(Photo: Lineups)

Special Preview- NFL, Week Four

Denver Broncos at Chicago Bears

Broncos: When they acquired Russell Wilson last season from the Seattle Seahawks, I was so reminded of when they signed Peyton Manning back in 2012 and I was legit excited because it’s been a struggle for them these last few years. The last time they were in the playoffs was in 2015 when they won the Super Bowl over the Carolina Panthers and Peyton rode off into the sunset. Since then, it’s been that rotating carousel of Quarterbacks that I always find myself mentioning. First, it was Trevor Siemian, then they drafted Paxton Lynch who was being compared to Brock Osweiler, Paxton didn’t pan out, then they tried it out with veteran Quarterbacks in Case Keenum and Joe Flacco, nothing. Trading for Russ has to improve things, right? So far, it’s been a disaster and it dates back to last year. I called the Broncos out several times for misusing their Quarterback. Let’s look back at Russ during his Seattle days and what he did. He was able to succeed because they allowed him to play his style of football. He wants to be mobile and make it happen with his feet and move the pocket. They attempted to turn him into a pocket passer and it failed. Now, I need to give Sean Payton these words. He owes Nathaniel Hackett an apology first because how many times did we see Denver give up 70 points last season? You didn’t! Karma is definitely real. Today, they will look for their first win in Chicago.

Bears: The last time they won a football game was October 24th, 2022. So much has happened since then. The Georgia Bulldogs repeated as National Champions, Elon Musk purchased Twitter or X, whatever you call it these days, LeBron James became the all-time leading scorer in the NBA, Kevin Durant was traded to the Phoenix Suns, Tom Brady announced his retirement again (for good) and their long-time owner in Aaron Rodgers was traded to the New York Jets. That’s not even half of it, but that’s another topic for discussion. There’s so many fingers to point as who’s to blame for the problems in Chicago. Yes, Justin Fields has struggled, but how have the coaches put him in position to be successful? Yes, they did acquire D.J. Moore when they swapped draft picks with the Carolina Panthers, but Luke Getsy doesn’t even call plays for him or if they do, they’ll look his way twice and that’s it. I was talking to someone the other day and I told them I can see the Bears moving on from Matt Eberflus after this season because I don’t think these players want to play for him. You know when a coach is getting everything out of his players when they leave everything on the field and I just don’t see that with Matt. I also said if the Bears do indeed decide to move on from him and if the Commanders decide to move on from Ron Rivera, that’s who they need to hire. The Bears need someone that will hold their players accountable and to be honest, they haven’t had that since the days of Lovie Smith. They return home today for week four with a showdown with the winless Denver Broncos.

Broncos X-Factor: Randy Gregory– When he’s healthy and his head is in the game, Randy Gregory is an absolute monster. The hype surrounding him out of college was out of this world. Randy is great at stopping the run and rushing the passer and in this league, you have to be able to do more than one thing. Versatility is key and if the Bears don’t try to limit him, this will be a long day at the office.

Bears X-Factor: D.J. Moore– So hear me out. The Broncos defense is terrible. They allow 40 points per game. I’ve seen the talking about the Bears not using their Wide Receiver correctly. Today, all of that can change. Denver had trouble defending Davante Adams in week one and the Commanders receivers in week two. You already saw what the Dolphins did to them in week three. Use the guy you traded for and get him the football.

Three Things I’m Watching

1. Breakthrough– Someone has to win this game, right? You have a team that allowed 70 points last weekend and another team that hasn’t won a football game in almost a full calendar year. Just imagine the possibility of this game ending in a tie! Again, someone has to break through in this game. Two struggling football teams and neither of them are coached well. We shall see what all unfolds today.

2. Response– Sean Payton said it best. There was nothing positive to take away from that game last week. After big losses like that, I always look to see how they respond. Last week is last week and it happened already. In this league, you must be able to turn the page and look ahead to what’s in front of you. I really can’t wait to see the Broncos energy levels in this one. It’s not what happens to you, it’s how you respond to it.

3. Shootout?– Neither defense has done much of anything. I expect this football game to be a shootout today. The one thing about Denver is the offense struggled last year and the defense was what kept them in games. This year, the roles have reversed. With the Bears, there’s no creativity or innovation within their offense and as a defense, you know what’s coming. They don’t keep anyone guessing. Nothing has changed since the Nagy days. Maybe they can put something together today.

Final Thoughts: Both teams are so bad that this was a game worth talking about. With the way Denver has looked on defense, they must win shootouts. The offense must bail the defense out in each game it seems. Two keys for Denver on defense. The first is to pretend that you care on defense. They missed 24 tackles last weekend against Miami. It’s basic football fundamentals at this point. If the defense can hold Fields to under 250 passing yards, they’ll do the opposite. Watch. The Bears must run the ball on a Denver defense that struggles to bottle up any ground game. Look what they gave up to Devon Achane last weekend. It’s also key for the Bears to pressure Russell Wilson and force him into mistakes. I like Denver to win this football game. Someone has to be victorious.

Prediction: Broncos 27, Bears 20