Kyle’s NFL Week 16 Recap

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

The Bears recap for Sunday, December 22nd……..

Bears – 11 Eagles - 54

After watching this game, being pissed, and sleeping on it, I’ve decided that I’m not going to recap this game. The Eagles scored 54 points, what do you need to know? They scored at will on the horrid Bears defense, and it looked like Philly was playing against a pop warner team Sunday Night. There’s no excuse for giving up 54 points. To anyone. Ever. I’m agreeing with the Bears coaches and players in saying, dump this game, forget about it, and move on to the Packers.

Now you got my non-recap, here’s my 5 Bears thoughts………

I’ll get this out of the way quickly. This game was not on Jay Cutler. EVERY aspect of the Bears as a team sucked on Sunday night. True, Cutler short hopped a few balls, and probably could have scrambled a bit more, but he was only a piece of the puzzle that took a big shit on Sunday. I like that the Bears named him the starter for the Packer game next week. He is fighting for a contract, and I want him to prove he can win a big game.
The defense still remains the weakest link on this Bears team. They allowed 289 rushing yards to the Eagles. 289 fucking rushing yards!!! The worst part about that was that Shady McCoy only had 133 of them. This is the worst run defense I have ever seen. Not just a Bears team, on ANY team.
Matt Forte had a rough night. The defense threw a bunch of different looks at the Bears which often resulted in Matt Forte taking on defensive lineman on blitz pick-ups. That’s not an excuse for the way he played, though. He is normally a solid pass blocker, but he was thrown around like a rookie. The offensive line was pretty bad, but Forte not being able to block didn’t help and it led to 5 sacks by the Philly defense. Devin Hester also had a rough night, fumbling for the first time since 2009, and losing only his 3^rd career kickoff return fumble.
When 5 out of your top 6 tacklers are defensive backs, you have a huge fucking problem. The 3^rd line in the Bears defense should never be the first line of defense on a rushing play. It’s putrid. Absolutely sickening.
One of the small bright spots of this loss was Martellus Bennett. He had a solid game, and caught 5 balls for 85 yards. He’s proven himself to be the best offseason pickup for Phil Emery, and I think he is building a rapport with Jay Cutler that can only help in the future.

My final Bears thought……..

This was the Bears 4^th game this season allowing 40 points or more. That is the most in the NFL. The 54 points allowed was 1 point shy of the franchise record of 55 allowed to Detroit in 1997. This is a historically BAD defense. They are on pace to allow the most rushing yards per game in a season in the Super Bowl era, and are allowing 5.4 yards per rush. They have allowed 21 rushing TD’s this season. What the fuck?? It makes me sick to be a Bears fan after having solid defenses year after year. It’s not as if the Bears even need a top 5 defense right now. The offense is good enough that even a mediocre defense would have won this division 3 weeks ago. I hope the Bears make it in to the playoffs. Then I hope they get embarrassed again. Changes need to be made, and it will be interesting to see what happens.

NEW ADDITION TO THE BLOG! WHOA! EXCITING, I KNOW!

Player that impressed: Martellus Bennett - TE

Martellus Bennett has quietly put together a Pro-Bowl type year, although the likes of Jimmy Graham make his production less impressive. He has been a constant on this Bears offense all year, and added to his consistent play Sunday, really being the lone bright spot in a horrible team performance. Alshon Jeffrey gets an honorable mention, and he made a nice one handed grab on a crossing route in the game.

Player(s) that disappointed: Everyone on the field not listed above

There is nothing that makes me think that ANYONE was ready for this game. Part of the blame falls on Marc Tresticles, and part of the blame falls on the players. At some point, it’s up the players to take what the coaches have coached, and take it to the field and perform. No one performed on Sunday night, and no one even looked excited to be there. This was a game that could have sealed a division win with one of the worst defenses in the NFL, and the whole team choked.

Around the NFL

Miami – 0 Buffalo – 19

Buffalo recorded it’s first shutout in 2 years, and sacked Ryan Tannehill 7 times. Tannehill was knocked out of the game for a short time, allowing Matt Moore to come into the game in relief and promptly throw two interceptions. The Dolphins only mustered 103 total yards on offense. In other news, it was still a more impressive outing than the Bears.

Minnesota – 14 Cincinnati – 42

Andy Dalton is going to the playoffs for the 3^rd time in his 3 years in the league. Dalton threw for 4 touchdowns as the Bengals clinched a playoff spot with their win and the Dolphins loss. The Bengals later clinched the AFC North when Baltimore rolled over against New England.

Indianapolis – 23 Kansas City – 7

Kansas City scored on the first possession of the game. They then proceeded to go out for tea and crumpets as Indianapolis reeled off 23 straight points en route to the win. Alex Smith had one of his poorer performances of the year with a fumble and two picks.

