Rozner: Nagy, Daniel let Bears' defense handle the load (and will there ever be a running game?)

The Bears didn't just win a game Thursday and cement their position atop the NFC North.

Maybe, just maybe, they learned something about how to win football games.

With a dominating defense, you don't have to show the NFL every week how creative you are as an offense.

Maybe Matt Nagy got a glimpse into how you can play a relatively simple game.

Maybe Mitch Trubisky watched Chase Daniel take what the defense was giving him.

And maybe they saw what happens when you don't take chances with the football and don't throw it to the other team.

That's something Matt Stafford has never quite figured out and we'll see if Trubisky went to school on all that happened on Thanksgiving.

With Daniel making his third career start and first in four years, including his first pass attempt in two years, and the Bears playing on the road 88 hours after defeating Minnesota at home Sunday night, Daniel played smart and let the Bears' defense win the game for them.

“He was very comfortable,” Nagy said of Daniel. “He sees the field very well. He knows where to go with the football.”

It was impressive considering the last time he played was the preseason, and with only a couple days to prepare Daniel got no full-speed reps this week.

“You have no idea how this kid prepares. Every game he prepares like he's the starter,” Nagy said. “Whenever he gets the call that he's gonna start, he's never shellshocked. Nothing changes.

“With Chase, you get the same thing every week. He deserves a lot of credit.”

Of course, the running game remains a big issue. You would have thought this was the game that Nagy would finally give the ball to Jordan Howard and let the offensive line handle the load.

The head coach has talked about committing to the run. Trubisky has talked about committing to the run. And the offensive line has been begging for the opportunity to commit to the run.

But it's pretty clear after Thursday that it's only been lip service.

“It's just something we have to stick with,” tackle Bobby Massie said Sunday night after the Bears beat the Vikings. “We just have to be consistent as an offensive line. If the holes are there, Nagy's gonna keep calling it. As a unit, we have to make sure that happens.

“Jordan Howard is the same guy. Nothing's changed. Just got to feed him. Got to be consistent and open holes and give it to him, and he'll do what he's always done.”

Unless something dramatic changes, it's not going to happen.

Howard got the ball 4 times in the first half Thursday and ran for 8 yards. In the second half, he got it 3 times and ran for 5 yards, and 2 of those carries were on the final series when the Bears were running out the clock.

If you're doing the math at home, that's 5 carries in the first 59 minutes.

The Bears are winning without a running game and you can't argue with their record, but Nagy keeps saying the Bears will need it at some point this season.

So is it a matter of Nagy giving up on the idea because it hasn't been effective so far, or has it been ineffective because he won't stay with it for any length of time?

A month from now, we'll probably have an answer to that question, but it's clear that Nagy has no belief in the Bears' ability to run the rock.

The result was Daniel threw an astounding 21 times in the first half and 16 more in the second half.

Regardless, the Bears are 8-3 and get the 3-7 Giants on the road Dec. 2. The 5-4-1 Vikings get the Packers at home Sunday night and Minnesota also has games remaining at New England and Seattle, so the final game of the season between the Bears and Vikings in Minnesota may not even matter.

As for Trubisky, it's being called an AC joint sprain after he landed on his right shoulder late in Sunday's game. That's a fancy term for separated shoulder, but most teams stopped calling it that because it sounds so much worse.

Depending on stiffness and swelling, it's generally about a three-week injury. If Trubisky played against the Giants, he wouldn't make it any worse if he got hit, but it would hurt quite a bit if he landed on it again.

At this point, and considering how well Daniel did his job Thursday, the Bears could decide to wait until the Rams visit Dec. 9, which would give Trubisky a full three weeks to regain mobility and he might even be pain-free.

In any case, the Bears have won three divisional games in 11 days and now get a much-deserved break.

And for those who have suffered for so long with this team, a happy Thanksgiving, indeed.