Some things in life are absolutes. Some things in life will never change. I’m starting to think one of those is that the Bears’ offense will never be good.
I want to start this off by making it clear that this is not Caleb Williams related. He’s just two games into what is hopefully a long career and has shown promise in two games. I think he can keep getting better as this season goes along.
As long as his offensive line doesn’t get him killed first.
I tuned into Sunday night’s game in Houston excited, despite how poor Caleb and the rest of the offense played in Week 1. The Texans are one of the top teams in the NFL, and testing this defense against their high-octane offense intrigued me greatly. I also wanted to see if the offense improved from an abysmal first try.
At first, it looked so much better. It was clear they wanted Williams to gain some confidence with a bunch of short passes, but it was working. The team was moving the ball down the field and kicked a field goal on the first drive. The defense allowed 13 points in the first half, a touchdown and two field goals, keeping Chicago in the game.
Then, the second half started.
It’ll be hard to find a more depressing half of football for the rest of the season. The Texans must have realized how easy it was to get pressure, because the entire second half consisted of Caleb running for his life or on the ground. The defense allowed just six points in the final 30 minutes, even giving the offense the ball back in the final minutes with a chance to win. But it was never in doubt. Williams ended up getting sacked seven times and was pressured on over 80% of his dropbacks. It was so hard to watch I actually thought about turning it off multiple times.
I am a big fan of General Manager Ryan Poles. He inherited a team with a lot of bad contracts, wasn’t going to compete, and turned it into a team that people can get excited about. The defense is awesome. Caleb Williams has every weapon he needs to succeed. But the offensive line is still so bad. It almost looks worse than it did last year. That’s a big stain on everything he’s built. You can’t do anything if your quarterback doesn’t have time to throw and your running back doesn’t have any blockers to create a path for them. It doesn’t matter how many weapons you have, if the offensive line isn’t working, nothing is going to work.
Look at the Chiefs. The one Super Bowl appearance they couldn’t win, the Buccaneers were able to create so much pressure on Mahomes, rendering him useless. What did they do? Beef up the line to a point that it’s one of, if not the best, units in the league and they’ve won two straight titles. Funny how that works.
I’m politely asking the Bears to figure it out. I had too much hope for this season to watch Caleb take hit after hit after hit. They’ve played two games and it’s wearing on me. Eighteen more games of this might give me a heart attack.
Let’s move onto quick hitters:
At least I have one competent football team. It wasn’t pretty or easy, but Missouri remains undefeated after beating a tough Boston College team at home. There were a lot of points where it looked bleak for the Tigers, but good teams find ways to win and that’s exactly what happened.
I haven’t been to the theater in a bit due to football returning on the weekend, but I’m excited to go Saturday night to go see the new Transformers movie.
I’m very excited for Friday night’s Concord-Warsaw football game, which is officially going to be a top five matchup in the state at 5A. I’ll be at Rush University Hospital that morning for tests at my transplant center, but I’ll be back for that game no matter what!
The picks started off strong this week, as I was 7-4 after the noon slate Sunday. Unfortunately, I went 1-4 the rest of the way and had to settle for another 8-8 week. Better than a losing record, but I’m looking to get it going.
Let’s do this.
THURSDAY NIGHT
New England Patriots at New York Jets (-6.5)
This is certainly an… interesting game to start the week. I can’t exactly say I’m excited for this matchup but it’s a standalone game to start the week so I’ll probably tune in. The Patriots have been frisky to start the season, while the Jets finally won their first game that Aaron Rodgers started and finished last week in Tennessee. This is quite the lopsided spread for a team that has looked just okay through two weeks against a team that hasn’t looked horrible. Perhaps Vegas is planning on the Patriots finally looking as bad as they were advertised?
