Chicago Bears vs. Atlanta Falcons: Complete Week 6 Preview for Chicago
Following back-to-back losses to the Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers in Weeks 4 and 5, respectively, the Chicago Bears will try to right the ship when they head back on the road this Sunday to take on the Atlanta Falcons.
This Sunday will mark the 26th meeting between the Bears and the Falcons. Chicago holds a 13-12 lead over Atlanta dating back to 1966. The Bears won the last meeting between the two teams in 2011 by a score of 30-12 at Soldier Field.
After jumping out to a 21-7 lead against the Panthers in Week 5, the Bears offense struggled in the second half, scoring just three points in the final two quarters for the second week in a row.
“It’s not like we are getting beat. We are beating ourselves,” running back Matt Forte said after Sunday's loss, via Adam Hoge of TheGameChicago.com. “If we can get out of our own way, we can win some games.”
The Bears turned over the football on back-to-back series in the fourth quarter, giving the Panthers the opportunity to stay in the football game and eventually come away with the victory.
“Pretty frustrating,” quarterback Jay Cutler said after the game, via Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com. “There were many opportunities for us to close this out offensively. Offensively, a lot of that is on me. We’ve just got to play better.”
If the Bears want to come away with a victory on Sunday, their offense is going to need to play better football.
Atlanta currently sits in second place in the NFC South division behind the 3-2 Panthers and will be looking to keep pace in the division following a 30-20 loss against the New York Giants in Week 5.
The Falcons offensive line has been decimated by injuries this season, and starters Joe Hawley, Justin Blalock and Lamar Holmes all missed last Sunday's game against New York. With Atlanta's offensive line looking shaky at best, Chicago's defensive line should have ample opportunities to get after quarterback Matt Ryan.
Following a Detroit Lions loss in Week 5, the Bears luckily still have a chance to hang around in the NFC North with the Lions and Green Bay Packers sitting atop the division with identical 3-2 records. If the Bears can pull off a victory at home this Sunday afternoon, they should be able to remain in the playoff hunt.
Here is our Chicago Bears vs. Atlanta Falcons preview for Week 6.
Chicago Bears Week 5 Recap
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Matt Forte rushed for 61 yards on 17 carries and hauled in a career-high 12 passes for 105 yards with one touchdown against the Panthers in Week 5. Despite Forte's efforts, the Chicago Bears dropped to 2-3 on the season following their 31-24 loss to Carolina.
Chicago's defense played well, sacking Cam Newton twice and intercepting him once, but costly turnovers by quarterback Jay Cutler and Forte in the fourth quarter sealed the Bears' fate.
After the game, head coach Marc Trestman put the blame on himself for his team's struggles in the second half.
“From our standpoint, I’ve got to take accountability for our failure to get it done in the second half on all three phases and that starts with me,” Trestman told the media, via ChicagoFootball.com's Kevin Fishbain.
All three phases of the team struggled in the second half, particularly the offense. After scoring 21 points in the first half, Chicago was held to just three points in the second half.
The defense played well enough to win, but mistakes on special teams made it an uphill battle all afternoon.
The Bears have struggled all season long to play well for all four quarters of a game. If they want to come away with a victory against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6, they will need to play a complete game on offense, defense and special teams.
News and Notes
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Bears Vow to get Brandon Marshall More Involved
After hauling in 13 catches for 119 yards with four touchdowns in the team's first two games, Brandon Marshall has been held to six catches for 69 yards and one touchdown in the last three.
Part of Marshall's ineffectiveness is due to an ankle injury he suffered Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills, but after declaring himself "full speed" prior to the Carolina game and only finishing with three catches, head coach Marc Trestman knows Marshall needs to get more involved in the offense moving forward.
"We want [Marshall] to have more productivity," Trestman told the media earlier this week, via Larry Mayer of ChicagoBears.com. "When he touches the ball good things happen and over the last couple of weeks we haven’t been able to get that done."
Despite Marshall leading the team in touchdown receptions, Trestman noted Marshall is unhappy with his role:
"Brandon is not happy because he’s not being as productive as we’d like him to be and he’s not contributing like he wants to contribute to the offense...But at the end of the day he comes to work every day, he prepares and he works hard in practice.
