Bears vs. Commanders: Why Thursday’s game feels like a ‘must win’

As a general rule, it’s dangerous to look too far ahead in the pro sports arena.

Almost every coach and player is worried about the next game. No more, no less.

Fortunately, we can weave a bit out of this lane to see what lies ahead.

And in the Bears’ case, it feels like Thursday night’s matchup against Washington at Soldier Field is a must win.

Think about it: If Matt Eberflus’ squad prevails, they’re 3-3 and thinking, “Sweet. We are making progress and may just be able to hang around the playoff race longer than many expect.”

A loss, however, could be devastating. Now you’re 2-4 and facing very difficult games at New England and Dallas. With confidence flagging, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the Bears drop both of those to fall to 2-6 — and suddenly it’s season over.

So, yeah, this is a big one.

“It’s a short week and it’s gonna be a long weekend,” defensive lineman Trevis Gipson said. “We do want that good taste in our mouth, especially to get back to (.500). I feel like it’s an important game and we’ve got to play ball.”

It’s an important one for Washington, too, which has lost four straight and is dealing with significant injuries at right tackle, tight end and wide receiver.

Washington’s defense has been stout the last two weeks, limiting Dallas to 279 yards of total offense in a 25-10 loss and holding Tennessee to 241 yards in a 21-17 setback. The Titans prevailed Sunday when Carson Wentz’s pass on third-and-goal from the 2 was intercepted with nine seconds remaining.

Washington has been its own worst enemy in the last two games, committing a combined 20 penalties for 207 yards. Oh, and coach Ron Rivera’s squad has forced just one turnover thus far.

“I think we have some pretty good pieces in place,” said Rivera, who played linebacker for the Bears from 1984-92 and is in his third season with the Commanders. “I’d like to have them all on the field at the same time. But this is the lot we have, so we have to go out and play.

“You look at where we are ... with the offensive line and it’s not what we started with. We’re getting our running backs back. (Sunday) we played four tight ends — a second-year player and three first-year players.”

Washington’s offense is led by Wentz, who played five seasons with the Eagles and was with the Colts in 2021. Wentz threw for 359 yards and two TDs last week, but he’s also been sacked 20 times (9 by the Eagles in Week 3).

“Well, I already know that he throws a really good deep ball,” said Eberflus, who was the Colts’ defensive coordinator for the past four seasons. “That guy can throw it a mile. ... He obviously had a great week last week.”

A savvy veteran who knows how to take advantage of suspect defenses, Wentz could have a field day if the Bears aren’t ready from the get go. That’s been an issue all season for Gipson, Roquan Smith, Robert Quinn and Co.

So how do things change?

“It’s (on) me and it’s my job to get them ready to go early on,” defensive coordinator Alan Williams said. “I like to look at the positive parts of it — the second half, that we’re playing lights-out football. ...

“We’ll look and see what we did in the second half and the energy that we bring — the tackling, the turnovers, all those things — (and) make sure they ... show up in the first half.”

The Bears will get third-year CB Jaylon Johnson back from a quad injury, which should help immensely against talented WRs Curtis Samuel (32 catches, 281 yards) and Terry McLaurin (19-326).

On offense, it will be interesting to see if Justin Fields can take another step forward after going 15 for 21 during Sunday’s loss to the Vikings. He eclipsed 200 yards for the first time since last season.

In a rare move on a short week, Eberflus conducted a practice inside the Halas Hall dome Wednesday. He hopes it has the desired effect vs. Washington.

“I know not everybody does the practice right before,” Eberflus said. “But we thought it was an advantage for us to be able to do that — to play with some speed today and the guys did a nice job.

“They were moving around.”

Soon enough, we’ll see if the Bears have enough moves to pull out a much-needed — and possibly season-defining — victory.

https://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20221012/why-thursdays-game-vs-commanders-feels-like-a-must-win-for-bears