Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers: Offensive grades

Running Backs: ?

This confusion has partly to do with the execution by the running backs (which truthfully wasn’t terrible) and their usage.

I’m not necessarily even talking about why they didn’t get many carries. After all, being down 35-7 at one point will do that to you. No, that’s something else.

I want to know what the Chicago Bears were thinking with the way they deployed their running backs in this game. Some things just didn’t add up to me.

First off, we all knew the Green Bay Packers would want to stop Jordan Howard in the run game, and they did. He averaged just 2.3 yards per carry against a determined rush defense and never really got it going while the Bears technically remained in the game.

And after a dynamic first couple of weeks, Tarik Cohen had a negligible impact on this game, picking up just 24 yards apiece on the ground and through the air.

Basically, the Packers took away the Bears’ two best playmakers. That’s the result.

Aside from that, though, two things specifically made me scratch my head.

For one, why in the world was Howard playing in the 4^th quarter of a blowout game with a bum shoulder? There is less than no point in having him on the field then especially after he appeared to re-aggravate the injury during the game. But there he was, getting garbage time carries and touchdowns.

Also, why did Benny Cunningham get so many snaps today in semi-meaningful situations over Cohen? I mean, I know why he got carries late in the fourth quarter, but before that?

Was Cohen hurt? Were they just trying to keep him fresh? Because aside from those reasons, I’m really not sure why arguably the team’s best offensive player gave up snaps to a third/fourth string-caliber back.

And don’t say pass-protection because I think he did just fine here.

I hope someone asks him about those two things. Lost in a game full of awful quarterback play, those two coaching decisions continue to make me question what the point of the Chicago Bears even is.