Santonio Holmes had no targets on 31 snaps
Chicago Bears wide receiver Santonio Holmes looked like a solid, low-risk offseason signing as a half-season replacement for injured wide receiver Marquess Wilson, who is on the short-term injured reserve with a broken collarbone. Holmes received plenty of praise during the preseason for absorbing the Bears offense, not being a diva (Marc Trestman was adamant that he had no worries about Holmes’s behavior), and generally looking good.
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Unfortunately, we haven’t seen anything deserving of praise thus far in his Bears career, because he’s been a non-factor through the team’s first four games. After catching two passes for 21 yards in Week 1, he had just two receptions for 20 yards against the San Francisco 49ers, failing to relieve Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, who were both dealing with injuries. He’s been even less effective on the stat sheet in the past two games, with a combined two receptions for nine yards.
According to the Chicago Tribune’s Dan Wiederer, Santonio Holmes was never targeted in yesterday’s 38-17 loss to the Green Bay Packers, though he was on the field for 31 snaps. That isn’t much playing time, but it’s still surprising to see that he didn’t garner any targets. By comparison, Josh Morgan had three receptions for 24 yards on four targets (the incomplete pass was a tipped interception, in which Tramon Williams completely baited Jay Cutler).
One explanation for Holmes’s lack of production on the stat sheet is his relative lack of targets, but that doesn’t explain why Morgan received more looks yesterday against Green Bay. Simply put, Holmes isn’t producing, and it’s fair to wonder how often Cutler will look in his direction going forward. It’s clearly the Marshall and Jeffery show in Chicago with plenty of Martellus Bennett thrown it, and Matt Forte was always expected to be a bigger threat in the passing game, too.