Chicago Bears: Young players on the rise after Week 2
By Ryan Heckman
It may have taken a little while — check that, it was almost too late — but the Chicago Bears found a way to shift momentum and put forth an impressive comeback effort Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers. Down by as much as 13 in the fourth quarter, Chicago first used its defense to force quarterback Colin Kaepernick into what would end up being some poor decisions. From there, quarterback Jay Cutler hit his stride and tossed a total of four touchdowns in the win.
Already injury-ridden, the Bears had several guys come in and step up. Particularly, there were a handful of young players who improved their stock on the season — and all were on defense. I know I speak for Bears fans everywhere when I say that it was a fantastic sight to see when the following guys stepped up to the plate Sunday night.
CB Kyle Fuller
2014 first-round pick Kyle Fuller finished the night having been thrown at six times. Four of those passes were completed for a total of 65 yards. However, it was the other two passes that he would be remembered for Sunday night. Both of the other passes were intercepted by the Virginia Tech product, and they could not have come at a better time.
The first pick, and arguably the most impressive of the two, came on a 1st-and-10 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Kaepernick thought he had hit Michael Crabtree toward the sideline, but on the way down Fuller ripped the ball away from the receiver. On the very next play, the Bears took the lead when Cutler hit tight end Martellus Bennett for a score.
Fuller’s second pick came on the 49ers’ next drive when they were facing a 3rd-and-12. Kapernick was forced out of the pocked and made an erroneous throw on the run. At first it looked like the ball was thrown directly to the rookie. On second glance, Fuller actually shifted his momentum back towards the ball and leaped for the pick.
The Bears will need Fuller to be at his best from here on out, as starting cornerback Charles Tillman is out for the second straight season with a torn triceps. In the Bears locker room, it’s a “next man up” mentality, and Fuller is officially that guy. His stock is way up after his performance Sunday night, and he will have to continue to be a ball hawk for this Bears defense to regain its old form.
“We all still had confidence, we knew we were going to pull it out.” – Kyle Fuller
LB Jon Bostic
Jon Bostic was a guy that I pinned to have a breakout season this year. After a mediocre rookie campaign at middle linebacker, he was inserted as one of the nickel linebackers with D.J. Williams healthy. Bostic had always shown plenty of speed while at Florida, but last season as a rookie, he looked out of place quite often and couldn’t put that speed to use.
Sunday night, Bostic’s game was a different story. As the game went on, Bostic looked better and better, especially in the passing game. He fled to the ball extremely quick on several occasions and you could tell that he was hungry to make plays. The Bears have always prided themselves on flocking to the ball, and Bostic understood that mentality on this occasion. He will need to continue to play fast in order to help this banged-up unit catch up to where they once were.
LB Shea McClellin
Shea McClellin, in only his second game at linebacker, has looked like he is learning more and more by the minute. Throughout training camp, I have to admit, I was struggling to make a case for this guy as an NFL linebacker. He was by far the worst linebacker in camp, and at times had no idea what he was doing out there — he simply looked lost at times.
Fast forward to Sunday night, and McClellin looked a lot more comfortable. On one key play in the fourth quarter, the third year pro blasted through broken-down pass protection and sacked Kaepernick for a loss of four. San Francisco had previously converted on third down and looked to try and gain momentum on the drive after Fuller’s first interception.
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DT Ego Ferguson
One of the more crucial plays of the night came on 2nd-and-4 inside the red zone where defensive tackle Ego Ferguson ripped past his man on the line and finished a tackle on Carlos Hyde that Lance Briggs had originally stuffed. On the next play, the Bears line again crashed on the run and forced a field goal attempt after the 49ers had eaten up over half of the third quarter on a 13-play drive to open the second half.
Ferguson was very solid in helping contain the run later in the game, and the Bears will need him to do more of that if starter Jay Ratliff ends up missing extended time.
DE Willie Young
Let’s call this a pun, as defensive end Willie Young isn’t necessarily in his first year or two. The 28-year old pass rusher gave Chicago the extra boost it needed on the line throughout the night as he was consistently beating his man to put pressure on Kaepernick. Young tallied his second and third sacks on the young season Sunday night and is looking like the best pickup of the offseason thus far. Sure, Jared Allen and Lamarr Houston were the higher profile guys, but it has been Young who has stood out on the defensive line early on.
His best play of the night came later in the fourth quarter when he beat former Miami Dolphin Jonathan Martin off the ball and wrapped up Kaepernick for a loss of six yards. Young was seemed like the fastest man off the ball all night long, as it didn’t matter who they tried blocking him with. In the weeks to come, look for Young to continue making a huge impact. I have a feeling both Allen and Houston will make more of a difference as the season goes on, and that means less pressure on Young.
I will tell you one thing, and that is this defense was a lot more fun to watch late Sunday night than they were all of 2013. General manager Phil Emery looks like he knew what he was doing signing and drafting these guys above, and it will be interesting to see whether or not they can continue to come together into a formidable unit. It seems like it’s been a while since the “Monsters of the Midway” mantra has graced the city of Chicago.
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