Chicago Bears: 5 X-factor players for Week 8 vs. Saints

3. There will be problems, but Nick Foles has to find a way to get past them

Nick Foles was battered and bruised by Los Angeles. They sacked him four times and hit him nine times. Even when they didn’t hit him, the pressure was so great that he had to throw too many passes off his back foot. When a quarterback does that, the ball sails on him.

As a result of that, the Rams intercepted two of his passes. There were also a few passes that, if completed, could have turned the game around. They weren’t, though, because he had to throw with bad mechanics or he had to get rid of the ball too quickly to give the receivers a chance to make the catch.

After four starts with Chicago, Foles has a good idea of what he’s playing with. He knows the strengths and weaknesses of the offense. He knows he’ll be under pressure a lot. With that knowledge, he has to figure out a way to get the throw off quicker.

Even if, as Brian Griese said on the telecast on Monday, Foles knows a play called won’t work because of time allowed, he always has the option of checking down. We’ve been told so many times that head coach Matt Nagy has the confidence in Foles to run this offense well and, if needed, to disagree with him.

Foles might be better off trying short passes like slants or throwing to the flat. That could then get the line into a rhythm, thereby giving Foles more time to hit a deep pass. He did that when he went on the championship run with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017. The Eagles ran RPOs (run-pass option) and short, quick passes to great success. When defenses tried to come in closer, he hit his receivers up top and got some deep passes completed.

It might be up to Foles to mix things up and find a way to make plays. He’s done it before and it’s time for him to do it again.