Three days later, Bears defensive tackle Justin Jones still was marveling at how good the Bears defense was in the first three quarters against the Browns on Sunday — and still mystified as to how it all fell apart in the fourth in a 20-17 loss at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
“We wanted to go on the field as many times as we could and make more plays,” Jones said. “That was our mindset on the sidelines — whatever happens with the offense, we don’t care. We just want to go out there and wherever the ball’s at, beat ‘em again.
“We had ‘em backed up. We were fricking humming on defense. We just couldn’t execute. That’s what it was. The NFL comes down to inches. Literally inches. That’s how close it was. Inches.”
The Bears have made significant progress on defense in Matt Eberflus’ second season. With the addition of defensive end Montez Sweat, they have playmakers at all three levels of the defense. In the last five games, the Bears are seventh in the NFL in points allowed (17.4 per game) and tied for first in takeaways (14, including 13 on defense).
But for all that progress, there’s still a missing element — a killer instinct. Against the Lions on Nov. 19 at Ford Field, they intercepted Jared Goff three times in building a 26-14 lead, then allowed touchdown drives of 70 and 75 yards in the final 4:15 in a 31-26 loss. Against the Browns on Sunday, they intercepted Joe Flacco three times in building a 17-7 lead, then allowed 212 passing yards and 13 points in the fourth quarter in the 20-17 loss.
It’s an issue that starts at the top with Eberflus. The defense has unquestionably benefitted since he took over the play-calling role following defensive coordinator Alan Williams’ resignation in Week 2. But even Eberflus acknowledge play-calling errors against the Browns — specifically a third-and-15 play where Flacco beat a three-man blitz with a 34-yard pass to tight end David Njoku that set up Dustin Hopkins’ winning field goal.
“Sometimes it has to [do] with adjustments,” safety Jaquan Brisker said. “The offense might have figured something out and might be hitting us on a couple plays. Sometimes we just have to change up [and] adjust the game plan.”
To Brisker, it’s more than just a matter of mental toughness and leadership and “dogs” who know how to go for the kill.
“Everybody [has to] be aggressive. At the same time, we’ve got to be in the right calls … during that time,” Brisker said. “Our whole defense, everybody’s on the same page and everybody’s got that dog mentality. But at the same time, we’re running the same things or the same concepts or the same schemes, people are going to figure that out, eventually. We’ve got to change things up.”
To Jones, finishing is about attention to detail.
“The execution of the calls, that’s the biggest thing in this game,” Jones said. “When I say execution, I mean not being off by one yard. Not being behind my one step. That’s how games are won and lost. Is your leverage in front or are you behind? Are you playing underneath or should you be over the top? Little stuff like that is the biggest thing between winning or losing.
Whether it’s coaching, execution, attention to detail or mental toughness, the Bears’ defense won’t reach the next level until it learns how to consistently finish.
“We work so hard and lose these close games — especially with the team we’ve got, it’s surely difficult,” Brisker said. “This team is not supposed to be 5-9 right now. Everybody knows that. It is difficult, but at the same time you’ve got to put your head down and keep going.”
