Chicago Bears: Stock up, stock down in loss to Panthers
Only one preseason game should not dictate the fate of a player. However, these players saw their stock rise or fall after the preseason loss to the Panthers.
With roster cuts looming, the Chicago Bears must determine who they need to keep and who will they will let walk. Wins and losses in the preseason mean very little, but coaches will start to notice the separation between close competition.
Coaches will go back and review the game film. This will show them areas that the player needs to work on and they can use it as a teaching tool. Throughout training camp and OTAs, hitting is very minimal. This is only the first preseason game, and players are starting to shake the rust off. However, players need to take advantage of every opportunity they are given.
Fans need to remember that the plays being run in the preseason are very vanilla. Coaches try out a few different looks here and there, but the point of the preseason is sure tackling, heads up, one-on-one play against your man, getting back into game readiness and determining the depth of the team.
If your team lets up 20-plus points as the Chicago Bears did to the Panthers, one must not worry too much. Teams that go 4-0 in the preseason rarely translate that into a dominant record in the regular season. The Chicago Bears were leading at halftime, but again, that means little.
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If you want to watch the preseason and actually enjoy it, pick out a player or two on every play and just watch that player throughout the entire play. Then grade their performance. Did the player contain? Did he make a big play? Did he find himself out of position or let up a big play? This is the analysis that coaches are looking for from the preseason. Doing this yourself can help you pinpoint exactly which players are showing up.
This is what I did last night. I especially watched plays on special teams. Some guys stood out to me in both a positive and negative way. If someone was not mentioned, that player did enough to not draw attention to themselves one way or another.