L. A. IS THEWAY
It’s It’ still possible Trubisky can do what Goff has done with Rams
As the Bears reach another low under coach John Fox, we take the withering vestiges of hope for the future to Los Angeles, where the resurgent Rams— who were at or below the Bears’ level a year ago— are now a legitimate top- 10 team with serious postseason aspirations behind second- year quarterback Jared Goff.
Unlike many “If they can do it, why can’t the Bears?” scenarios, this one has merit. At this time last year, the Rams had a promising defense led by tackle Aaron Donald and were awkwardly turning to the rookie Goff— the No. 1 overall pick of the 2016 draft. He did little to convince anyone he was the quarterback of the future, going 0- 7 with a 63.6 passer rating ( five touchdowns, seven interceptions) as the Rams finished 4- 12.
But look at him now. After throwing four touchdown passes for a 146.8 rating in a 51- 17 rout of the Raiders inWeek 9, Goff threw three touchdown passes for a 125.4 rating in a 33- 7 rout of the Texans on Sunday. His completion percentage is up from 54.6 as a rookie to 61.2 this season. He has 16 touchdown passes and four interceptions for a 101.5 rating in 2017.
And the Rams’ ams’ defense has benefited from having the wind at its s back against offenses that are under pressure re to keep up with Goff. The Rams were ere ninth in yards s allowed but 23rd 3rd in points allowed wed ( 24.6) last season— a damning negative differential for any defense. This year, they’ve virtually flipped ped that— 15th in n yards ya allowed but fourth fou in points allowed allo ( 18.0). Of O course, there is a catch. The Rams Ra accelerated their th rebuild by b firing coach Jeff J Fisher and hiring 30- yearold Sean McVay to tutor Goff. They acquired two excellent receivers in Sammy Watkins ( 21 receptions, 372 yards, 17.7 average, four touchdowns) and RobertWoods ( 39- 622, 15.9, four touchdowns). And they drafted EasternWashington receiver Cooper Kupp ( who played for Fox and the Bears’ staff at the Senior Bowl). Kupp has 32 receptions for 417 yards ( 13.0 average) and three touchdowns.
So while Bears general manager Ryan Pace has used the Saints as a model to build the Bears, it’ll be interesting to see if he uses the Rams as a model to take the next step. It’s his move. 2It’s
just the Bears’ luck that two of their best offensive plays this season have ended disastrously. An excellent throw by Mitch Trubisky that should have been a touchdown against the Saints was instead an incompletion with a horrifying injury to tight end Zach Miller. Now, a rare well- conceived, well- executed screen pass could go down as a symbol of Fox’s futile and failed tenure.
Against the Packers on Sunday, Benny Cunningham dove for the pylon for an apparent touchdown, but officials ruled he had stepped out of bounds at the 2. Fox challenged the call, leading to the determination that Cunningham had instead lost control of the ball just before hitting the pylon, resulting in a fumble and a touchback instead of