goal posts twice — a double doink — before falling incomplete.

There must be something about that North endzone at Soldier Field, because it also happened to be the spot of Cody Parkey’s infamous double-doink in last year’s Wild Card playoffs.

Bears fans will remember, not-so-fondly, Parkey’s missed 43-yard field goal as time expired. In fact, Matt Nagy refused to let his team forget it, as he crafted an entire kicking competition around it.

Parkey’s double-doink is still fresh in the minds of Bears’ fans, and it doesn’t help with Chicago eliminated from playoff contention and headed into an offseason with a slew of questions.

In a game where nothing seemed to go right for the Bears, they finally got the better end of a double doink.

The Bears trail the Chiefs 23-3 late in the fourth quarter.

Bears NT Eddie Goldman ruled out with concussion

The Bears defense suffered another blow with an injury to nose tackle Eddie Goldman, who suffered a concussion against the Chiefs.

The Chicago Bears suffered another blow to their defense with the loss of another starter to injury.

Nose tackle Eddie Goldman suffered a concussion in the first half of Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. He has been ruled out for the remainder of the game.

The Bears trail the Chiefs 10-0 in the second quarter.

Bears GM Ryan Pace not focused on Trubisky vs. Mahomes, but growth from offense

Bears GM Ryan Pace knows he can’t escape the Trubisky vs. Mahomes comparisons, but he’s focused on improving the offense heading into 2020.

The comparisons between Mitchell Trubisky vs. Patrick Mahomes are nothing new. They’ve been happening for the last three seasons, and they’ll continue for the duration of their careers. But they’ll be at their loudest Sunday night when the visiting Kansas City Chiefs battle the Chicago Bears.

The “what ifs” will continue to sound, they can’t be stopped. And yet, the man that decided to trade up one spot to select Trubisky as the first quarterback in the 2017 NFL Draft, general manager Ryan Pace isn’t focused on Trubisky vs. Mahomes but rather the development of the offense moving forward.

“You understand the narrative—players at the same position in the same draft class are always compared at any position,” Pace said, via NBC Sports Chicago. “But our focus is on our situation and continued growth from our quarterback and really the whole offense.”

When discussing the issues that plagued the 2019 Bears, the offensive deficiencies rank at the top of the list. Chicago ranks 28th in yards per game this year (298.4), which isn’t acceptable for a unit that was believed to make strides in its second season in Matt Nagy’s offense.

But the offense has come alive over the last few weeks, with impressive performances in wins over the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys prior to last week’s struggles against the Green Bay Packers.

“We talked about finding an offensive identity and I think in a lot of ways we’ve done that,” Pace said. “You felt it the previous two weeks, but we know we can play better than how we performed in Green Bay. That’s a game where we moved the ball, but we just didn’t finish drives. We’ve got to be better in that area.”

Obviously, the responsibility of the offenses falls on the quarterback, and Trubisky hasn’t had the season many were expecting from him. His early-season struggles were signs of regression rather than growth, which has raised questions about his future in Chicago. But over the last six games, Trubisky has strung together positive performances, including two impressive outings against the Lions and Cowboys.

“You look at just his knowledge and comfort level in the offense in general,” Pace said. “He’s finishing Year 2 in this offensive scheme and every single rep is important for his growth. I think as he gains more reps you just feel his ability to play faster and more decisive and we’ve seen that jump out in the second part of the season. I just think that comes with that experience.”

[lawrence-related id=433825,433814,433795,433786,433764,433706,433704]

Bears Week 16 Inactives: Prince Akumarka will play vs. Chiefs

Bears CB Prince Amukamara is active against the Chiefs and figures to split reps with second-year cornerback Kevin Toliver.

The Chicago Bears have released their list of inactives for tonight’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Last night, defensive tackle Akiem Hicks was ruled out, as he nurses an elbow that landed him on injured reserve earlier this season. But they got good news about the status of another defensive starter in cornerback Prince Amukamara, who is officially active against the Chiefs.

Amukamara suffered a hamstring injury against the Detroit Lions in Week 13, and he’s been recovering ever since. He missed the following week against the Dallas Cowboys, and then he split reps with second-year cornerback Kevin Toliver in Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers.

The Bears figure to split reps between Amukamara and Toliver tonight against the Chiefs.

The Bears and Chiefs kick things off at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.

Week 16 NFL picks: Who are the experts picking in Bears vs. Chiefs?

Do the Bears stand a chance against the Chiefs on Sunday night? See what the experts had to say in their Week 16 picks.

With the Chicago Bears (7-7) officially eliminated from playoff contention, there’s nothing left of significance for them to play for. So it becomes about building for 2020 as they prepare to face the Kansas City Chiefs (10-4).

There will be no shortage of storylines this week as Mitchell Trubisky will face off against Patrick Mahomes, the MVP quarterback taken after him in the 2017 NFL Draft. Then there’s Matt Nagy squaring off against his mentor Andy Reid. But there’s one significant difference between the Bears and Chiefs: One is headed to the postseason and the other is sent into early hibernation.

Still, the Bears have played well in the last month to have a chance against the high-powered Chiefs. But apparently the experts don’t feel the same. They’re not giving the Bears a chance in this game as 100 percent of experts polled believe the Chiefs will beat the Bears, according to NFL Pick Watch.

Can the Bears prove those experts wrong and pull the upset over the Chiefs? Will Trubisky get the best of Mahomes, at least in this game? Will the student outsmart the teacher? Can the Bears find something to build on for 2020?

We’ll see Sunday when the Bears and Chiefs kick things off at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.

[lawrence-related id=433732,433667,433664,433613,433601]

Bears vs. Chiefs: 4 storylines to watch in Week 16

While the Bears aren’t fighting for playoff contention, there’s still plenty left to watch in their primetime game against the Chiefs.

When the Chicago Bears (7-7) square off against the Kansas City Chiefs (10-4) on Sunday Night Football, there won’t be playoff hopes on the line for Chicago. But there will be plenty to play for.

Whether it’s Mitchell Trubisky looking to continue his streak of positive performances (and against the MVP quarterback taken after him in the NFL Draft) or Matt Nagy facing off against Andy Reid or young guys playing for starting jobs next season, there are no shortage of storylines heading into this primetime affair.

Here are four storylines to watch as the Bears face the Chiefs on Sunday.

1. Mitchell Trubisky vs. Patrick Mahomes

Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

This isn’t necessarily a new storyline in the NFL world — the Mitchell Trubisky/Patrick Mahomes or Trubisky/Deshaun Watson comparisons. The comparisons are inevitable, and they’ll follow Trubisky through his entire NFL career.

But those comparisons will be even louder and more prominent as Trubisky and Mahomes face off for the first time on an NFL football field. And the NFL gods couldn’t have scripted it any better than on a primetime stage where all the NFL world will watch and discuss.

While the outcome of this game will have no bearing on the bigger picture — Mahomes is a special talent with a bright future in this league and Trubisky is a mixed bag whose future has yet to be determined — you’d have to imagine if Trubisky can come out and outperform Mahomes — if only once — it’ll be a source of confidence heading into 2020.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4