Bears quarterback Jay Cutler gets a lot of grief from his own fans, other team's fans, and just about everyone in the media. He has the quarterbacking talent to be great but his attitude, or perceived attitude, always seems to torpedo things. He returned to the Bears lineup last night after missing a few weeks with a thumb injury. He was good. He made some nice throws but he was at his best when he had to improvise. There were several instances in which the Vikings defense appeared to have the Bears intentions diagnosed but Cutler simply made something else happen. The Vikings had dominated all six of their opponents this season but Cutler had them on their heels most of the game.
Cutler was the difference in this game. So was the horrible offensive line play of the Minnesota Vikings.
On Halloween night it was unfortunate that the Vikings offensive line was downright scary. FOrmer All-Pro Jake Long was signed off the street a couple of weeks ago. He started his first game for the Vikings at left tackle last night. He struggled. T.J. Clemmings started at right tackle. He really struggled even more than Long. The Bears edge rushers were careening at quarterback Sam Bradford on a regular basis throughout the long night. He was sacked too many times. He was hit too many times. He was harassed too many times. They were so bad that the days when Matt Kalil and Andre Smith often struggled to protect the edges are dreamy in comparison. The interior of the line hasn't been much better. The Vikings have had to settle for field goals rather than touchdowns simply because they can't gain a single yard. Even a single inch. They rarely get any push from the line when they need it most. The Vikings won their first five games this season. They have lost their last two. The offensive line has to play better. Whether it's technique, effort, confidence, or simply rust (Jake Long) the line simply has to play better. This Vikings team is far too talented to have this season dismantled by the offensive line.
Perhaps the offensive line solution is as simple as moving T.J. Clemmings back to left tackle and reinserting Jeremiah Sirles at right tackle. That combination doesn't look like much on paper but it kept Sam Bradford upright on the field. Clemmings and Sirles helped get them past some nice pass rushers from the Houston Texans and New York Giants. Things really started coming off the rails for the Vikings offensive line when they started integrating Jake Long into the lineup. Injuries have kept him off the field for most of the past two seasons and off a roster for about a year. Hopefully, he's just shaking off a lot off of rust.
The good news for the Vikings is that they are 5-2 and still on top of the NFC North.
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