Bills @ Bears
Final Score: Bills 41, Bears 15
Writer: Mike Miklius (@SIRL0INofBEEF on Twitter)
I’ll be honest: part of me has been eagerly waiting for the Bears to face Mitch Trubisky this preseason and to make him look foolish. I was all in on Trubisky after the pick, and I constantly hoped he would become something more. I was ready to see him struggle, for Justin Fields to look great, and to say ‘I still like Mitch’ with a smug smile on my face. Well, it didn’t happen. So was the problem the Bears all along? Is Mitch a new man? Would Buffalo be ‘just fine’ if something happened to Josh Allen? Let’s find out.
Buffalo Bills
Quarterback
Mitch Trubisky: 20/28, 221 yards, TD | 1 carry, 11 yards
Davis Webb: 4/6, 30 yards | 4 carries, -3 yards
Jake Fromm: 3/7, 20 yards
Damn. Looking at that stat line, you can tell Mitch killed it in this one. That’s not exactly the full story though. Digging deeper, it was clear what Buffalo’s plan was: they designed the offense to give Trubisky quick throws on short routes that only required single reads. I have watched a lot of Trubisky, and here is what I could tell you: he is good enough at hitting the first read, and he can play well when he starts strong. He also feasts on bad defenses. Watching this one, the Bills regularly peppered the ball short and I can’t imagine the average time before a throw was even two seconds. All this being said, Trubisky still made some nice passes.
He found Jake Kumerow for a touchdown in the first quarter.
.@Mtrubisky10 dropping dimes. 😎
📺: WIVB + @NFLNetwork + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/cg94OI657F
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 21, 2021
The Bills ran play action, and Kumerow gained a step on his defender. Mitch made an accurate pass and converted the score. He also made a nice toss to Jacob Hollister in another tight window. On the negative side, Trubisky almost threw a pick when a Bears defender baited him into making a bad decision. This was certainly an encouraging outing, but don’t get too carried away.
Running Back
Devin Singletary: 2 carries, 21 yards, TD | 1 target, 1 reception, 5 yards
Zack Moss: 4 carries, 21 yards
Matt Breida: 5 carries, 18 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 18 yards
Reggie Gilliam: 8 carries, 24 yards, 2 TD
Devin Singletary saw the first crack at the backfield in this one, and he looked good with his limited work. His touchdown run was inspiring. Fourteen yards out, Singletary took a pitch and was immediately staring down two defenders. He made a subtle cut to take one of them off his feet and outran the other. He broke another tackle before finding the endzone.
MOTOR‼️
📺: WIVB + @NFLNetwork + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/HUh9ltO3hq
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 21, 2021
It’s hard to say how important it was for Singletary to get the first look, but it happened. Singletary also saw a few red zone carries as well–his biggest obstacle to success this year. Outside of his rushing work, I also counted two targets for Singletary–granted one was called back because of a penalty. The Bills clearly want to get him the ball in space and let him get to work.
Zack Moss was next in the game, and I didn’t see him on the field for the first ten minutes of the game. Moss had a couple of nice runs as well. He shrugged off contact on a six-yard gain and later showed nice patience on an 11-yard carry. I imagine this is still the split we envisioned earlier, and neither back is a high priority target.
Matt Breida made some nice plays as well, and would likely slot in if anything happened to either Moss or Singletary. He had a good run after the catch on his lone reception, and his longest run involved a subtle cut that helped him find 12 yards. Breida is capable, but should be considered the third dog in this fight.
Reggie Gilliam deserves mention for totaling two touchdowns and almost scoring a third. Both scores came at the goal line on fakes to the running back and he plunged ahead.
Strolling in for six. 👌
📺: WIVB + @NFLNetwork + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/zEsCUNdPwn
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 21, 2021
We love a good fullback touchdown. 😤
📺: WIVB + @NFLNetwork + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/zgcqHoBhj6
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 21, 2021
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Isaiah McKenzie: 8 targets, 7 receptions, 72 yards | 1 carry, 4 yards
Jacob Hollister: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 53 yards
Gabriel Davis: 4 targets, 3 receptions, 29 yards
Brandon Powell: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 23 yards
Jake Kumerow: 5 targets, 2 receptions, 20 yards, TD
Dawson Knox: 2 targets, 1 reception, 10 yards
This was definitely the Isaiah McKenzie show today. McKenzie led the team in targets, yards, and returned three punts–including a 35-yarder. McKenzie benefited from the Bills’ quick-hit strategy. His longest reception was only 14 yards, and he was getting peppered left and right. It’s funny to think that his first big play in the game was a fumbled punt return; fortunately, the Bills recovered. McKenzie doesn’t appear to be a serious threat to break out this year, but he’s fun to watch.
