Defense rules as Chicago Bears beat Cardinals: Score, highlights, analysis

The good, the bad and the meaningful takeaways for the Chicago Bears from their 24-23 win against the Arizona Cardinals in their second preseason game.

After a losing effort in their preseason opener, the Chicago Bears came out on top against the Arizona Cardinals in Preseason Week 2. Mike Glennon looked better, though that’s not saying a whole lot. Mitch Trubisky came back to earth ever so slightly but responded well to adversity. And a defense that couldn’t hold onto a lead last game got it done this time around.

Here are highlights and key moments from tonight’s contest.

Tarik Cohen, Defense Dominate Early

Cohen

Early on, the Bears seemed to be doing everything they could to protect Mike Glennon from scrutiny. And with Jordan Howard out, that plan involved handing the ball to Cohen as often as possible.

Everything that followed was nothing short of electrifying.

Cohen ran right, left and up the middle on zone reads, straight handoffs and pitches all over the Cardinals’ #1 defense. His first run of the game immediately went for 16 yards, with him bouncing off a man with a nifty spin. And he just kept coming. I don’t think he made a single bad decision. He cut upfield to get yards straight ahead when nothing was available and simply torched people to the outside when he knew he could get there.

He didn’t get to catch a pass, but he didn’t need to. At this point, Cohen looks like the clear choice to back up Howard when the latter returns to action.

Defense

After a lot of fretting about how the Bears defense would perform this season, they sure looked up to the challenge of facing Carson Palmer and the Cardinals offense tonight.

Early, it was the run defense setting the tone. Jonathan Bullard was utterly and completely unstoppable all night, blowing up play after play. Leonard Floyd flashed increased physicality at the point of attack, forcing plays into the teeth of the defense. And Jerrell Freeman picked up where he left off, flying to the ball and cleaning up plays.

After a while, the pass rush and pass defense got into the act as well. On one thing, Floyd repeatedly punked Jake Veldheer off the edge, which could be a common theme this season. Kyle Fuller and Cre’Von LeBlanc had a few nice breaks on the ball to disrupt a few Palmer passes. And Eddie Jackson almost pulled off a spectacular one-handed interception in the end zone off Palmer, settling for a pass breakup.

Then, when the reserves took the field, Roy Robertson-Harris announced his arrival to the Bears’ preseason. He notched two consecutive sacks on one possession and had a tackle for no gain on another. Watch for him to get more snaps as he aims to make the team as a defensive end.

Christian Jones getting lost on the Cards’ touchdown notwithstanding, the Bears’ defense showed up resoundingly tonight.

Glennon Offers Mixed Bag

Ok, let’s start off by saying the Glennon was indeed better than he was last week.

But in spite of what the stats might say, that isn’t saying a whole lot.

The raw numbers say that Glennon had an okay game, going 13-18 for 89 yards with a touchdown and interception each. And to be sure, he had a few more positive plays than he did last week.

Most notably, he moved the chains on two consecutive third downs with completions to Benny Cunningham and Zach Miller. Then, to close out his final possession, he reacted quickly to an all-out blitz and found his hot read—Kendall Wright—on the goal line for a touchdown.

But if we’re looking at the entire picture, Glennon, while better, really wasn’t that impressive.

As mentioned before, the Bears appeared content to protect Glennon by calling short passes and screens, taking away chances for bad things to happen down the field. As it turned out, that strategy looked prescient when we saw Glennon try to throw downfield.

At first, he almost turfed an open throw to Cameron Meredith over the middle that the receiver plucked off the grass. Innocent enough, right? Well, the next couple of misfires weren’t.

After nearly throwing an interception on a third down on a comeback route to Meredith, he did throw one in the red zone on the Bears’ next possession. Unlike last week, where his interception could’ve been due to a few factors that weren’t his fault, this one was 100% on him.

He stared down his receiver and threw late on an out route to Wright right into the arms of Tyrann Matheu, who baited him into the throw. Later, he nearly threw another interception on an unconscionable decision to throw deep to Zach Miller across his body.

While Glennon did show some glimpses of his experience, he still doesn’t look like a starting NFL quarterback.

