Bear Digest

Hectic Week for Jaguars Can Help Bears Stay on Pace in NFC North

Around the NFC North: The injuries to Bears secondary can keep them from maintaining pace in the NFC North but then again Jacksonville's entire team has had plenty to negotiate.

Gene Chamberlain

Trevor Lawrence has been through the whole London thing before but not all his teammates have and no one has dealt with the hurricane too.
Trevor Lawrence has been through the whole London thing before but not all his teammates have and no one has dealt with the hurricane too. / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Just when the Bears seemed capable of setting themselves up well for their divisional games later, the other foot fell.

The positive for the Bears with their recent rash of injuries in the secondary is this all comes during the easier portion of their schedule.

If the loss of Jaquan Brisker and Tyrique Stevenson, along with cornerback backup Terell Smith, were to occur in the second half of the season then the Bears defense would have a more difficult time.

The Jacksonville Jaguars' entire team has had to deal with adversity this week, though.

Their plans to arrive late didn't leave them much adjustment to the time change and then hurricane Milton forced a delay and they arrived on Friday in London with only Saturday to adjust and work in a practice on-field.

It's often mentioned how the Jaguars make these trips every year and they are routine.

"I think that's one of the biggest things, but just having the experience of going over there, you kind of know how to handle it, you know what to expect, you know how you're going to feel," Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence told Jacksonville reporters. "You're going to feel a little sluggish, a little groggy once you get over there, but  you'll settle in quick.

"I think a big part of it too is getting a lot of your prep done while you're (in the U.S.). Obviously, there are going to be a few things to do over there to make sure we're ready to roll, but trying to do as much as you can here so that you can really just focus on your body and your sleep and getting ready to play on Sunday.”

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Some Jaguars make this trip every year. There are eight starters who weren't on last year's team, including the nickel back spot, and that doesn't take into account all of their rookies or depth additions.

The coaches are the same, the roster changes, and making trips of this type on short notice makes a difference even if someone says it doesn't.

The Bears' injury handicap is no worse than the Jaguars' handicap this time. Lawrence is going to have the advantage of facing a depleted Bears secondary.

But the Bears, as a team, face a Jaguars team likely to be a bit more weary from travels and definitely more disrupted in their practice routine than in other weeks. They didn't arrive in London until about 4 a.m. Friday due to the hurricane.

Here's how the division is shaking out this week as the Lions and Vikings continue their rolls.

On SI Week 6 NFC North Rankings

1. Vikings, 2. Lions, 3. Packers, 4. Bears

Minnesota Vikings

Joe Nelson, Minnesota Vikings On SI

This Week: Bye (back in action Week 7 vs. Detroit)

Key to This Week's Game: This one doesn't apply since the Vikings are on the bye, but the key to Week 7 against Detroit will be identifying the reasons for the offensive struggles against the Jets. The Jets defensive might very well be really good and there's nothing more to say. But it was obvious that Minnesota's efficiency went in the tank after Aaron Jones left the game with a hip injury. Getting him back on the field for the showdown with the Lions will be big.

Potential Achilles Heel: Sam Darnold. Look, this is the same guy who is tied for second in the league with 11 touchdown passes and he's commanded clutch drives when the Vikings needed points against the 49ers, Packers and even last week in London against the Jets. It wasn't pretty in Week 5, but there is six years of history that says his 14-of-31 passing performance might not be a fluke. It's up to Darnold to overcome and his supporting cast to elevate out of the pothole.

Detroit Lions

John Maakaron, Detroit Lions On SI

This Week's Game: Lions at Cowboys (3:25 p.m., Sunday)

Key to This Week's Game: Start fast. The Cowboys are already down Demarcus Lawrence and expected to be without Micah Parsons for the second consecutive week. As a result, there is a real opportunity for Detroit’s offensive line to establish the run early. When the Lions’ ground game is going, it opens the offense up for play-action passing as well. An early touchdown drive would go a long way toward setting the tone in an important road matchup.

Potential Achilles Heel: The Lions' secondary had a struggle containing CeeDee Lamb a year ago when these two teams met. Detroit has upgraded personnel with Carlton Davis and Terrion Arnold, but the duo have been targets of several pass interference calls as the team plays a plethora of man coverage. If the Lions aren’t able to slow down Lamb, it could be a long day. Lamb will be a tough assignment, and it will be intriguing to see how Detroit approaches slowing him down.

Green Bay Packers

Bill Huber, Green Bay Packers On SI

This Week's Game: Cardinals at Packers (noon, Sunday)

Key to This Week's Game: The Packers have had to contend with the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts and the Colts’ Anthony Richardson, two of the most athletic quarterbacks in the NFL. But they haven’t had to face anyone like the Cardinals’ Kyler Murray. Murray ranks among the league leaders with a 99.1 passer rating and is averaging merely 10.7 yards per rushing attempt–highlighted by a 50-yard touchdown run in last week’s come-from-behind upset at San Francisco. The Packers have to keep him in the pocket, meaning the ends have to set edges and the linebackers better put on their track shoes.

Potential Achilles Heel: The Packers are a good team but they aren’t so good that they can afford to leave points on the field. Rookie kicker Brayden Narveson–called “Nervous Narveson” by CBS’s Jim Nantz during Sunday’s broadcast–has missed four field goals. Bad special teams were destined to doom the Packers in 2021 and bad kicking was bound to bite them in the rear in 2023. And they did in playoff losses to the 49ers in both seasons. Narveson was perfect last week, but he’ll need a strong stretch to build some peace of mind.

Chicago Bears

Gene Chamberlain, Chicago Bears On SI

This Week's Game: Bears vs. Jaguars (8:30 a.m. Sunday, at London)

Key to This Week’s Game:  Stopping the running game cold. They did this last year often without a problem but after each game this year the defense says they're "leaking" against the run. Last week it was a cave-in rather than a leak as Chuba Hubbard broke a 38-yard TD. This always figured to be a concern because of Gervon Dexter's lack of experience or polish as a run-stopping 3-technique. So, they've been middle of the pack in run defense and must halt backs Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby to render Trevor Lawrence's offense one-dimensional.

Potential Achilles Heel: Until Caleb Williams has a long string of successful games and beats contending teams with his arm, the rookie QB will always be a potential Achilles. At any time, he could take big risks for turnovers. The thing is, he can also be their salvation if he keeps producing games like last week. However, you can't face Carolina's defense every week. Fortunately for the Bears, there's also Jacksonville's defense.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.