5. Matt Ryan has a pedestrian day at home vs. the Bears
We are at a spot already in the season where it’s unclear if the Chicago Bears are any good. It is massively unfair to dismiss the team’s 2-0 start, but it’s above-board to mention that the Detroit Lions only lost against the Bears because of a dropped touchdown catch in Week 1. Thereafter, Chicago narrowly edged the New York Giants 17-13 in a contest that marked a season-ending injury to Saquon Barkley. These two games aren’t necessarily flagged with an asterisk, but the 2-0 record might be enhanced by a bit of luck.
That said, the Bears do have a stout passing defense. Matt Nagy’s defense has allowed quite a few yards through the air, but only one touchdown has been surrendered by the Bears in 2020. It’s a bend-not-break unit through two games.
Think of the Bears defense as more of a trend. They’ve invested heavily in that side of the ball and hence have limited playmakers on offense as a result. The outlook for the Bears offense became even scarier recently when Allen Robinson seemingly voiced discontent with his contractual situation.
Chicago is a defense-first team that is coached by an offense-first skipper. It’s an odd medley. A for this week against the Falcons, the Bears will hold Matt Ryan to one touchdown pass and less than 250 yards.