2022 Week 10: Chicago Bears 30, Detroit Lions (and the refs) 31

By Kevin Schroeder
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Updated: November 20, 2022

Thanks a lot, Jacksonville. [Photo: NFL.com]

Player Grades

The grading scale goes from -3 to +3 for each play. Screens are graded as runs. Penalties are counted in whatever phase they were committed. Pre- and post-snap penalties are in the “Misc.” column. “Short” throws are 10 yards or less, “Medium” is 10-20, “Deep” is over 20. Everything else (scrambles, throwaways, reads, etc.) is under “Miscellaneous.” Parentheses in a column denote grades/snaps from the opposite side of the ball and are not included in grades/snaps from the player’s usual side. Snap counts are from Pro Football Reference. Box score and other relevant info can be found at that link as well.

Another ref show?

Yep. Bearlissimo put together a thread:

@NFLOfficiating a 44 yard completion on 3rd & 8 on this gaff very late in the 4th quarter. https://t.co/Fi75Riqo69 pic.twitter.com/weq9tagqqi

— Bearlissimo (@Bearlissimo1) November 13, 2022

The officiating was just embarrassingly bad and it’s hard to say it didn’t cost the Bears a win. Two weeks in a row now. The NFL has a serious problem here and it’s a joke that they let this go on.

Speaking of problems…

When Aidan Hutchinson was coming out of Michigan, I viewed him as a better version of J.J. Watt. He’s been better than I expected. He’s already matched Watt’s sack total from his rookie season, his instincts are incredible, he’s adapted to the NFL level seamlessly. He was all over the field in this game. He blew up the play on Fields’ interception. Screw Jacksonville for forcing us to deal with this guy twice a year.

And more problems…

This was two bad games in a row for Jaylon Johnson. Last week was understandable, albeit not ideal, as he had a tough assignment dealing with the Dolphins’ excellent receiver group. This week, he was banged up. That being said, this should probably be taken with a grain of salt since to say the pass rush stinks would be putting it lightly and you can’t expect the corners to be able to cover all day. Still, with a looming decision on his future with the Bears coming this off-season, this isn’t great to see.

And more problems…

The passing game remains one. We’re seeing growth from Fields; he’s doing a better job of going through his progressions and keeping his eyes downfield when things break down. I think he’s doing about as much as can be asked right now. We’re probably not going to know until next year if he can be the passer you need to succeed in the NFL because right now, he just doesn’t have a chance. Either the line lets guys through and he’s running for his life or they leave guys in to block and then nobody’s open because it’s only a 2 or 3-man route combo and defenses can cover that.

Sanborn’s great though!

Uh, not really. He made some plays. And then other times, he could be found going for a ride ten yards up the field. He gets lost in coverage routinely. He’s not a starting linebacker in the NFL. At least not on a good team. Nick Kwiatkoski is a pretty good comparison – he actually kind of looks like Kwiatkoski, too – but he also wasn’t a starter for a good team.

What does this mean going forward?

Frankly, it feels like we’re just kind of running out the clock on the season. Like we just talked about, the pass game probably isn’t going to get measurably better until the team can get some quality linemen. The defense isn’t going to get measurably better until they can get some quality anything. The Bears might be able to win a couple more, but it’s not going to be pretty.

Monsters

Fields, Mooney, Kmet, Schofield was solid, Robinson (!), Morrow, Joe Thomas played well when he was on the field, both safeties were great

Chipmunks

All cornerback persons, Mustipher, Pennel, Jonathan

Four Stars of the Game

Jaquan Brisker