Kansas City, MO. – Jaquan Brisker sat in the corner of the visiting locker room at Arrowhead Stadium, covering his mouth with his hand, talking to injured cornerback Jaylon Johnson. The words were hushed, but his eyes and body language spoke volumes.
Where do we go from here?
Patrick Mahomes and the defending champion Chiefs treated the Bears like speed bags in a 41-10 loss on Sunday afternoon in Kansas City.
Fourteen days ago, the Bears prepared for their season opener with high expectations both individually and as a team. This was a rebuilding team with the arrow pointing straight up. They added talent, and quarterback Justin Fields was expected by many to make a big leap.
Things started out bad and have gotten worse in the two weeks since. The Bears are now 0-3, have the NFL’s worst statistical defense, can’t do anything on offense, and have been held back by a mix of incompetence, lack of execution, poor preparation, and bad decisions.
After the Chiefs finished dragging the Bears back and forth on the grass of GEHA Field for three hours, the Bears returned to the visiting locker room surprised at how much things had gotten worse in three weeks.
“We just got our ass kicked,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “It’s number one. I can’t think of any game that’s been played for a long time that looks like this.”
“Honestly, it’s a reality check for all three phases,” defensive end DeMarcus Walker said.
Kemet looked shocked after the defeat. He stood at his locker and asked questions. But one of the Bears’ leaders, a man whom this ruling rewarded with a major extension in the offseason, had trouble finding a legitimate explanation for why the 2023 Bears keep sinking deeper into the sewer.
Defensive tackle Justin Jones was sitting at his locker, his back arched and his head down. One of the more vocal leaders on this Bears team tried to send a positive message that a rebound may be coming. But his usual confident tone was gone. The chiefs took that too.
“Keep hitting the rock, man,” Jones said softly. “They’re a good team. There’s no doubt about that. But we still have players, good coaches. We’ve got a good team. We’ve got to keep the unit together and keep progressing.”
At the other end of the locker room, wide receiver DJ Moore stood talking to Darnell Mooney. Like Brisker and Johnson, the receivers were locked in an intense conversation. Perhaps they were trying to point out why a passing game, supposed to be dynamic, has been borderline inefficient through three games. Maybe they, like everyone else, are just thinking about how bad the next 14 games can be.
“I don’t know,” Moore said. “The reality is we have to stick together. What? These next two weeks, we got Denver, and then after that, we got the Commander, both of them had to find a way to win and not go 0-5 or 0-4. No. ”
Bears players on both sides of the ball tried to stand tall and confidently claim the team had not lost. Rejecting the belief that these first three games are not indicative of who they are and solutions can be found. Chemistry, execution, and trust were all introduced as potential keys to keeping the ship from sinking.
But what if it’s already underwater?
“We’re still trying to find our identity,” Walker said. “I honestly believe that. The chemistry has to be taken forward. We’d rather be a team that starts slow and finishes hot, rather than a team that starts hot and finishes slow.”
The team had months to find its identity. It told us what was in the camp. It’s been slapped in the face for three games in a row, and now they have no idea who they are.
When asked what the key was to fixing what’s broken, Walker’s answer seemed to sum up where this Bears team really is.
“Coaches trust the players. Players trust the coaches,” Walker said. “But it has to be 50/50. It can’t be 60/40, 70/30.”
When asked if he had confidence in his coaches, Walker was not convinced.
“You don’t have any other choice,” Walker said. “of course we do.”
Linebacker TJ Edwards spent last season with the Philadelphia Eagles on a Super Bowl run. He is now finding out how the other half lives.
“I don’t think anyone is panicking or losing their mind, but we need to have a sense of urgency,” Edwards said. “We’ve got to step up and play some good football. There’s no time to waste in this league. You never know.”
Slowly but surely, the 2023 Bears exited the Arrowhead locker room. The only sound echoing in the air was the hum of the overhead lights. Honestly, what’s there to say?
This team should have been different. Considered harder, more explosive and having better resolution. There were excuses for last year’s 3-14 team. Many of the starting players were not NFL-caliber players. This was the season of destruction. Blah blah blah.
General manager Ryan Poles added talent. He got his guys involved in the positions he and head coach Matt Eberflus wanted.
And this team is arguably worse than the one that was the punching bag for most of last season.
This is indefensible and goes further than the execution of the players on Sunday. There is something else going on with the 2023 Bears.
He should have been better. They should have at least been viewable.
Bears can look all they want for answers. They won’t find him in Halas Hall, on the bus, or in the corner of the visiting locker room at the stadium where Mahomes and the Chiefs stole his soul.
After Sunday’s throttling, the Bears faltered in the media session just as they faltered in 60 minutes of game time.
There were no catchy lines, passionate pep talks or easily recognizable solutions – just eyes searching the void for answers unlikely to be possible.
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