In just a few weeks , linebacker Khalil Mack and the Chicago

Geregistreerd op: 09 Nov 2018 Berichten: 232

The identity is no secret: They're coming after the quarterback and the football.The Chicago Bears Hats Bears hope to build momentum Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals after they beat Seattle 24-17 Monday night. And a defense leading the NFL in sacks is giving them a shot at climbing over .500 for the first time since September 2014."Consistency is what you want, especially from a defense on the road," Mack said. "It's going to be very important to go out, pack our defense and do what we're capable of doing."Mack's impact has gone beyond consistency for the defense. Now they're all trying to get the football the way he did when he stripped it from quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson while they threw in each of the first two games."If you can't tell, it's very contagious," Mack said.There's method to the madness Mack has created on the field."You definitely consciously work on that," Mack said. "That's something you want to preach throughout the whole defense 鈥?getting the ball back to the offense. Creating a short field (for the offense) is a great feeling, but it feels even better when you can score it yourself."Linebacker Danny Trevathan had two sacks and a forced fumble against Seattle and was the NFC Defensive Player of the Week. The defense has 10 sacks in all, and has scored two touchdowns on interception returns."The ball is the most important thing on the field," Mack said. "You can get the big hits. But the ball is very, very important, especially in a game."They think it will only get better."Oh yeah, that's what they pay us the big bucks for," Trevathan said.Mack came over in a trade just before the season with Oakland and received the biggest defensive contract in history, with $90 million guaranteed.New teammates immediately saw big plays from him against Green Bay in the opener, with a fumble forced, recovered Chicago Bears Womens Hoodie , a sack, an interception and a touchdown return.They all wanted to imitate him."I believe for us, just seeing it happen, you'll want to go out and do it yourself," linebacker Leonard Floyd said. "It definitely motivates the rest of the team to go out and make those types of plays."By watching Mack, Floyd thinks he can pick up techniques for getting around the corner and knocking out the ball."It's definitely a skill you can learn," Floyd said. "It's a skill of just wanting to get the ball out. Just when you get the opportunity, you want to force a turnover."Another reason the Bears defense sees possible improvement ahead is they've operated so far at less than 100 percent capacity.Floyd still has to wear a club cast on his right hand to protect a fracture, and doesn't have a sack. He said he hopes this week to reduce the size of the protective cast.Rookie Roquan Smith has eight tackles, a sack, and just started to make an impact last week after holding out most of training camp. And Mack says he's still adjusting to a new team, new scheme and playing again after a preseason holdout.While new teammates are imitating Mack, he's also gaining a respect for them 鈥?Trevathan in particular."You can tell he won a championship," Mack said of the former Bronco. "That's definitely what he's bringing to the table, that communication and vibe that you feel from your vocal leader."The Bears finished 10th defensively last year, ninth in points allowed, and they expected to be better. Mack's addition has changed expectations outside of Halas Hall Womens Customized Chicago Bears Jerseys , but coach Matt Nagy insisted it did nothing to his belief in the team."It didn't change any mentality at all," Nagy said. "I told (reporters) from the day we walked into this building here, there was one goal and that was to win the Super Bowl. That was it. That was with the team that we had, before Khalil."Now that he gets here, he helps us get better on that side of the ball and helps us be better as a team as a leader. The goal never changed. Maybe it has to outsiders, but for people in this building it hasn't changed." Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the NFL’s most heartwarming tales because he’s proof that short hot streaks will always find you work in a quarterback-starved sport. He’s evidence that teams and coaches are desperate enough to invest in him as a backup passer, at minimum, ignoring the various and expected turnover-laden blemishes of his career. That belief has led to another hot start for Fitzpatrick, or should I say, “Fitzmagic” as he leads the NFL in yards-per-pass-attempt at over 11. He’s galvanized an explosive offense in Tampa Bay, and the Buccaneers are one of the more surprising teams in the early goings of the 2018 season considering they had the Eagles, Saints, and Steelers on their schedule to kick things off. Something tells me the Buccaneers’ offensive success thus far is more about having one of the best pass-catching groups in the NFL featuring Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson, and O.J. Howard, than it is about Fitzpatrick being an elite quarterback. He’s bound to fall back to Earth anytime now, and very possibly against a great Bears defense on Sunday at Soldier Field. As Pennywise The Clown says: we all float down here. Here are Windy City Gridiron’s staff picks for Bears-Buccaneers.Robert Zeglinski: Bears 24 Buccaneers 17Whether it’s Fitzpatrick or Jameis Winston www.bearscheapstores.com , an opportunistic Bears defense forces a few turnovers to galvanize a win going into the bye week.Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.: Bears 28 Buccaneers 17The Buccaneers have a talented group of receiving options that have been aiding Fitzmagic, but he won’t have the time necessary to consistently find them. Jacob Infante: Buccaneers 21 Bears 17This is depressing for me to write, but I feel that Chicago’s offense won’t be able to keep up with the high-octane Tampa Bay offense led by Fitzpatrick.Aaron Leming: Buccaneers 24 Bears 21As much as I want to pick the Bears, recent history hasn’t been kind against the Buccaneers. It comes down to scoring enough to win and I’m not confident the Bears can do that yet. Jack Silverstein: Bears 21 Buccaneers 10Four field goals by Cody Parkey, a Tarik Cohen 58-yard screen, and a Khalil Mack Truck safety cover the scoring as the Bears defense brings the curtain down on Fitzmagic with five sacks and four takeaways.Sam Householder: Buccaneers 24 Bears 16Here’s the thing: No matter which Buccaneers quarterback plays they’re both the same, and the Bears’ secondary is suspect. Meanwhile the Tampa Bay third-ranked rushing defense and 31st-ranked passing defense will make Mitchell Trubisky beat them. Have we seen evidence he can do that yet?Josh Sunderbruch: Bears 20 Buccaneers 16The Bears largely hold the Bucs to field goals, while Matt Nagy takes advantage of short fields and the defense provides a touchdown to power the Bears to 3-1 heading into the bye. Erik Duerrwaechter: Bears 31 Buccaneers 27It’s going to be a high scoring affair. With the red hot Bears defense at home going against a shaky quarterback situation in Tampa Bay, there should be plenty of sacks and takeaways to slow down whichever quarterback is in the lineup. It will also come down to if Trubisky can come through against a suspect Buccaneers secondary. E.J. Snyder: Bears 27 Buccaneers 13The Buccaneers offense is staggering a bit after their tilt with the Steelers while the Bears defense is firing on all cylinders. On the flip side, the Tampa Bay secondary is in shambles and for the first time in years, the Bears have enough weapons in the passing game to exploit it.Andrew Link: Bears 27 Buccaneers 20Fitzpatrick is most likely to get the start, and after Monday night’s performance, he can get rattled with pressure. Guess who’s good at pressuring the quarterback ...Patti Curl: Bears 35 Bucs 21Fitzmagic throws five touchdowns and looks good doing it. Never mind that two of them will be to Bears defenders. Trubisky moves the ball efficiently and throws for two scores, but has some ugly rushed throws with poor mechanics and a pick resulting from a catchable Dion Sims tip into the air. Bears fans beg Ryan Pace to trade Trubisky for Fitzpatrick.WhiskeyRanger: Bears 27 Buccaneers 20The Fitzmagic waned a bit last week when the Steelers were able to get some pressure on the beautifully bearded Tampa Bay quarterback. I feel like there’s a team whose primary strength lies in doing exactly that. If only I could remember who that team was? Ken Mitchell: Bears 24 Buccaneers 17Fitzmagic is no match for the Mack-Monster and company. Period.WCG Contributors: Jeff Berckes; Patti Curl; Eric Christopher Duerrwaechter; Kev H; Sam Householder; Jacob Infante; Aaron Lemming; Andrew Link; Ken Mitchell; Steven Schweickert; Jack Silverstein; EJ Snyder; Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; Robert Zeglinski; Like us on Facebook.