Bears’ defense melts down in fourth quarter
To be known as an elite defense, a unit must not only take the ball away but bring it back to the house.
That was Jaquan Brisker’s contention after the Bears beat the Lions 28-13 at Solider Field a week ago.
Well, the Bears did that Sunday at Cleveland, getting a pick-6 from Tremaine Edmunds, and Eddie Jackson nearly did the same by returning a second-quarter INT to the 1-yard line.
That wasn’t all.
Tyrique Stevenson made a gorgeous, diving interception to take away a touchdown, Montez Sweat had 2.5 sacks, DeMarcus Walker made several impressive plays and Jaylon Johnson was a menace in coverage.
But here’s the problem: You can’t be lights out for 45, 50 or 55 minutes and then watch an offense light you up.
That’s what happened against the Lions in Week 11, and it happened again Sunday as Cleveland roared back from a 17-7 deficit to claim a 20-17 victory.
There’s plenty of blame to go around.
Perhaps we should start with the offense, which amassed a mere 236 total yards and went 4-for-18 on third downs. The Bears, who went three-and-out eight straight times before the final drive, punted TEN TIMES.
Of course, all of this ineptitude would have been forgotten if Darnell Mooney just hangs on to that Hail Mary in the end zone.
But he didn’t.
And the Bears dropped to 5-9 to all but officially end any miracle playoff run.
“This one cuts deeper,” Jackson said. “It’s just crazy because we came out fighting. We knew what was at stake with this, man. It’s like we keep preaching: ‘Finish. Finish. Finish.’
“And we were so close. … It’s crazy, man.”
Also crazy was Mooney’s bizarre admission in the postgame locker room when he talked about how the offense got “too comfortable” with a 17-7 lead in the third quarter.
“Everybody (was) just happy that we were winning,” Mooney said. “(We’ve) just got to be aggressive and continue to put their foot on the pedal and just go out there and punch ‘em. …
“That’s what kind of bit us. Tried to switch gears in the fourth quarter once they scored.”
How is this possible. Maybe you are up 31 points in the third quarter you get a bit comfortable.
But 10?
That’s something the coaches must address immediately.
Circling back to the defense, it held Cleveland (9-5) to 18 yards on 11 carries and 167 passing yards through three quarters. Joe Flacco threw 3 interceptions and looked as able to lead a comeback as former Bears QBs Rick Mirer, Jimmy Clausen, Craig Krenzel, Chad Hutchinson or Jonathan Quinn.
But then came the fourth quarter. Suddenly, Flacco channeled his inner Tom Brady/Peyton Manning by dropping dimes everywhere.
∎ Marquise Goodwin – who had 3 catches for 10 yards ALL SEASON – hauled in a 57-yard reception with 14:42 remaining. He was wide open, running between Jackson and Brisker. It set up a field goal that cut the Bears’ lead to 17-10.
Eberflus blamed himself for calling a bad coverage, saying Cover-2 would have been a better option.
∎ With 3:18 remaining, Flacco found Amari Cooper, zipping the ball between Terrell Smith and Edmunds. Brisker whiffed on the tackle attempt, and Cooper tightroped the sideline en route to a 51-yard TD reception that tied things at 17-17.
∎ After Fields and Co. went three-and-out again, it looked like this game would go to overtime as the Browns faced third-and-15 on their own 47 with 46 seconds remaining. Instead, Flacco connected with TE David Njoku for 34 yards.
Eberflus opted to drop D-lineman Justin Jones into coverage, hoping to hold the Browns to a short completion. He again admitted the mistake and said on WMVP 1000-AM: “I got to make a better call.”
Flacco finished 28-for-44 for 374 yards, with 212 of those yards coming in the fourth quarter.
That’s right: 212 yards in one quarter.
This doesn’t happen to elite defenses. Or good ones or even average ones.
“We knew we wanted to win out,” Jackson said. “I don’t know if it’s over, but we know we had our destiny in our hands. …
“It’s just … we all gotta finish at the end.”
That’s been the problem all year.
And now, the Bears are indeed finished.