Mercifully, the Our Fans Don’t Want Us to Win So We Can Get a Better Draft Pick Bowl is behind us. The Bears collected a 26-6 victory over San Francisco on Sunday, snapping a three-game losing streak.
Highlighted by rookie Jordan Howard’s three touchdown runs, the Bears offense looked as dangerous as it has all season. Although the Bears didn’t complete a pass until late in the second quarter, quarterback Matt Barkley lit up the 49ers when he had to for 192 passing yards.
“One thing about Howard is he’s always falling forward,” Bears defensive lineman Akiem Hicks said. “Even if he’s met at the line. You never see him get stuck and then driven back, and that’s an intangible for a running back that you can’t really quantify.”
The defense looked outstanding, too, punctuating a six-sack day with a safety by rookie Leonard Floyd.
The game also was entertaining in a weird way. Here are Sunday’s more unusual moments, ranked from least to most mind-boggling.
6. Wheeeee!
Sunday’s snow globe-like conditions at Soldier Field meant that whenever a receiver or running back hit the grass with any momentum, he slid at least 5 yards. Makes you feel like shutting off your TV, wrangling your friends and starting your own game.
Of course, it conjured other memories for Hicks, who had two sacks Sunday.
“It takes me back to Canada,” said Hicks, who played for the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada. “My last game in Canada before I left, it was negative-28 [degrees], so I’m no stranger to a little bit of snow. … That’s real football, know what I mean?”
5. Anything you can do, I can do worse
On the first play from scrimmage, Hicks was called for roughing the passer. Even if it was an iffy call—perhaps sealed when Hicks thrust his hands toward 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s helmet—it set an awkward tone. The Niners committed their own boneheaded play moments later when a 29-yard run was wiped out by a holding penalty. Not surprising, San Francisco eventually had to punt.
4. Tickets aplenty
What do you do if you’ve got free time and a little bit of money to burn on a picturesque December Sunday in Chicago? Not go to the Bears game, that’s for sure. There were more than 11,000 no-shows at last week’s home loss to Tennessee, but even more people stayed home this time around: 13,160 tickets went unused as attendance topped out at 46,622.
3. The two Josh Bellamys
You might recall that the Bears receiver dropped what would have been a game-winning touchdown pass against Tennessee last week. Credit where credit is due: He caught four balls for 93 yards Sunday, including several when a defender was all over him.
Which makes it hard to understand why he dropped two passes, one of which might have gone for a long touchdown, where there was no one around him. That said, he did get a vote of confidence from his coach.
“You take 20 of him,” John Fox said. “He has a huge heart. … I couldn’t be happier for him and how he responded. Those were some big plays he made today.
2. Far from special
To put it mildly, the Bears special teams had a rough day. Among their transgressions:
>> Bryce Callahan fielded a punt at the 5-yard line, a no-no for returners. Just let it hit the ground and hope it takes a fortunate hop into the end zone. End of story.
>> Three Bears surrounded a kickoff in the third quarter … and none of them could come up with it cleanly. Instead, Paul Lasike had to chase it down and scurry forward for a few yards.
>> The punt team incurred a delay of game penalty. That should never happen. Ever. The play is simple: Snap the ball, punt the ball.
>> The Bears had a punt blocked, leading to a San Francisco field goal.
>> Deonte Thompson had himself a 28-yard kickoff return in the second quarter … until he fumbled.
That’s five times when special teams did the Bears no favors. And they still won by 20 points. Weird.
1. And you thought Bears QBs were struggling
Through three quarters, San Francisco had minus-14 yards passing. Minus. Fourteen. Kaepernick had only one completion for a measly 4 yards, and he was replaced in the fourth quarter by backup Blaine Gabbert. He didn’t fare much better, going 4-of-10 for 35 yards.
“I was surprised [I was pulled],” Kaepernick said. “[But] it’s not my place to really argue on the sideline. I want to make sure I do what I can to help this team win, and that was the decision that was made. I’m going to support my teammates.”
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