Tampa Bay – 13 St. Louis – 23

Robert Quinn broke the Rams team record for sacks as he recorded 3 against the Bucs and was hoisted off the field at the end of the game. He now has 18 on the season, and leads the NFL. St. Louis looks to be gaining some momentum to take into next season. Tampa Bay may have just sealed Greg Schiano’s fate.

Cleveland – 13 New York Jets – 24

Well, I picked Cleveland this week, so naturally Geno Smith would decide to play like a real quarterback. He threw two touchdowns, didn’t commit a turnover, and wasn’t sacked all day. Well screw him.

Dallas – 24 Washington – 23

Well color me jaw dropped. Tony Romo decided this week that he’d rather win a game for his team in December than blow another winnable game. Romo connected with DeMarco Murray for a 10 yard score on 4^th down with 1:08 left on the clock to beat Washington. He did throw a bad interception though, so I’m going to chalk this one up to a blind squirrel finding a nut.

New Orleans – 13 Carolina – 17

Cam Newton did his own late minute miracle, throwing a TD pass to Dominek Hixon with 23 seconds left to lift Carolina to a retaliation win against New Orleans. Carolina clinched a playoff spot, and finished out their home slate with a 7-1 record at Bank of America Stadium. Ron Rivera went from a lame duck coach to a coach of the year candidate. Who saw that coming? They even have a chance to win their division. Not bad for a team that started the season 1-3.

Tennessee – 20 Jacksonville – 16

In a game that had no playoff implications, the most entertaining part came from Jacksonville center Brad Meester. Meester announced on Wednesday that he would be retiring after a 14 year career, with Sunday being his last home game. Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch decided to send Meester out by giving him a reception on offense. The Jags sent out Meester on a screen play and he caught a 14 yard pass. The only reception in his career. Didn’t help much as Tennessee won anyway.

Denver – 37 Texans – 13

Peyton Manning broke the NFL record for TD passes as he threw his 51^st TD pass of the season, breaking Tom Brady’s mark of 50 set in 2007. Manning also threw for 400 yards as Denver rolled Houston to their 13^th straight loss.

New York Giants – 23 Detroit – 20 (OT)

Well, Jim Schwartz, I hope you enjoyed your time in Detroit. This loss is 5 out of the last 6 for Detroit and they effectively took themselves out of playoff contention in a year when the division should have been a cake walk. Detroit just really sucks.

Arizona – 17 Seattle – 10

Arizona did the improbable and knocked off the 12^th man beating Seattle at home for the first time in 14 games. Carson Palmer came through with a TD pass to Michael Floyd with 2:13 left to play, keeping Arizona in the playoff hunt. Bruce Arians has my vote for coach of the year. It’s amazing to me that Arizona can finish 11-5 and STILL miss the playoffs depending on what San Francisco and New Orleans do this week.

Pittsburgh – 38 Green Bay – 31

Pittsburgh stayed alive in the playoff hunt, though they would need a lot of help. Pittsburgh forced a fumble by Matt Flynn at the Green Bay 17 late in the game that led to a Le’Veon Bell TD for the go ahead score. The Packers had a chance at the end of game, having a chance to go in from the 6 after Micah Hyde returned the kickoff 70 yards. Penalties and clock mismanagement led to an incomplete pass in the end zone as time expired. The Packers are still in the hunt for the NFC North, which no one seems to want to win, as the division will be decided in Chicago next week. Everyone will be watching the Aaron Rodgers story this week to see if he will be available. Can anyone guess how Mike Tomlin ruined Christmas in Green Bay?

Oakland – 13 San Diego – 26

Phillip Rivers beat Oakland. Woo. Let me throw a damn party.

New England – 41 Baltimore – 7

New England already knew they had won the division with Miami losing, but there was no taking the foot off the gas pedal here. Baltimore wilted, costing them the division, though they are still alive for the last AFC wild card spot with Miami and San Diego.

Atlanta - 24 San Francisco – 34

On a night that was a nice send-off to Candlestick, Navarro Bowman made a nice farewell gesture. He returned an interception 89 yards for a TD with 1:10 remaining to seal a win and a playoff spot for the 49ers. This team is heating up at the right time heading into the playoffs.

“Well You Didn’t Make a Lick of Difference” Performance of the Week:

Ryan Tannehill, Matt Moore – QB – Miami Dolphins

Combined stats – 12/33, 135 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int, 7 sacks

On a day that Miami could have all but locked up a wild card spot, the quarterback duo rolled over like a 5 year-old girl in tumbling class. Miami showed why they will probably be a one-and-done in the playoffs if they even get in.

“Holy Crap, I’m Awesome!???” Breakout Performance of the week:

Luke Kuechly/Thomas Davis – LB - Carolina

Combined stats – 38 tackles, 2 Int, 3 tackles for loss, 2 passes defended

These two were all over the field for the Panthers win against New Orleans on Sunday. Kuechly had 24 tackles. 24!! The guy is a monster, and one of the best linebackers in the game. There wasn’t much Brees and the Saints could do against the Panthers D, in a large part due to these two guys.