Chicago Bears Week 5 Stock Report
After a disappointing start to the 2015 season, the Chicago Bears recorded their first victory of the season in Week 4 at home against the Oakland Raiders. The Bears improved to 1-3 on the year, and they are set to take on the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 5.
The Bears and Chiefs have met 11 times in the past, and Chicago leads the all-time series with a 6-5 record. The two teams last squared off in 2011, and the Chiefs came away with a 10-3 victory over the Bears at Soldier Field.
Kansas City dropped to 1-3 on the year following its Week 4 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Chiefs have now lost three games in a row.
Chicago had strong performances on both sides of the football in its win over Oakland, and the Bears will look to build some momentum this weekend in Kansas City. A handful of players stood out in Chicago's win over the Raiders, but a few took a step back.
Whose stock is rising and whose stock as falling as the Bears head into their Week 5 matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs?
Stock Up: Marquess Wilson
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No. 1 wide receiver Alshon Jeffery missed his third straight game due to a hamstring injury in Week 4, but third-year receiver Marquess Wilson stepped up in Jeffery's absence.
The former seventh-round pick finished the game with six catches for a career-high 80 yards. He dropped the first pass thrown his direction during the team's game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter, but he hauled in his next two targets for 15 yards and helped put the Bears in field-goal range.
After the game, Wilson received praise from quarterback Jay Cutler for his performance.
“I thought Wilson did a heck of a job, coming up big,” said Cutler, per Arthur Arkush of ChicagoFootball.com. “Some big-time catches. He had that drop, came back, had a couple of catches in a row.”
Wilson did a nice job of working back toward the ball all afternoon, and he showed a willingness to fight for the football. In addition to making plays in the passing game, he was also a willing blocker in the running game. He still needs to get stronger, but he took a big step forward in his development against the Raiders.
“Marquess Wilson grew up right before our eyes today,” said tight end Martellus Bennett after the game, per Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I’m very proud of him and the work he’s been doing. Hopefully he can continue to build on that.”
It is not known whether Jeffery will return this week to take on the Chiefs, but Wilson should still get ample opportunities to make an impact in the passing game this Sunday. The Chiefs have given up 11 passing touchdowns this season—the most in the NFL—and they are allowing the fifth-most passing yards per game this season with 295.5 yards.
If Wilson can continue to impress like he did in Week 4 against the Raiders, he has a chance to emerge as a real threat on offense for the Bears this season.
Stock Down: Vladimir Ducasse
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The Bears have had to do a lot of shuffling along their offensive line during the first four weeks of the season, but right guard Vladimir Ducasse has maintained his starting spot despite his struggles.
Kyle Long moved from right guard to right tackle in Week 1, left tackle Jermon Bushrod left the team's Week 3 game against the Seattle Seahawks with a concussion and missed Sunday's game against Oakland and starting center Will Montgomery suffered a leg injury against the Raiders.
Starting left guard Matt Slauson moved over to center following Montgomery's injury, and Patrick Omameh filled in for Slauson at left guard. Even though Slauson was playing center for the first time and Omameh was playing for the first time this season, Ducasse struggled the most on Sunday.
Ducasse struggled in both pass protection and as a run-blocker, and he was called for his seventh penalty of the season against Oakland. He flashed at times when blocking straight ahead in the running game, but he lacks the athleticism to get to the outside as a pulling guard.
According to Pro Football Focus, Ducasse has played all 278 snaps on offense this season and has allowed one sack, one quarterback hit and seven quarterback hurries.
Montgomery was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, per the team's official Twitter account, but the Bears have not announced who will play center in Week 5.
The Bears could start third-round pick Hroniss Grasu at center, but he has not been active for a game this season. If the team opts to keep Slauson at center, Omameh will likely get the start at left guard, meaning Ducasse will once again start at right guard.
Ducasse is a strong guard who has flashed in the power-running game, but he has been a liability at times this season because of his lack of athleticism and mental mistakes.
Stock Up: Eddie Goldman
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Rookie nose tackle Eddie Goldman has tallied just five tackles in four games this season, but his stock is currently rising.
According to Pro Football Focus, Goldman played 36 of the team's 58 snaps at nose tackle against the Raiders, and he finished the game with a plus-2.5 overall grade and recorded his first NFL sack.