"
Luckily for Marshall, the Bears are going up against an Atlanta team this Sunday that is giving up nearly 260 passing yards a game.
Considering all of Trestman's comments this week, expect Marshall to be a focal point of the offense this Sunday.
Devin Hester is Ready for His Return to Chicago
Arguably the best return man of all time, Devin Hester had 19 returns for touchdowns during his eight-year career in Chicago.
Following the 2013 season, the Bears opted to not re-sign Hester, and he landed in Atlanta this offseason after signing a three-year, $9 million deal.
Hester notched his 20th career touchdown return earlier this season on a 61-yard punt return against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In addition to his duties on special teams, he has also 14 receptions for 212 yards and one touchdown.
In a conference call with the media on Wednesday, Hester expressed excitement over playing some of his former teammates.
“It’s going to be fun, kind of exciting. So used to going against these guys in practice," Hester said, via Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune. "It’ll be the first time for me to go against them live. Been around these guys for a long time. So it’s kind of like playing against your brother."
When asked if the Bears will kick to him this Sunday, Hester said that's up to Chicago's special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis, via Adam Hoge of TheGameChicago.com.
Considering how poorly Chicago's special teams units have played this year, it would be unwise for the team to kick to Hester this Sunday.
Injury Report
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| Player | Position | Injury Status |
| Roberto Garza | C | Probable |
| Jermon Bushrod | OT | Out |
| Taylor Boggs | C | Out |
| Chris Conte | FS | Probable |
| Sherrick McManis | CB | Questionable |
| D.J. Williams | LB | Probable |
| Shea McClellin | LB | Out |
| Lance Briggs | LB | Out |
| Jon Bostic | LB | Questionable |
| Jeremiah Ratliff | DT | Probable |
| Ahmad Dixon | SS | Out |
All injury statuses from Larry Mayer of ChicagoBears.com.
After suffering an ankle injury against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, center Roberto Garza returned to practice this week. According to 670TheScore.com's Dan Durkin, head coach Marc Trestman said last week Garza will reclaim his starting job when healthy:
After missing last week's game, Jermon Bushrod will again be out of the starting lineup this Sunday after not practicing this week. Expect Michael Ola to replace Bushrod at left tackle.
Most notably, linebacker Lance Briggs did not participate in practice this week and was ruled out for Sunday's game.
"#Bears LB Lance Briggs, LT Jermon Bushrod & LB Shea McClellin have been ruled out of Sunday's game in Atlanta.
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 10, 2014"
With Briggs out of the lineup for Sunday, undrafted rookie Christian Jones has been getting work at weak-side linebacker this week, via Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times. Defensive backs Chris Conte and Sherrick McManis were limited this week and are listed as probable and questionable, respectively.
The team received some good news on Thursday with defensive tackle Jeremiah Ratliff returning to practice.
"#Bears DT Jeremiah Ratliff practiced without restrictions. He's missed last 3 games with concussion.
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 9, 2014"
Ratliff is listed as probable for Sunday, and he should help improve the team's pass rush.
Ahmad Dixon did not practice again this week and was ruled out for Sunday's contest.
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X-Factors and Matchups to Watch
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Jared Allen vs. Jake Matthews
After a bout of pneumonia kept him off the field against the Green Bay Packers in Week 4, Jared Allen returned to the field this past Sunday against the Carolina Panthers. He was once again held without a sack, but he did register a team-high seven tackles.
Despite Allen's performance, head coach Marc Trestman noted after the game that he knows Allen wants to play better, via the team's official Twitter account. With the Panthers' loss now behind him, Allen will focus on going up against Atlanta's rookie left tackle Jake Matthews.
The sixth-overall pick of the Falcons this past May, Matthews began the offseason as the team's right tackle before an injury to Sam Baker forced him to the left side.
According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Matthews has allowed two quarterback hits, nine quarterback hurries and is listed as the site's 65th-ranked tackle with a minus-11.8 grade.
Matthews struggled mightily against the New York Giants' Jason Pierre-Paul this past Sunday and received Pro Football Focus' lowest-single grade of any offensive tackle this season, via Pro Football Focus' Pete Damilatis.
