ClutchPoints
The Chicago Bears are clearly at a critical point to their season. Head coach Ben Johnson is trying to put together a consistent team that can compete against the better teams in the league and take advantage of the soft spots. Their Monday Night Football matchup in Week 6 is clearly a test against one of the better NFC teams.
The Commanders found both their coach in Dan Quinn and their quarterback in Jayden Daniels last season when they made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game against the Eagles. They have gotten off to a somewhat uneven start at 3-2, but the perception of the Commanders as a strong winning team has not changed.
The combination of Quinn, Daniels, Deebo Samuel and Zach Ertz have given the offense some real authority, while the presence of linebackers Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu along with cornerback Mike Sainristil are the keys to a defense that ranks 10th in points allowed at 20.2 points per game.
The Bears face a difficult assignment in going into Washington and trying to emerge with a victory. Quarterback Caleb Williams must continue to play effectively and the offense has to stand up against a Commander defense that can be vulnerable. However, the biggest issue in this game that may be fatal is Chicago’s inability to stop Washington’s effective running game.
The name Jacory Croskey-Merritt does not cause most fans to shudder. However, this rookie from Arizona is the leading ball carrier for the top rushing attack in the league.
Croskey-Merritt has not been called on to be a dominant running back, but that could change because he has been so effective this season. He has 43 carries for 283 yards and 4 TDs through the first five games of his career. He has a long run of 42 yards and he is averaging 6.6 yards per carry.
Daniels made his bones a year ago in part because he can run effectively. He has 124 yards and a 4.8 yards per carry mark, but he is wearing a knee brace after getting hurt earlier in the year.
The Commanders have also received solid but infrequent production on the ground from Jeremy McNichols, Chris Rodrigues, Samuel and backup quarterback Marcus Mariota.
Quinn is happy splitting up the responsibilities in the running game. He will go with the hot hand in each game until further notice. “I am comfortable sharing the responsibility and let’s see what the game presents coming up,” Quinn said. “And sometimes the guy gets hot and feels it, and we’ll lean into that, too.”
The Bears are allowing 164.5 rushing yards per game, and that’s the second-worst figure in the league. They are giving up 6.2 yards per attempt, and that figure was even worse in Week 4 when they allowed the Raiders to gain 240 yards on the ground while allowing 7.7 yards per carry.
The Bears are going...
