Texans @ Bears
Final Score: Bears 23, Texans 20
Writer: Mike Miklius (@SIRL0INofBEEF on Twitter)
Nothing says Bears football like counting on a key defensive play late to steal a win. Chicago jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead before Houston answered with a touchdown from Davis Mills, seemingly stealing the game’s momentum. Houston found the endzone again to make it 14-10, and a Bears field goal made it a one-point game at halftime. After a quick scoring flurry to start the second half to make it 20-20, both teams decided they didn’t actually want to win today. The Bears’ next three possessions were an interception and two punts while Houston did the same. The Texans ultimately made one mistake too many, and the Bears kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired. Here’s what I saw today.
Houston Texans
Quarterback
Davis Mills: 20/32, 245 Yards, TD, 2 INT
Davis Mills was mostly solid, though unspectacular against a tough Chicago defense. After only one attempt on the first drive, Mills found some momentum on the next one. He hit Chris Moore for a 53-yard gain over the middle after a bit of a defensive breakdown. Moore was basically wide open over the middle, and he caught the ball and ran with it. Mills finished the drive with a nifty touchdown throw to Jordan Akins across the middle. It was a tight window and a great pass. Mills came back out strong on the team’s next drive, hitting Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins for 17 and 20. It looked like Mills was getting into a rhythm and he could have had a pretty big game.
Well, it wasn’t meant to be. On the last pass of the drive, Mills was targetting Cooks, but the ball popped off his hands and was picked by another defender. Mills’ second interception was a lot worse, costing the Texans the game. He was looking for Rex Burkhead, but a Bears linebacker jumped it and easily grabbed the ball. Mills showed some good, but most of his passes were short and the game plan was generally conservative.
Running Back
Dameon Pierce: 20 Carries, 80 Yards, TD, 2 fumbles | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 21 Yards
Rex Burkhead: 3 Carries, 9 Yards | 5 Targets, 4 Receptions, 21 Yards
Dameon Pierce is a good running back. I know the Bears’ running defense is suspect, but Pierce shows power and decisiveness in his movements. He likes to make a strong cut, and then turn up the field hard. On Pierce’s first two carries, he was hit almost immediately. He powered through, turning the plays into gains of four and two. His best drive came with just under ten minutes in the first half. On first down, Pierce cut away sharply from the first tackler and blasted forward for 24 yards. The next play saw him run again–spinning away from a tackler and picking up nine more yards. Pierce carried it two more times, finding the endzone. Pierce looks like the future workhorse here, but there is one issue: the two fumbles. On the first one, a defender made a great play to swat the ball after Pierce had already broken free from a tackle. The second came late in the fourth quarter with the game tied 20-20. On the following play, Rex Burkhead came in and he was featured heavily for the rest of the drive. While Pierce is a great runner, I don’t see coaches being too patient if he keeps putting the ball on the turf.
Rex Burkhead saw a lot of passing-game work and could be useful in PPR if Pierce ends up in the doghouse. Outside of this case, he is just spelling Pierce and doesn’t offer standalone value.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Chris Moore: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 63 Yards
Nico Collins: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 41 Yards
Jordan Akins: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 31 Yards, TD
Pharaoh Brown: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 31 Yards
Brandin Cooks: 7 Targets, 2 Receptions, 22 Yards
Phillip Dorsett: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 15 Yards
O.J. Howard: 1 Target
The Texans clearly wanted to get Brandin Cooks involved today, but it looked like he was having a hard time getting open. On Cooks’ first catch–a 17-yard gain–he was tightly covered but made a great catch. He was the intended target on Mills’ first pick and helped pick up the first down on another target where he was being held. Overall, I still like Cooks and he is still the WR1 here.
Nico Collins looked good on his two catches, picking up good yards after each reception. Collins is a great runner and someone who would be fun in a better offense. If Mills can continue to grow as a passer, Collins could become a poor man’s Deebo Samuel. This offense just doesn’t offer enough yet.