The Pick: Jets -6.5
1 O’CLOCK SUNDAY
Chicago Bears at Indianapolis Colts (-1.5)
This is a game that I figure most of the people in our area will be tuned into at noon. Both local teams meet up in Indy, searching to get something going. We’ve already talked about the Bears at length in this column, but they did cover in that loss to Houston. The Colts went into Lambeau Field as favorites, but they never had a chance to win that game. Anthony Richardson seemed to regress from Week 1 to Week 2, but you can tell he still has it in him to figure it out. While it’s tough for me to pick the Bears offense in any form, their defense, combined with a struggling QB on the other side, is a recipe to find a way to win. Chicago improves to 2-1, while the Colts fall to 0-3.
The Pick: Bears +1.5
Houston Texans (-2.5) at Minnesota Vikings
I’m not sure how many people expected this, but Sam Darnold has started off the season on fire for the Vikings, who are now 2-0. The Texans have taken the next step from being one of the top up and coming teams in the sport to one of the best teams period. While I will concede that I think Minnesota is going to be a much better team this season than I originally thought, Houston is operating at another level. They win this game on the road.
The Pick: Texans -2.5
Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints (-2.5)
One of my best friends is a college buddy of mine named Brett. He’s a massive Saints fan and is thrilled I’ve picked against them both weeks, as it has clearly worked for New Orleans. Somehow, the Saints are the story of the league so far, averaging over 40 points a game and looking incredible in the process. The Eagles performed a massive choke job against Atlanta Monday night, blowing the game late after a costly drop as well as the defense allowing the Falcons to drive down the field in the final minute. I’ve got bad news for you Brett, I’m not picking against the Saints again!
The Pick: Saints -2.5
Denver Broncos at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-6.5)
The Bucs have looked awesome through two games, battling through injuries to pick up a massive win in Detroit against a heavily favored Detroit team. The Broncos are 0-2 and have struggled mightily offensively with rookie quarterback Bo Nix. I’m at the point with the Broncos that I can’t feel comfortable picking them until I see them get something going offensively, as their defense isn’t at the level to save a bad performance by Nix and the O. Tampa Bay is very good and should pick up a big win at home to improve to 3-0.
The Pick: Buccaneers -6.5
Los Angeles Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers (-1.5)
I like what the Chargers are doing under Jim Harbaugh. They’re running the ball at will, Justin Herbert isn’t being asked to do too much, and the team is 2-0 because of it. The Steelers are also undefeated and Justin Fields has done just enough to get them there. One of these teams is going to have to come back down to Earth at some point, and for some reason, I think it’s going to be Pittsburgh. The Chargers have been more consistent through two weeks, at least at finding the end zone. They get it done on the road.
The Pick: Chargers +1.5
New York Giants at Cleveland Browns (-6.5)
In hindsight, I should have seen the Browns bouncing back after a horrible first week to get a win against Jacksonville. I didn’t expect the Giants to keep it as close as they did with the Commanders, but that could speak to how Washington might not be all that great either. New York was able to move the ball well last week, but they’re in for a rude awakening against a much tougher defense in Cleveland. It might not look pretty when the Browns have the football, but this offense should be able to do enough by one of the worst teams in the league to win by a touchdown.
The Pick: Browns -6.5
Green Bay Packers at Tennessee Titans (-2.5)
The Packers winning against the Colts last week was so predictable, and really shows how good of a coach Matt LaFluer is. They’ll be in another interesting spot Sunday, with Malik Willis facing off against the team that drafted him. The Titans are another one of those teams that has an offense that hasn’t accomplished much this season. I don’t know how the Packers will be able to figure out how to drag Willis to the finish line two weeks in a row, but I think they do it. Tennessee is another team that I’ve not been shy about my low expectations for, and Green Bay moves to 2-1.
The Pick: Packers +2.5
LATE AFTERNOON SLATE
Carolina Panthers at Las Vegas Raiders (-5.5)
The Panthers finally made the decision to bench former No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young in favor of Andy Dalton moving forward. The Raiders had an unbelievable week, coming back from down 10 late in the fourth to stun the Ravens in Baltimore. Do trap games exist in the NFL? Because this feels like the perfect occasion for it to happen. Coming off of a huge win, the Raiders will have to be careful not to let Dalton sneak up on them. While I think Carolina is going to look better without Young under center, I don’t know if the defense is good enough to keep this close enough to cover.
