5 Bold Predictions for the Chicago Bears' Week 14 Matchup
After losing to the Detroit Lions 34-17 on Thanksgiving Day, the Chicago Bears will head back home in Week 14 to take on the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football.
Chicago failed to get itself back to .500 on the season against Detroit, meaning its chances of making the playoffs are now very slim. The Bears currently sit with a 5-7 record and will likely only be playing the role of spoiler for the rest of this season, via Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune:
"Jared Allen on what the Bears have left to play for: "Misery loves company." AKA the spoiler role.
— Rich Campbell (@Rich_Campbell) November 27, 2014"
With a playoff berth unlikely, the Bears still have a lot to prove in the final couple weeks of the season.
Will Matt Forte be able to bounce back this week? Can Brandon Marshall return to old form? Will Christian Jones develop into a starting linebacker? These questions and more are answered in our five bold predictions for the Chicago Bears' Week 14 matchup.
Matt Forte Will Bounce Back in a Big Way
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After proving his worth as one of the league's most versatile running backs in Chicago's first 11 games this season, Matt Forte was a non-factor against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day.
Forte went into Week 13 averaging 21 touches per game but only touched the football 11 times against the Lions, including just five carries for six yards. NFL columnist Dan Pompei did not agree with Chicago's usage of Forte against the Lions, tweeting:
"1. 48 passes/7 runs wasn’t as out of whack as appeared because most passes were effectual runs. But Forte with only 11 touches was a problem
— Dan Pompei (@danpompei) November 28, 2014"
Part of the reason for Forte's limited touches on Thursday was due to Detroit showing particular looks on defense that forced quarterback Jay Cutler to check into passing plays.
"Forte only had five runs, but we probably called 15 for him," left tackle Jermon Bushrod said, via Jon Greenberg of ESPNChicago.com. "When we got up there to run these plays, it wasn’t a correct look or we had too many people in the box or they dropped a safety or they did this. It’s a lot that goes into these plays that we run. If it doesn’t look good to the quarterback, we’ve got to go out to the edge."
It should be a little easier for Forte to run this week when the Bears take on the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas' defense has struggled at times this season against the run. The Cowboys are currently giving up an average of 119.6 yards per game on the ground.
As long as Chicago commits to running the football on Thursday night, Forte should be able to get back on track against a suspect Cowboys defense.
Jared Allen Will Continue to Produce
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After racking up just 1.5 sacks through Week 10, defensive end Jared Allen has registered three sacks in his last three games, including this strip sack against Detroit's Matthew Stafford in Week 13:
"Rob Sims had no chance against Jared Allen on the strip sack of Stafford in the first quarter. https://t.co/bhMST2uDeO
— Matt Eurich (@MattEurich) November 29, 2014"
Allen struggled out of the gate this season after signing a four-year, $32 million contract, but he looked explosive off the football on the fast turf at Ford Field, via Bleacher Report's Matt Bowen:
"Jared Allen is flying off the ball today on this turf.
— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) November 27, 2014"
He will try to keep the momentum going this Thursday night when he squares off against Dallas' Tyron Smith. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Smith currently has a plus-6.6 grade for the season and has allowed just two sacks, six quarterback hits and 12 quarterback hurries.
Smith is one of the league's best left tackles, but Allen has looked like a different player in recent weeks. After registering 14 quarterback hurries and seven quarterback hits in his first seven games this season, Allen has registered 12 quarterback hurries and 10 quarterback hits in the last four games, via Pro Football Focus.
Dallas head coach Jason Garrett knows Allen has the ability to make a big impact on Thursday night, via Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com:
"He’s been one of the best pass-rushers of his generation. He just has a unique ability to get to the quarterback. He’s unorthodox sometimes in how he does it. He’s just a really productive player and has been wherever he has played. It seems like he’s a guy who somehow, some way, affects the quarterback, makes sacks, makes difference-making plays in the game. For obvious reasons, we were interested in him. And it turned out for whatever reason business-wise, it was a better fit for him to go to Chicago. But certainly have a lot of respect for him.
