Favored Bears in pick ’em mode
Coach Matt Nagy has lauded his team’s unity and focus this week as the Bears attempt to avoid a winless October. Faced with their first losing streak of the season, Nagy’s Bears should have every opportunity to get back on track Sunday facing an ordinary Jets team that has been riddled with injuries. The Bears still need to be much sharper in all three phases than they were in last week’s home loss to the Patriots. With that in mind, here are our three keys for Sunday’s game.
Picks the poison Pregame analysis: No quarterback has thrown more interceptions this season than Jets rookie Sam Darnold, who has 10 in his first six starts. No defense has picked off more passes than the Bears with 11. Bottom line: There should be significant opportunities for Vic Fangio’s secondary to create tide-turning takeaways, especially against a depleted Jets receiving corps that will be without Quincy Enunwa (high ankle sprain). The Bears will have to keep Robby Anderson from beating them on deep balls. But with a little pressure on Darnold and reliable coverage, the season interception total should tick upward once again. Said Bears safety Eddie Jackson: “We really need to stop the running game and put the ball in (Darnold’s) hands and then try to force him to make his mistakes.”
Minimize Jamal Adams Pregame analysis: The second-year safety is an ascending playmaker trying to bring life to a middle-of-the-road Jets defense. Adams is fast. He’s athletic. He can really hit. And to top it off, Jets coach Todd Bowles sees the young safety’s nose for the ball and love of the game showing up every week. Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky was part of the same draft class as Adams, who was selected No. 6 in 2016. So Trubisky has an appreciation for Adams’ sense of humor. This week, though, the Bears quarterback is more concerned with Adams’ versatility and instincts. “Always around the ball, always making tackles,” Trubisky said. “He leads the league in safety pressures, so he’s going to be in the backfield.”
Attack mode Pregame analysis:
The Jets rank 26th in the league in sack rate (5.28 percent), which means Trubisky should have plenty of time to get comfortable in the pocket. That’s the good news. The better news: the Jets secondary is a mess. Cornerbacks Trumaine Johnson (quadriceps), Morris Claiborne (shoulder, foot) and Buster Skrine (concussion) are battling injuries. So is safety Marcus Maye (ankle). The Jets will send a wide variety of blitzes at Trubisky, making it imperative that the Bears are sharp with their pre-snap recognition and communication. Still, Trubisky must keep himself in an aggressive mindset with the luxury of having so many receiving threats — Trey Burton, Tarik Cohen, Taylor Gabriel, Anthony Miller — who can create favorable matchups and big plays. Darnold has 10 interceptions. His problem has centered more on field vision, recognition and speed of the game than simple fundamental inaccuracy. And given how the Jets are without two of the four receivers who topped their depth chart entering training camp, Sunday is a great opportunity for the Bears defense to cause chaos for Darnold, even if Mack sits out. The Bears lead the league with 11 interceptions and Darnold leads the NFL with 10 picks thrown. You do the math. Mistake-prone quarterback against opportunistic defense. Kyle Fuller, Eddie Jackson and the rest of the secondary should be eager to make big things happen.
— Dan Wiederer