The Pick: Raiders -5.5
Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks (-4.5)
What an unfortunate week for the Dolphins Tua Tagovailoa suffered yet another concussion on Thursday night, and his status for not only the rest of the season, but his career, is now in jeopardy. The Seahawks are 2-0 after beating New England in overtime Sunday. This is another example of a cross country road trip, except this time, both sides are making the long haul to Seattle. Personally, I think both of these teams are in the middle tier of the NFL this season, especially with Tua out for Miami. For some reason, I think the Dolphins keep it close.
The Pick: Dolphins +4.5
Detroit Lions (-3) at Arizona Cardinals
Jared Goff did not look good in Detroit’s loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday, as the offense that we saw look incredible all of last year looked just average for the second straight week. The Cardinals on the other end, have looked awesome offensively through two games, absolutely dismantling the Rams at home. Rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. had his first big game, compiling 131 yards and two touchdowns in just the first quarter alone. I really like Arizona to keep it going this week, picking up a big win at home while leaving the Lions searching for answers.
The Pick: Cardinals +3
Baltimore Ravens (-1.5) at Dallas Cowboys
It’s kind of shocking that the Ravens are 0-2 heading into a big game in Dallas against the Cowboys. This is going to be a make or break game for Baltimore, as not many teams that start the season 0-3 end up making the playoffs. Dallas needs a win here too, as the Cowboys got crushed at home by the Saints. One of these teams is going to have a hard time getting out of the hole that this game is going to create for them, but I can’t picture Baltimore dropping three straight games to start the season. This is a major game, and probably the game I’ll be paying the most attention to in this slate.
The Pick: Ravens -1.5
San Francisco 49ers (-7.5) at Los Angeles Rams
Both of these teams are coming into this game banged up, making it an interesting line. The Niners are missing both Deebo Samuel and Christian McCafferey on offense, while the Rams’ top two receivers, Cooper Kupp and Puka Nucua are going to be out for multiple weeks. If you remember when Deebo missed time last year, San Fran struggled mightily offensively. On the other end though, I don’t know how the Rams are going to move the ball with this many guys out. Running the ball will be difficult against this Niners front, so I’ll have to go with the visitors.
The Pick: 49ers -7.5
WAITIN’ ALL DAY FOR A SUNDAY NIGHT
Kansas City Chiefs (-3.5) at Atlanta Falcons
The Chiefs are inevitable. They will always win, no matter what happens. They won’t always cover, but they’ll always win. The Falcons still haven’t looked great this season, aside from Kirk Cousins’ game-winning drive in Philly Monday night. It didn’t look pretty before then, but they did just enough to pick up the win. They’re not going to win this one, because no matter what, Kansas City will win. It’s just what they do.
The Pick: Chiefs -3.5
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills (-4.5)
This is the first Monday night of the year in which we have two games to look forward to. This should be the better of the two games. The Bills destroyed the Dolphins on Thursday night, while the Jaguars have carried over last season’s slump into this season. There’s something about Josh Allen in primetime, he just seems to get the job done. I can’t imagine how bad things are going to be in Jacksonville if they lose this game to fall to 0-3, but that’s what I think is going to happen. The Bills pick this win up and move to 3-0.
The Pick: Bills -4.5
Washington Commanders at Cincinnati Bengals (-7.5)
This is a game that is significantly less interesting to me. The Bengals cannot afford to fall to 0-3 in the division they’re in. The Commanders offense has been pretty solid so far with Jayden Daniels under center, but the defense has not been. Cincy looked 10x better in Week 2 than they did in the opener, despite not getting the result they wanted. No chance they drop this one, they win it big.
The Pick: Bengals -7.5
Well, here we have it. I’m nervous once again about how this will unfold, but I was last week too and it went alright. I picked waaaay too many favorites to feel comfortable about this working. We will have to wait and see, hopefully I can finally put my first winning week together.
Cheers.
Last Week’s Record: 8-8
Season Record: 16-16