GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Bears were muddling through a dreary game late in the third quarter against the Packers at Lambeau Field — but still trailing only 14-6 — when the defense made a play that should have provided a spark.
Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson forced a Jordan Love fumble and safety Jaquan Brisker recovered to give the Bears possession at their 42. Seven plays later, the Bears settled for Cairo Santos’ 35-yard field goal with 13:03 left in the fourth quarter after Justin Fields’ pass to tight end Cole Kmet that looked like a touchdown but nearly was intercepted by Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine. Typifying the Bears plight, the touchdown would have been nullified by a holding penalty on rookie right tackle Darnell Wright.
It was a missed opportunity that all but told the story of the Bears’ offense in coordinator Luke Getsy’s second season.
“I thought we should have taken a shot,” wide receiver DJ Moore said. “We should have taken shots downfield after that [takeaway] happened and showed them that we’re here to play. But you come out with points, it’s always a blessing.”
Unfortunately, coming out with three points was all the Bears’ offense could do. A week after 37 points against the Falcons’ top-10 defense presented Getsy’s best argument to return, a feeble performance against the Packers — no touchdowns and three field goals in a 17-9 loss — turned the flame on Getsy’s hot seat back to high broil.
The Bears improved from 28th to 17th in the NFL in total yards and from 23rd to 16th in points in Getsy’s second season. But the loss to the Packers painted a picture that likely will be considered the truer state of the Bears’ offense.
The Bears gained 192 yards and scored nine points against a Packers defense that allowed 394 yards and 30 points to the Panthers two weeks ago and 452 yards and 34 points to the Buccaneers three weeks ago.
A week after Fields passed for 268 yards against the Falcons, he had 148 passing yards against the Packers. The Bears were 0 for 2 in scoring touchdowns in the red zone and 3 for 11 on third-down conversions.
Moore believes the Bears have what it takes to reach the next level. Asked his level of belief in Getsy, Moore said, “I think it’s fine. It just comes down to us being explosive on the offensive side. We’ve got our quarterback to do it. Everything else, just need to call the plays that put us in position to have explosives down the field or catch-and-run like we did [Sunday]. We just gotta be an explosive team and not a team that’s just behind the sticks.”
Of course, Getsy is the one to put the players in a position to have explosives down the field, but Moore was careful not to point the finger at Getsy, preferring to put the onus on the players.
“It really doesn’t matter who’s calling the plays,” he said. “We’ve just got to be explosive and do what we do as players.”
Fields, who also might not be back, is a believer in Getsy. “His work ethic,” Fields said when asked what gives him the most belief in Getsy. “We improved as a team. The coaches also improved. Nobody is perfect. We’ve all gotten better. He’s good at adjusting.
“If the players talk to him, he’s going to listen to what we have to say and he’s going to do what’s best for the team. That’s one thing about Luke — he’s an open book, an open mind. You can sit down with him and have a conversation with him and he’ll listen and really take it to heart.”
Those are all good qualities, and Getsy has done good work. But with so much at stake and the opportunity so great, the Bears need more than good. They need better.