Jacob Hollister played well, but his 26-yard catch should be explained a little better. He was lined up on the right side of the line and simply ran straight ahead. His defender didn’t follow, and he was wide open for a big gain. I like Hollister, but realize that half of his yards in this one were about as easy as they come.
Chicago Bears
Quarterback
Andy Dalton: 11/17, 146 yards, TD, INT, 2 sacks
Justin Fields: 9/19, 80 yards, 2 sacks | 4 carries, 46 yards
Andy Dalton saw a bit more playing time in this one–exactly what we were all hoping for–and things started out similar to the last game: the Bears logged a quick three-and-out. Dalton played decently, and I saw a few good things worth mentioning. He made a pair of good throws to tight end Jesse James on the team’s second drive. There was also a screen pass to Damiere Byrd that was almost broken free. Oh and there was the 73-yard touchdown, but we’ll talk about that when we get to Rodney Adams. Still, this offense is not going to do much with Dalton at the helm. The O-line struggled to protect the Bears’ quarterbacks, and the result was two sacks apiece for Dalton and Fields. On Dalton’s interception, he had already thrown the ball deep when his receiver slipped and fell. There wasn’t much that could be done. Allen Robinson should be fine with Dalton, but temper expectations beyond that.
Justin Fields flashed yet again, though the stats didn’t look as smooth this time around. He started off with some quick passes before his first scramble. Fields also saw his receivers’ stone-hands on full display. Riley Ridley couldn’t hold on to a deep shot with tight coverage. Later, Fields hung in a collapsing pocket and delivered a strike to Rodney Adams that was dropped. He also made a great endzone throw to Jesse James where the tight end just didn’t jump high enough to make the score. Fields also made some mistakes. He failed to slide his protection and was blasted from behind, knocking his helmet off and causing the collective Windy City to hold their breath. After the aforementioned throw to James, he came back with an uncatchable overthrow on the next play. Fields is an amazing athlete–as I’m sure you’ve heard–and he looks like he is developing into something special. He is still a bit raw, though, and I still think Dalton should start the season. If the offensive line is as bad as it looks, I don’t want Fields in the game developing bad habits.
Running Back
Damien Williams: 5 carries, 8 yards, fumble (lost) | 2 targets, 1 reception, 2 yards
Khalil Herbert: 3 carries, 15 yards, TD | 1 target, 1 reception, 3 yards
Artavis Pierce: 4 carries, 12 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 8 yards
With David Montgomery and Tarik Cohen out for this one, Damien Williams got the start. Similar to last week, Williams failed to flash in a big way. He is a solid back, but nothing special. The biggest issue here was his fumble. Williams was run right up the middle, and he gained a first down on the play. While fighting for more, he had the ball stripped away and the Bears lost possession. I don’t know how the coaching staff will look at this, but I doubt Williams wants to open the door to Khalil Herbert behind him.
Speaking of, Khalil Herbert had a great outing – putting down tape on offense and special teams. He returned four kickoffs, and he managed to flash on offense despite limited work. Herbert started his day by pressuring the Bills punter, forcing a bad kick out of bounds. Later, he put down a nice block for a scrambling Justin Fields. His touchdown came one play after the aforementioned Justin Fields sack. It was a run up the middle, and Herbert made some subtle cuts–along with shrugging off repeated contact–to find the endzone. I love Herbert as a long-term hold, and I could see him take the lead role if anything happened to Montgomery.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Rodney Adams: 6 targets, 3 receptions, 89 yards, TD
Jesse James: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 54 yards
Chris Lacy: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 26 yards
Riley Ridley: 2 targets, 1 reception, 12 yards
Rodney Adams definitely had an all-time 24-hour period this weekend. Less than a day after becoming a father (baby girl), Adams caught a 73-yard pass as he fights for a roster spot with Chicago. Adams was lined up on the right side in single coverage, and he took off at the snap. Dalton saw no safety help over the top, so he let it rip. Adams caught it against his defender’s helmet, ran through the contact, and went the rest of the way untouched.
.@rodney_adams87, are you serious?! #BUFvsCHI | #DaBears pic.twitter.com/xDJgkvFInq
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) August 21, 2021
The rest of the day was quiet, but this could help turn the tide for Adams. I’d love to see more of him next week.
Jesse James continues to be a big target at tight end as Cole Kmet sat this week. James caught passes from Dalton and Fields, and he could have had an even bigger day if he had gotten a better jump on the Fields endzone pass. James looked like he elevated only about six inches, but he probably needed 10 or 12. Still, James has shown enough where I imagine he should make the roster. If anything happens to Jimmy Graham, or if age has simply slowed him down, James could have an important role here.
— Mike Miklius (@SIRL0INofBEEF on Twitter)
Test
Great read thank you!