"
As long as he gets an opportunity to come off the field to stay fresh against Smith, expect Allen to continue his impressive play against Dallas in Week 14.
Martellus Bennett Will Make His Former Team Pay
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In Chicago's loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 13, tight end Martellus Bennett was one of the Bears' lone bright spots on offense.
Bennett hauled in eight catches for 109 yards on the afternoon, and his effort prompted Bleacher Report's Bear Heiser to weigh in on his play, tweeting:
"Martellus Bennett runs like a bowling ball.
— Bear Heiser (@BearHeiser) November 27, 2014"
His 100-yard output on Thursday afternoon was his second career 100-yard receiving game. His first came earlier this season when he hauled in nine catches for 134 yards against the Green Bay Packers in Week 4.
Bennett was originally a second-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in 2008 and hauled in 85 catches for 846 yards with four touchdowns in four seasons. He played one season in New York in 2012 before signing with the Bears in 2013.
In two career games against Dallas, Bennett has nine total catches for 83 yards and one touchdown. Luckily for Bennett, the Cowboys have given up 64 catches for 654 yards and nine touchdowns to opposing tight ends this season.
With wide receiver Brandon Marshall struggling in recent weeks, expect Bennett to be a focal point in Chicago's passing offense on Thursday night and take advantage of Dallas' struggling defense.
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Christian Jones' Reps Will Continue to Increase
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After an injury against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers forced linebacker Lance Briggs to miss Thursday's contest against the Detroit Lions, the Bears officially placed Briggs on injured reserve on Friday afternoon, via Kevin Fishbain of ChicagoFootball.com.
With Briggs out of the lineup, undrafted rookie Christian Jones will take over Briggs' spot in the team's nickel defense, via ChicagoFootball.com's Bears Insider twitter account:
"Mel Tucker says the Bears will go with Jon Bostic replacing Briggs in the base, Christian Jones in the nickel going forward, like in Detroit
— Bears Insider (@bears_insider) November 30, 2014"
According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Jones' 41 snaps against the Lions were the second most among all Bears linebackers Thursday afternoon.
Despite going undrafted, Jones has slowly worked his way up the team's depth chart. One benefit of playing him in the nickel package is it allows the team to utilize his ability to drop back in coverage and apply pressure on the quarterback.
Earlier in the season, head coach Marc Trestman praised Jones for his improvement, via the team's official Twitter account:
"Trestman on #Bears rookie LB Christian Jones: "He's stepping up. He's running to the football. We see the growth in practice."
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 24, 2014"
With Dallas likely wanting to spread out Chicago's defense on Thursday, Jones should play extensively in Week 13.
Brandon Marshall Will Continue to Be a Non-Factor
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After hauling in seven catches for 90 yards with two touchdowns against the Minnesota Vikings back in Week 11, Brandon Marshall has registered just nine catches for 74 yards in his last two games.
Whether it has been a lack of effort or concentration, Marshall has not looked like the same player he once was in recent weeks. Against the Lions on Thursday afternoon, Marshall was late to join the team's huddle and forced the offense to call a timeout so he could make it back on the field, via Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times:
"#Bears call timeout. Brandon Marshall came running out late and missed huddle/play call.
— Adam Jahns (@adamjahns) November 27, 2014"
In addition to that early gaffe against Detroit, Marshall also had a pair of drops. NFL Columnist Dan Pompei views both Marshall and Detroit's Calvin Johnson as great wide receivers, but he saw a big difference between the two on Thanksgiving Day:
"8. I consider Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall two great wide receivers. The contrast between them Thursday was stunning.
— Dan Pompei (@danpompei) November 28, 2014"
"9. Marshall caught 54% of the passes thrown his way in Detroit. Meg caught 69%.
— Dan Pompei (@danpompei) November 28, 2014"
With Chicago struggling to get anything going offensively for much of this season, it would not be a surprise if Marshall's production continues to slip against the Cowboys this Thursday night.
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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