Mitch Trubisky Takes a Few Lumps, Keeps on Coming

Following his breakout debut performance, Trubisky had to battle a little harder in his second NFL action. And though he had some solid plays, he also did show glimpses of being a rookie quarterback.

He took a monster hit on his first pass attempt, nearly getting his helmet taken off on a personal foul. And after taking his first real sack—a play where he arguably should’ve gotten rid of the ball to Adam Shaheen—he also took a low blow to the knee area on a screen pass. In the end, he remained unphased and unhurt and stayed in the game.

He did start off strongly, completing five of his first seven passes. In particular, he looked toward Tanner Gentry, a fellow rookie, often, hitting him for a few nice gains. He also converted a nice third-down throw to Daniel Brown to move the chains in his first drive.

However, he also made his first questionable decision of the preseason, trying to force a ball to Titus Davis that nearly got picked off. Though Davis also lost his footing, the play never opened up at any point. That’s the kind of play that Trubisky needs to avoid if he’s going to play this season. Holster that throw, and live to fight another day.

But he bounced back and had two big plays on bootlegs in his last drive. One went to free agent fullback Freddie Stevenson for a first down on a rollout to his left. The next one, rolling to his right, was a six-yard touchdown to Benny Cunningham. His toughest test yet ended with on a high note at least.

Ultimately, this performance, along with Glennon’s lack of being abjectly horrible, will quell some of the hype surrounding Trubisky. So, expect the plan to stay the same regarding keeping Trubisky on the bench for now.

To be fair, though, while he looked like a rookie, he still didn’t look bad. And that’s encouraging.

Stud of the Game: Tarik Cohen

Where are the detractors wondering if Cohen had the mettle to play in the NFL now?

Going up against the Cardinals’ best defenders, Cohen simply ran wild from his first touch of the game. He showed off his exceptional burst and agility, getting to the edge with ease even against the Cards’ #1 defense. He even turned more than one play that looked destined to lose yards into a positive with nothing but pure speed and agility.

All told, he racked up 72 yards on nine carries in the first quarter alone, finishing with 77 yards on 11 attempts total. And though he didn’t catch a pass, he did hold his own in blitz pickup. For a rookie, especially one of his stature, his willingness to stand up to pass rushers has to impress the Bears’ coaching staff.

At this rate, it’s fair to expect him to be the first man up in relief of Howard when games matter. He’s given the Bears no reason not to trust him, and no one can ignore his early brilliance.

Honorable mention #1: Jonathan Bullard

He completely dominated in the run game, where he struggled last year, and even picked up a sack. Last year’s third-round pick, viewed by many as a monster draft steal, lived up to his billing tonight. That type of performance should garner him consideration as a potential starter opposite Akiem Hicks. Man…what a pair they could make.

Honorable mention #2: Deonte Thompson

I think he might make the team now.

Dud of the Game: John Fox

Truthfully, no Bears player, not even Glennon, played badly enough to be considered a real dud in this game. Christian Jones did struggle some in pass coverage, but he also flashed as a pass rusher. So I don’t want to down him too much.

That said, there was one person on the Bears that I felt had a poor game: their head coach.

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Fox’s management of the quarterback position is simply silly. On one hand, his and Dowell Loggains‘ game plan clearly aimed to protect Glennon from scrutiny rather than prepare him meaningfully. Sure, one could argue that the short passing game plays to his comforts and strengths. But the true message it appears to send is that Fox would rather close his mind to the possibility that Glennon isn’t that good than actually evaluate him.

And what’s the point of bringing Mark Sanchez in for a third quarter series? Just trying to prove a point that Trubisky is your third-string quarterback?

Mark Sanchez doesn’t need reps. Your rookie, who might very well already be the best quarterback on your roster, does. He needs to gain valuable experience before you throw him on your bench behind Glennon during the regular season.

Stop wasting time on a guy who doesn’t need the practice, and work on cultivating the future franchise quarterback. Who knows? You might need to turn to him soon to save your job if Glennon struggles.

Next: While better, Glennon still not good enough for Bears

Ultimately, the Chicago Bears will take the win and look to repeat the feat in their regular season dress rehearsal next Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.