The fact that Matthews has been struggling as of late and Atlanta plays on a quick surface in the Georgia Dome, Allen may be able to finally break through and notch his first sack of the season.
Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall vs. Desmond Trufant
Through five games this season, the Atlanta Falcons are giving up an average 259.6 passing yards a game. Despite the team's struggles against the pass, second-year cornerback Desmond Trufant is playing like one of the league's best.
"Desmond Trufant = top 5 cornerback.
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) September 19, 2014"
According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Trufant has allowed just 15 catches on 26 passes thrown his way and has only given up one touchdown this season.
While the Falcons haven't said whether or not Trufant will shadow either Brandon Marshall or Alshon Jeffery on Sunday afternoon, he should see a heavy dose of both this Sunday.
Marshall has battled through an ankle injury all season but still leads the team with five receiving touchdowns.
In five games this season, Jeffery has hauled in 26 catches for 359 yards and two touchdowns. He has been at his best with the football in his hands, racking up 152 yards after the catch.
Trufant knows both receivers will difficult to defend.
"They obviously have great size," Trufant said of the duo, via Reid Ferrin of AtlantaFalcons.com. "They're great jump-ball guys and Jay Cutler gives them the chance to go up and make a play on the ball; he puts it in the right spots. They have legit guys over there, but we have legit guys here too; we’re just going to go compete."
Trufant has terrific speed, so don't expect either Marshall or Jeffery to burn past him, but they may be able to do some damage in the red zone where their size will give them an advantage.
Bears' X-Factor of the Week: Lamarr Houston
After registering just five tackles and zero sacks in the team's first five games, defensive end Lamarr Houston has a chance to break out this Sunday against Atlanta's Gabe Carimi.
I discussed how Houston can use his swim move to best Carimi on Sunday afternoon in an earlier article, and if Chicago defensive coordinator Mel Tucker wants to get more out of him, he will need to be more creative this Sunday.
Houston played in a three-point stance and in a two-point stance last season for the Oakland Raiders and found success when playing from a two-point stance.
His flexibility allowed Oakland to use different looks up front, which created confusion for opposing offenses. He showed last season he could line up as a 4-3 defensive end, a weak-side linebacker or a 3-technique defensive tackle.
With Atlanta's offensive line battling injuries, this week appears to be the best time to give Houston a bit more flexibility in terms of where he lines up.
If Tucker is willing to let Houston fall back on what made him so successful in Oakland, there is a chance he can finally break out this week against Atlanta.
Prediction
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After struggling to score points in the second half of the last two games, it is hard to have any faith in the Bears offense to turn the page this Sunday in Atlanta against the Falcons.
Luckily for the Bears, the Falcons currently rank 29th in total defense, giving up an average of 407.2 yards per game, including 259.6 yards through the air.
While the Falcons have struggled to slow down opposing offenses, their own offense has been one of the league's best through the first five weeks of the season. They are currently third in the league in total offense, averaging 434.6 yards per game.
If the Bears want to keep up with the Falcons offense, slowing down quarterback Matt Ryan will be at the top of the defense's to-do list.
Ryan has already thrown for 1,579 yards and 11 touchdowns but has struggled with interceptions, throwing six in the team's first five games.
According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Ryan has been the most-pressured quarterback this season, having received pressure on 74 of his 212 dropbacks. Despite all the pressure he's faced, he has been sacked only six times.
In order to slow down Ryan, defensive end Jared Allen is going to need to start earning his paycheck. He has yet to register a sack this season, but he believes the sacks will come.
"They'll come," Allen said earlier this week, via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. "I've been doing this a long time, there have been ups and downs and, you know what, the good Lord hasn't failed me yet and I don't think he has plans for me to be a complete bum yet.”
Despite Allen saying all the right things and the defense showing improvement, the Chicago offense still has too many question marks following its struggles the past two weeks. In the end, the Falcons appear to simply have too many weapons on offense, while the Bears have too many unanswered questions on both sides of the football.
Prediction: Bears 24, Falcons 30
Record/statistical information provided via email from the Chicago Bears or NFL.com.
Matt Eurich is an NFL/Chicago Bears Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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