Goldman lined up opposite of guard J'Marcus Webb late in the first half, and he pushed the former Bear straight back on a bull rush before sacking Raiders quarterback Derek Carr for a 15-yard loss. Carr did a nice job of buying time while waiting for one of his receivers to get open, but Goldman showed off his high motor and came away with the sack.
In addition to recording his first sack of the season, he also did a good job against the run.
"Bears rookie NT Eddie Goldman has done well anchoring inside today against a quality center in Rodney Hudson," tweeted the Chicago Tribune's Rich Campbell on Sunday afternoon.
After a strong start to the season in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, Goldman's play went unnoticed against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2 and against Seattle in Week 3. He struggled to shed blockers in Week 2 and Week 3, but he did a much better job of creating havoc up the middle against Oakland.
He still needs to improve his conditioning, but he showed on Sunday why the Bears selected him in the second round of this year's draft.
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Stock Down: Sherrick McManis
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Defensive back Sherrick McManis had a strong offseason and training camp and won the team's nickelback job during the preseason, but the former Northwestern Wildcat's play has regressed in recent weeks.
McManis played with confidence and was all over the field during the preseason, but according to Pro Football Focus, he has been thrown at 15 times during the regular season and has given up 12 catches for 106 yards and three touchdowns.
McManis played aggressively off the snap of the ball and did a nice job of coming downhill to break up passes thrown his direction during the preseason, but he has not looked like the same player throughout much of the regular season.
Veteran Tracy Porter got the start on the outside at cornerback in relief of starter Alan Ball in Week 4, and he played well against Oakland's top receiver. Amari Cooper recorded back-to-back 100-yard receiving games in Weeks 2 and 3, but Porter shadowed the rookie receiver much of the afternoon and helped hold him to just four catches for 49 yards.
If Ball is able to return this week, there is a good chance Porter could slide into the starting nickelback role over McManis.
Up to this point in his career, McManis has been a stellar contributor on special teams, and he has shown over the last few games that he may be in over his head at the nickelback position. Chicago has struggled on special teams this year, and McManis may be able to salvage his season if he is used primarily on special teams moving forward.
Stock Up: Jay Cutler
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After missing the second half against the Cardinals in Week 2 and all of the team's Week 3 game against the Seahawks with a hamstring injury, Cutler returned to the starting lineup in Week 4 against Oakland.
The veteran quarterback moved well in the pocket despite his hamstring injury, and he completed 28 of his 43 passing attempts for 281 yards. He threw two touchdowns and one interception, and he finished the game with an 89.4 quarterback rating.
On Monday, head coach John Fox raved about Cutler's performance and toughness.
"The mental and physical toughness it takes to speed something like that up, deal with it, go out and perform like he did under that duress—forget about the duress of just playing NFL football—but to have maybe not 100 percent body with you, I think is pretty admirable," Fox said, per the Chicago Sun-Times' Patrick Finley.
Cutler did throw an interception late in the fourth quarter that could have sealed Chicago's fate, but he played well in the final two minutes of the game. He completed five of his eight passing attempts for 41 yards during Chicago's final drive of the game, and he helped put kicker Robbie Gould into position to attempt the game-winning 49-yard field goal.
When healthy this season, Cutler has looked terrific in offensive coordinator Adam Gase's system. In Week 1 against the Packers, he completed 18 of his 36 passing attempts for 225 yards and tossed one touchdown, and in the first half against the Cardinals, he completed eight of his nine passing attempts for 120 yards with one touchdown and registered a 116.2 quarterback rating.
“Having him in there, we’re just so confident because he’s our guy,” said Slauson, per Finley. “We have full belief in him. I mean, he played lights out [Sunday] and we know that he can do that every week, so when he’s in there it just juices us all up.”
Cutler has had his share of ups and downs during his time with the Bears, but the team struggled without him in the lineup in Week 3 against Seattle, and he proved on Sunday how valuable he is to Chicago's offense.
Kansas City's defense is vulnerable against the pass, and Cutler could be in for a big day this Sunday if Jeffery is able to come back healthy.
Statistical information courtesy of NFL.com unless otherwise noted.
Matt Eurich is a Chicago Bears featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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