The Bears were one of the early surprises of the NFL season, starting 3-0 including wins over the Cowboys (which looks less impressive now) and the Packers (before all their injuries). Jay Cutler was playing like the quarterback everyone was hoping he could become and Mike Martz's offense was putting points on the board.
But since that win over the Packers the Bears offense has fallen off the face of the earth. Our Bears blog, Windy City Gridiron, has some alarming statistics. The Bears rank in the bottom five of the league in (takes deep breath); total yards per game, rushing yards per game, 3rd down percentage, red zone touchdown percentage, sacks allowed and sack rate. That's an issue.
After starting off quickly Cutler has fallen off as well.
In the RedZone, Jay is 9 of 17 for 48 yards, 3 touchdowns and a QB Rating of 98.3. At first look, those numbers look OK. But if you compare what he did in the first 3 weeks versus his last 2 games played, it doesn't look as rosy. Since the Green Bay game, Jay is just 1 of 4 for 6 yards with zero TDs in the RedZone; that's bad.
Yes, it is. Some of that has to be attributed to his concussion, which is certainly understandable and forgivable, but the results still stand.
If the Redskins have anything to do with it these trends will continue on Sunday. This might be the game when all those holding penalties against Brian Orakpo turn into actual factual sacks, and it should be a good chance for the skins to walk away with an important win on the road.