Pompei: Observations From Bears-Titans
By Dan Pompei--
(CBS) To anyone who's upset about the Bears' 27-21 loss to the Titans on Sunday, I would ask this: What were you expecting? It's becoming increasingly difficult to react to these losses with anything other than a shoulder shrug.
Here are my observations of the day:
1. Good call to go for it on fourth-and-1 on the first drive. Bad call to not give the ball to Jordan Howard. How can anyone be more confident in Matt Barkley to Logan Paulsen than Howard up the middle?
2. The onside kick at the start of the third quarter was exactly what the Bears needed. John Fox had the right idea in this game.
3. Barkley looked like a quarterback who hasn't had a lot of practice reps and hasn't had a chance to build chemistry with the players around him -- which is exactly what he is.
4. Barkley has to learn to live for another play. Throw the ball away. Take a sack. Call for the punter. Don't throw an interception.
5. Bears receivers looked like they were trying to catch changeups after being accustomed to catching flaming fastballs.
6. Contrary to reputation, it didn't look like there is anything wrong with Barkley's arm strength. His arm is a far cry from Cutler's arm, but Barkley can make NFL throws.
7. One of the reasons for all the drops is Barkley was attempting a lot of low-percentage throws. But there was no excuse for several of them.
8. Barkley looks like he has some leadership qualities. I have no problem with him getting some more opportunities, especially given that Joe Montana isn't available.
9. As bad as the Bears receivers were Sunday, keep this in mind: If you could put Alshon Jeffery, Kevin White, Cameron Meredith, Eddie Royal and Marquess Wilson on the field together (and keep them on the field), you could have one heck of a receiver group.
10. If the Bears were questioning if they should re-sign Jeffery before Sunday, they shouldn't be anymore.
11. The Titans offense is talented, but one of the reasons it's so effective is it's somewhat unique in the NFL. It can be very beneficial to be different from the pack.
12. The initial impression is Bears linebacker Nick Kwiatkowski could be of a defensive version of Jordan Howard: physical, instinctive and effective. He should get some credit for the run defense. Now let's see if he can improve and maintain consistency.
13. The inability to get near Marcus Mariota on Sunday makes a good argument for the Bears to keep looking for pass rush in the offseason.
14. The Titans aren't a great team, but they're miles ahead of the Bears in terms of their roster development.
Dan Pompei has been covering the NFL since 1985 and is a regular contributor to 670 The Score and a host on 670's Bears pregame show. He writes for Bleacher Report and theathletic.com. You can follow him on Twitter @Dan Pompei.