At the Bye

[Lake Shore Drive]

A bit early to already have the bye for my taste, altho there's an opportunity for our injured players to heal up and be ready for the following week.

Reviewing the team stats, it nice to know that despite the horrid start to our offense those first few weeks and even tho it's still only ranked 22nd in the league, the offense is obviously on the upswing. We're now averaging 301.5 yards per game. That of course is not good enough, but remember those early games dragged down this average. I see that number only increasing as the season marches on. Caleb is getting more and more comfortable and the offense on the whole seems to be much more in synch. Even our OL, which to me will never be better than middle of the road as it currently stands, nonetheless has been playing more cohesively of late.

As we might expect, the defense is showing much better in the stats dept. They're giving up 292 YPG, good for a 7th ranking, and surrendering only 16.8 point per game, 5th in the league. Our turnover ratio is a +6, which is tied for 5th and just one TO behind being tied for 2nd. Our 18 sacks have us in a tie for 6th, which is a pleasant change from the usual bottom of the barrel spot we usually hold for this stat.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

I'd like to add one more take as to the improvement of the offense, and that's to give OC Shane Waldron his due. He's obviously made some adjustments to his game plan and the playcalling has improved a great deal of late. The offense seems a bit more spread out and definitely plays faster. The screens in particular have often worked beautifully. I'd still like to see more rollouts from Caleb to keep the opposing D guessing, but all in all, I can't compain. I remember when we were pretty much ready to dump him in those first few weeks. I think it's only fair that we now give him a share of the credit for the offense starting to come around.

 

[richig07]

The 4 teams in the NFC North are the 4 NFL leaders in point differential (Bears #3 at +48). That's just astounding.

 

[BeaReylo]

The 4 teams in the NFC North are the 4 NFL leaders in point differential (Bears #3 at +48). That's just astounding.

 

[Caliskinsfan]

As I expected

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

As I expected

Both teams and their respective young QBs have been making the news a lot of late - winning will do that. So in a sense it doesn't surprise me, altho at the start of the season I never would have guessed that CBS would flex this as a national game of the week. Despite the national coverage, I won't get the game locally out here in Vegas, as the Chiefs will be in town against the Raiders. It's their best TV ratings draw each year.

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Both teams and their respective young QBs have been making the news a lot of late - winning will do that. So in a sense it doesn't surprise me, altho at the start of the season I never would have guessed that CBS would flex this as a national game of the week. Despite the national coverage, I won't get the game locally out here in Vegas, as the Chiefs will be in town against the Raiders. It's their best TV ratings draw each year.

Might be worth investing in a 1 week NFL plus if that can be done or go to a sports bar. would be worth it, this is going to be a FUN game imo!

Y'all coming off a bye before we meet is added benefit for your team

CBS is sending their 'A' team, Romo and Nantz

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Also like to welcome any Bears fans to partake on the Skins board during the week leading up to the game to add your perspectives and knowledge of your team.
Other than a few crazy posters (you'll figure who very quickly) its a really active board on the HOOP and usually entertains regardless.

I and many others on the board are huge fans of Caleb, given his roots at Gonzaga and DMV ties.

Personally, I really like opposing team fans to add their thoughts! It makes for richer discussion and our franchises have BOTH been thru it

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

Very happy to see the Bears getting fair recognition for their play the past three weeks, but 9th ranked overall?

NFL Week 7 Power Rankings: Cowboys are America's mess right now; Caleb Williams' Bears join the top 10

Pete Prisco shares his Power Rankings heading into Week 7 of the 2024 season

www.cbssports.com

Caleb Williams is getting better by the week, which is not a good thing for the rest of the division. They are 4-2 and he is back in the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the NFL world recognizing that the Bears are up and coming. And I couldn't be happier at Caleb's ascension over these last few games. I'm just not quite ready to claim us as a top 10 team. Now if those recent wins came at the expense of say teams like the Packers, Lions, Chiefs, Ravens, etc, I'd be all hell yeah on such a ranking. No win is a small win, regardless of the opponent. But I think I need to see us beat a few +.500 teams before claiming we're a top 10 ballclub.

 

[Lake Shore Drive]

A couple of updated bits from Bears Wire:

Bears HC Matt Eberflus addresses Kyler Gordon injury

Bears cornerback Kyler Gordon suffered a hamstring injury in last Sunday's win. Matt Eberflus said they're "hopeful" heading into the bye week.

bearswire.usatoday.com

Bears make moves on the practice squad during bye week

The Bears are in the middle of their bye week, but they've made a couple of moves on the practice squad.

bearswire.usatoday.com

While Flus spun a positive note on Gordon's injury update, hammy pulls are always a question mark when it comes to a player's availability, even when there's an extra week off.

Looks like Kmet won't have to worry about long snapping against the Commanders.