Nick in the saddle again
Foles in charge of offense Sunday at Seattle; Quinn chases sacks record
The Chicago Bears have been eliminated from playoff contention, and the Seattle Seahawks are nearing that fate too.
So when the teams meet Sunday afternoon at Lumen Field, players will have to find other sources of motivation. For the Bears, that includes hunting milestones, gaining experience and maintaining pride.
As kickoff approaches, here’s our snapshot look at the game.
1. Player in the spotlight
Bears outside linebacker Robert Quinn is 1½ sacks away from tying Richard Dent’s Bears single-season record of 17 ½ , set in 1984.
Quinn, 31, has recorded 10½ sacks over the last six games to achieve the second-highest total of his career next to the 19 he had in 2013.
When asked about nearing the mark after a two-sack performance Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings, Quinn called it a “decent individual season” and said Dent is “good company to be in.” But he also lamented putting up such numbers during a losing season.
“Just tough to celebrate when you’re not really doing well,” Quinn said.
Quinn was similarly low key when asked about being named to the NFC’s Pro Bowl team Monday, saying he responded to the news from Bears coach Matt Nagy by saying, “OK, cool, see you at the game.”
Defensive coordinator Sean Desai explained Thursday what he sees driving Quinn at this point in his career.
”He has a lot of pride in the way he plays and the product he puts on the field,” Desai said. “He takes a lot of pride in his craft. He cherishes every moment that he gets, whether it’s a practice rep or a game rep. He tries to optimize all of those. That’s kind of who he is. He goes at 1,000 miles per hour every day. You’ve seen the fruits of his labor.”
Quinn has a decent chance to add to his production Sunday. Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has been sacked 29 times in 11 games, his 8.4% sack rate ranked fifth-worst among starters in the NFL.
2. Pressing question
How will Nick Foles fare in his first start since November 2020?
Foles hasn’t started a game in more than 13 months, but the Bears are turning to him Sunday as Justin Fields and Andy Dalton deal with injuries.
Fields is recovering from an ankle injury, and the Bears still are determining whether he will serve as Foles’ backup or if they will hand that role to rookie Ryan Willis, who is on the practice squad. Dalton is out with a groin injury.
The last time Foles spoke with the media — during training camp in August — the 10th-year NFL veteran gave an impassioned interview about how he continues to work with the belief that he still can play in the NFL. That was despite the Bears benching him for Mitch Trubisky late in 2020 and then signing Dalton and drafting Fields.
“Trials teach us a lot about ourselves and we grow through them and last year, last couple seasons haven’t been the easiest but I’m still here,” Foles said then. “I’m still wanting to play the game. I feel the best I’ve felt. I’ve had a great offseason, putting in the work every single day to where coming into training camp I feel great. I feel the strongest I’ve felt. I took something that could have defeated some people and made it a positive. Still here, still working.”
Foles wasn’t available to talk with the media Friday, but Nagy said he looked good in practice as he geared up to make what will be his 56th career start and eighth with the Bears.
“He really was out there doing a lot of good things and you can see the timing,” Nagy said. “There are not a lot of teams that in this situation can go to a quarterback like Nick to be able to help you win a game and feel really good about it. And Nick does that. Nick always stays very involved in meetings, in practice. … With all the experience he has, he can come right on in and have a day like today in red-zone practice and some of the other team periods and look sharp.
“I know he’s a competitor and I know that he understands this a great opportunity for him, too, on a personal level to be able to help our team out and help him out. That’s where in this situation, it ends up being good for us and good for him.”
3. Keep an eye on …
The rookies.
With the Bears eliminated from playoff contention and their depth chart still in flux because of injuries and COVID-19 issues, a window has opened for young players to show what they’ve got. Much of the spotlight, of course, will remain on Fields whenever he returns. But the Bears also need to keep close tabs on rookie offensive tackle Teven Jenkins, looking to squeeze the maximum growth out of these final three games. Nagy said Germain Ifedi will start over rookie right tackle Larry Borom on Sunday after Borom came off the reserve/ COVID-19 list earlier this week.
On defense, cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. impressed in his NFL debut against the Vikings, breaking up three passes and helping the Bears limit Kirk Cousins to a season-low 87 passing yards. Selected in the sixth round in April, Graham was cut at the end of training camp and re-signed to the practice squad, a setback that he admitted hurt his confidence.
“We all go through our own battles every day,” Graham said. “And my confidence wasn’t where I wanted it to be. It kind of just starts with a reality check. You have to start with yourself before you can go anywhere else. I was just like, ‘Why am I not on the field and what am I not doing to be able to put myself in position to move up?’ ”
Graham consulted with general manager Ryan Pace for constructive criticism and dedicated himself to improving through practice. His first playing opportunity came last week when COVID-19 took out the Bears’ entire starting secondary. And Graham made the most of it.
“The one thing about this
league is you only get once chance,” he said. “So I knew this was going to be my one chance.”
It’s far too early to declare Graham has arrived. But he did enough Monday to be signed to the 53-man roster and to feel an encouraging resurgence of confidence.
“I’ve put in all this work since I was 6 years old,” he said. “Being able to see it pay off, being able to see a mission, a dream (is great). I remember as a 6-year-old telling my dad that this is what I want. And him making sure to put me in the position to do this. It just felt good to be able to say that I put myself in position to have the opportunity a lot of people dream of.”
4. Odds and ends
Desai called it a “travesty” that inside linebacker Roquan Smith wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl this week despite having 140 tackles (fourth in the NFL) and 81 solo tackles (fifth), along with nine tackles for a loss, three sacks, three passes defended and a pick-six.
The Seahawks’ Bobby Wagner and Dallas Cowboys’ Micah Parsons were named the NFC inside/middle linebackers.
“He’s at the top of every category in the league and his play and his relentless nature and his speed on the tape shows up every week,” Desai said. “I know he doesn’t look into those things and neither do I normally, but I’ll take burden for him and I’ll make sure people in the league know that he’s one of the best linebackers in the league.”
Smith hasn’t yet been named to the Pro Bowl in his four seasons and could argue he was snubbed in 2020, when he had 139 tackles, including 98 solo and 18 for a loss, and seven passes defended.
“When you look at the production on the tape and you see the speed and the instincts with which this guy plays and how he gets people around him better,” Desai said, “he’s kind of been the one constant for us this year that’s played in every single game and has been that productive every single game, week in and week out,. His ability to get off blocks, his ability to key and diagnose plays and get to the ball carrier on a consistent basis is unique and I think that’s what needs to be emphasized.”
5. Injury report
Along with Dalton, the Bears declared out cornerback Xavier Crawford, wide receiver/returner Jakeem Grant and left tackle Jason Peters.
Fields, wide receiver Marquise Goodwin (foot) and nose tackle Eddie Goldman (finger) are questionable.
The Bears also brought back defensive lineman Bilal Nichols from the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Nine players still are on the COVID-19 list: defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, wide receivers Allen Robinson and Isaiah Coulter, safety Tashuan Gipson, cornerback Jaylon Johnson, tight ends Jesse James and Jesper Horsted, inside linebacker Joel Iyiegbuniwe and running back Ryan Nall.