Chris Moore made one huge catch for 53 yards early in the game but was otherwise quiet. He was lined up against Bears rookie corner Kyler Gordon, and he found plenty of space in the middle of the field. Moore ran free for a bit, helping ensure the Texans’ first visit to the endzone.
Jordan Akins feels like a name to watch at tight end, especially given his touchdown at the end of the team’s first drive. Akins was running across the back of the endzone with a half-step on his defender. He made a great catch and got the Texans back into the game early. I don’t expect a complete breakout, but you could do worse.
Chicago Bears
Quarterback
Justin Fields: 8/17, 106 Yards, 2 INT | 8 Carries, 47 Yards, 1 Fumble (Recovered)
Coming into year two, I was optimistic about Justin Fields. He is an elite athlete, and he has shown a great deep ball–despite a bad offensive game plan in his rookie season. If Fields could look that go in an offense designed for Andy Dalton, imagine what he could do with offensive guru Luke Getsy? Well three games into year two, it’s looking bad. Fields is still running well, but he was out of sorts today as a passer–something we also said last week against Green Bay. On the first drive, I saw a second down throw where Equanimeous St Brown was open and Fields didn’t see it. On the third drive, Fields had Cole Kmet wide open but missed him by enough for it to be picked off. Fields looked uncomfortable in the pocket, and hesitant to pull the trigger when he had receivers open. I won’t call this an excellent group of weapons, but they were getting open today and their quarterback was missing them. If this continues for much longer, the Chicago Bears are going to have to consider taking a quarterback in the coming draft.
Running Back
David Montgomery: 3 Carries, 11 Yards
Khalil Herbert: 20 Carries, 157 Yards, 2 TD | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 12 Yards
Trestan Ebner: 7 Carries, 23 Yards | 1 Target | 1 Fumble (Recovered)
David Montgomery saw little more than a drive of this game before he left with an injury. On the Bears’ second drive, Montgomery was pass-blocking when a defender hit his leg and he immediately went down. He was able to walk off, but he didn’t return. Montgomery looks like he could be questionable for next week.
Khalil Herbert came in for Montgomery, and he ate well today. The play after Montgomery left, Herbert had an eight-yard run for a first down. Two plays later, he made another big run up the middle for eleven yards. The next play was a Herbert touchdown run–fighting hard through contact up the middle. Herbert ran well all day long and should be the future of this backfield. If Montgomery misses time, Herbert is locked in as the workhorse on a team that wants to run.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Cole Kmet: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 40 Yards
Darnell Mooney: 6 Targets, 2 Receptions, 23 Yards
Equanimeous St. Brown: 2 Carries, 43 Yards | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 20 Yards
Byron Pringle: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 11 Yards
Jake Tonges: 1 Target
Until things change for Justin Fields, you need to stay away from this entire receiving corps. This offense is averaging 99 passing yards per game, and that will not support anyone. That being said, here’s what I saw today.
Darnell Mooney was able to get open, but Justin Fields couldn’t connect with him in a real way. I saw Mooney getting open last week on the all-22 game film, but Fields either missed him or didn’t pull the trigger. I believe in Mooney’s talent, but he needs someone looking and throwing his way.
Cole Kmet had a couple of big catches, but he should have had another. On Justin Fields’ first pick, he was targetting a wide-open Kmet over the middle. The throw was missed, and it turned into a pick–leaving the announcers wondering what happened. This was a nice bounce back for Kmet.
Equanimeous St Brown looked like the Bears’ best weapon today, or at least the one they are most able to scheme into the game plan. His first contribution was a reverse which went for 43 yards. It was an excellent play call, and the defense was left completely out of position. ESB was hit for a 20-yard catch on the team’s first drive in the second half, and I counted at least two more plays where he was open–just not seeing a target. Here’s to hoping the Bears offense can figure things out.