The first Bears game of the 2023 season has come and gone, with the worst potential outcome happening for Chicago in a 38-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers at home. In front of a frenzy Chicago crowd, the Bears team came out flat and unprepared in all three. Although there is a lot of blame to be shared by the players and coaches, Chicago's two most important coaches deserve the most responsibility for the loss, as head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy had a bad day.
The Bears Defense Did Not Live Up To Eberflus' Values and Defensive Scheme
Chicago's loss itself wasn't too troubling, but it was how it took place, which has many fans and analysts worried. The Bears are coming off a three-win 2022 campaign in which the team decided to tank for better draft picks. Although Chicago lost a franchise-record 14 games last season, Eberflus' team played hard football and was competitive in most games despite being significantly outmatched from a talent standpoint.
Sunday's game against the Packer had a lot of excitement leading up to it because of the talent improvements made by general manager Ryan Poles, including the free agent signings of linebackers T.J. Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds, along with the late signing of Pro Bowl defensive end Yannick Ngakoue. Despite the additions in free agency and having another year of experience for defensive players like Jack Sanborn, Kyler Gordon, and Jaquan Brisker, Chicago's defense surrendered 31 points to Green Bay's offense.
When Eberflus became Chicago's head coach in January of 2022, he desired having a defense that played intelligent and fundamental football built on tackling and forcing turnovers. Against the Packers, the Bears' defense allowed several big plays due to blown coverage assignments, and didn't have a single turnover against quarterback Jordan Love, who was without his best wide receiver Christian Watson.
Even more troubling was how Green Bay's offense took apart Chicago's Cover 2 defense, as several big passing plays went to tight ends and running backs. The Bears' defense allowed three pass plays of 35 yards or longer. In the Cover 2 defense, running backs and tight ends are supposed to be guarded by the linebackers, but on Sunday, that wasn't the case for Chicago's linebackers.
As a whole, Eberflus' team struggling to start the year is alarming due to the lack of motivation the team played with and the amount of ignorant penalties the team racked up. There were multiple unsportsmanlike penalties on Bears players that cost the team yards. Whether it was rookie running back Roschon Johnson's penalty on the opening kickoff of the game or wide receiver DJ Moore's flag that limited an offensive drive from a potential touchdown to a field goal, Bears' players were not playing smart, something Eberflus has emphasized is a vital value of his team.
Luke Getsy's Play-Calling and Play-Design Was Bizarre And Uncreative
From an offensive side of the ball for Chicago, their offense struggled also as they only generated 311 total yards while allowing four sacks and two turnovers. Although quarterback Justin Fields didn't play well, Getsy's play-calling is more to blame as the gameplan against the Packers was unimaginative and nonthreatening as Chicago's offense only attempted four passes of ten yards or longer. The Bears featured too many wide receiver and running back screen passes that Green Bay honed in on by the second quarter.
Chicago's most significant offensive acquisition this offseason was the trade with the Carolina Panthers that brought over Moore in exchange for the first overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft. With the Panthers, the wide receiver recorded three consecutive seasons of 1,000 yards receiving. Against the Packers on Sunday, Moore was only targeted three times, catching two passes for 26 yards as Getsy made no effort to get his best wide receiver more involved in the offense.
From the onset, it appeared that Getsy was trying to do too much to outwit his opponent and tried everything to avoid being simple. On Chicago's first offensive drive of the game, in back-to-back short-yardage situations, he called a sneak under center with tight end Cole Kmet and then a quarterback sneak with Fields. Both plays netted less than a yard, and the Bears didn't pick up the first down and turned the ball over to the Packers. The Kmet sneak was troubling because Green Bay knew that the tight end would either sneak the ball or toss it to Fields, allowing them to be in a better position to stop the play.
Getsy's play-calling is troubling, given that it creates questions regarding his trust in Fields as his quarterback. The lateral-passing gameplan seen on Sunday means that Chicago's offensive coordinator doesn't have faith in his quarterback to execute a more complex offense or that the offensive coordinator doesn't trust his offensive line to protect. Either way, it is not wise of Getsy, given the success and creativity he demonstrated calling plays last season with worse talent.
A prime example of Getsy being able to scheme and call a productive gameplan despite lacking talent was Chicago's game against Dallas last season. Although the Bears had a poor offensive line and lacked talent at the wide receiver position, their offense still managed to score 29 points and rack up over 240 rushing yards. Additionally, Fields played an effective game against one of the league's best defenses as he threw for two touchdowns and ran for another. The Cowboys defense on Sunday shut out a proven New York Giants offense 40-0.
It is concerning for fans that Chicago's two most significant coaches would turn in and allow an effort like that to start the season, especially when coming off a historically poor campaign the year prior. Eberflus needs to hold his team accountable, given their lack of effort, motivation, and control displayed against the Packers. Getsy needs to show that he has faith in his offense to execute downfield, or else it will be a long season of wondering if Justin Fields is the right quarterback moving forward. Sunday's loss is just one loss, but to begin a season in that fashion is more of an indictment on the coaching staff than the players.
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