Chicago Bears: Month-by-month 2017 season review
October (2-2 record)
After the debacle against the Packers, the Bears decided to give the rookie a shot. Trubisky was finally in and the fans rejoiced. His first game was against the Minnesota Vikings, a team who eventually won the divisions and a second-round bye. The Bears again played tough and had a chance to win at the end. However, Trubisky threw a costly interception late in the game that cost the Bears a chance at victory.
Even though the Bears lost, fans caught a glimpse of what Trubisky could do. He made some good throws on the run and he tucked the ball and used his legs to get some first downs. Hope from the quarterback position! That hope carried the Bears through the next two weeks when they played two more playoff contenders.
First up the Bears went on the road to face the Baltimore Ravens. They started out strong, using trick plays (Cohen threw a touchdown pass) and an Adrian Amos 90-yard pick-six to take a fourth quarter 24-13 lead.
The Ravens caught up, however, when they had a 77-yard punt return for a touchdown. A two-point conversion sealed the comeback. The game went into overtime. A Howard 53-yard run and a Trubisky completion of 18 yards got the Bears into field goal position and Connor Barth hit a game-winning field goal. The next week was a good news/bad news situation. Bad news — the Bears offense mustered only three points. Good news — they won anyway.
Eddie Jackson made history in this game. In the first quarter, he recovered a fumble and went 75 yards for a touchdown. In the second quarter, he intercepted a Cam Newton pass and went 76 yards for another touchdown. He became the first rookie to score two touchdowns of 75+ yards in a season, and he did it in a half. It was Jackson’s coming out party. He helped solidified the Bears’ safety position.
Fox, in his usual conservative self, decided to sit on the 14-0 lead. He leaned on the defense and had Trubisky throw just seven passes. The defense did hold the Panthers to three points and the Bears came away with a 17-3 victory. At the postgame press conference, Trubsiky didn’t seem to happy with his performance but blamed himself and not the coaching staff. A good sign from the rookie.
The Bears went to New Orleans with a 3-4 record and feeling good about themselves. They faced a New Orleans Saints team that won four straight games going in. The Bears once again played a good team tough, but ultimately fell. In that game, the Bears also lost tight end Zach Miller. He dove for a touchdown pass and ended up tearing up ligaments and an artery. He needed emergency surgery to save his leg. His season ended and perhaps his career.
The Bears headed into the bye with a 3-5 record but feeling good about the rest of the season…then reality hit.