Pompei: Observations From Bears-Ravens
By Dan Pompei--
(CBS) For the Bears, the 2017 season is all about the development of rookie quarterback Mitch Trubisky. So what happened in Baltimore on Sunday was a win in more ways than one.
Here are my observations:
1. Trubisky is capable of making plays many quarterbacks are not, as evidenced by the improvised throw over the middle to Kendall Wright on third-and-11. He thinks on his feet well, he can move and he can throw with velocity and accuracy — that's an excellent combination.
2. There's something about Trubisky that makes you think, "I'd like to play with him."
3. Tanner Gentry was on the field for more snaps than any wide receiver, tight end or running back, but you hardly ever noticed him. It sure would be nice to see him more involved.
4. Tarik Cohen is a cross between Walter Payton and Doug Flutie.
5. Only Dowell Loggains can contain Jordan Howard.
6. Loggains showed great commitment to the run— and the Bears would've lost the game if he didn't. The Ravens stopped nine runs behind the line of scrimmage (for 30 negative yards), four runs for zero yards and held four other runs to one-yard gains, but Loggains kept calling for hand-offs.
7. We can talk about a lot of the things the Bears don't do well. But one of the things they do very well is play physical football.
8. In some ways, this team is in the tradition of many teams in Bears history — physical defense, solid run game, inefficient passing game.
9. If Sherrick McManis doesn't go down in the first quarter, you have to wonder if the Ravens would still have had two kick return touchdowns.
10. Credit to John Fox, Vic Fangio and the defensive coaching staff. They tried some new takeaway drills in practice last week in an ongoing attempt to emphasize more turnovers. What they did apparently worked.
11. It's difficult to win consistently with trick plays, but the Bears are trying. Again, credit to the coaching staff for pulling out all the stops in order to compensate for personnel mismatches.
12. Phil Emery was fired in part because of his drafting was deemed substandard. His drafts are looking better now than when he was let go. Kyle Long was an excellent first-round pick, and Kyle Fuller is starting to look like he might be one too. Alshon Jeffrey was an outstanding second-round pick. Jonathan Bostic, Emery's second round pick in 2013, has bounced around a bit, but now he leads the Colts in tackles.
13. If Fuller always had played the way he played Sunday, he'd be a three-time Pro Bowler.
14. Adrian Amos, same.
15. The Bears should petition the NFL to be moved to the AFC North.
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.