Chicago Bears Stock Exchange: Who’s up, who’s down entering Week 5?
It’s the beginning of October, and the Chicago Bears still have yet to win a football game after falling 31-28 to the Denver Broncos to start the year 0-4. In fact, it’s been close to 365 days since their last win, and their collective stock has never been lower. The good news, however, is that isn’t the case for all of their players.
Though they suffered a painful loss in Week 4, many of their players had standout performances that helped raise their value. It had been quite a long time since that happened, and perhaps that momentum can carry over into Week 5 when the Bears face off against the Washington Commanders on Thursday Night Football.
Heading into that game, here are the players whose stock is up and the players whose stock is down in our latest look at the Chicago Bears Stock Exchange.
Stock up: QB Justin Fields
It took longer than expected, but we finally saw the best out of Justin Fields in a Bears uniform. Fields was masterful on Sunday as he toyed with the Broncos for much of the game. The third-year signal caller went 28-of-35 for 335 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. He was especially dialed in for the first three quarters of the game, rarely missing a completion.
Fields and the offense moved the ball downfield with ease. Even when facing more adversity late in the game, Fields still made plays, even if they didn’t all work. It’s the first major positive development from him since last December. It’s about time he got his stock up.
Stock down: C Lucas Patrick
It’s been a rough season for center Lucas Patrick, and in what may be his final start on Sunday, he saved his worst for last. Patrick was easily the weak link on the offensive line for much of the day, missing blocks and not knowing when to actually snap the ball to the quarterback. Patrick had a PFF grade of 49.2 on Sunday, just slightly better than Cody Whitehair’s grade of 48 to stay out of the basement.
But even with the slightly better grade, Patrick is still a liability on the line. Pass rushers are moving past him with ease, and had it not been for Fields’ impressive instincts, a botched snap could have hurt the quarterback as no one on the line moved. With the return of guard Teven Jenkins coming potentially as soon as this week, Patrick likely moves to the bench while Whitehair slides over. If this is how Patrick’s Bears career finishes out, it will have been an appropriate send-off.
Stock up: TE Cole Kmet
While wide receiver D.J. Moore’s stock was already rising as the top option in the passing game, the same could not be said for tight end Cole Kmet. That all changed on Sunday, when Kmet was a focal point of the passing game for the first time all season. Kmet tied Moore for the most targets and caught seven passes for 85 yards and two touchdowns.
Kmet was schemed open perfectly on his first touchdown, where he split the linebacker and safety for a skinny post in the end zone. His second score was more impressive, where he maneuvered his way open while Fields was scrambling to secure the second score. The Bears tight end likely won’t ever be considered a top-five option in the league, but he’s capable of being a scoring threat. That’s something the Bears desperately need.
Stock down: EDGE Yannick Ngakoue
It was made late in the offseason, but the Bears brought in Yannick Ngakoue to pressure and sack the quarterback as their top pass rusher. Through four games, the return on investment hasn’t been what the Bears envisioned. Ngakoue hasn’t taken down the quarterback since Week 1 and didn’t even show up on the stat sheet last weekend against the Broncos. He didn’t record a single statistic despite playing 41 snaps.
Ngakoue doesn’t stuff the stat sheet, but for the money he’s making and how desperate the Broncos were when they were down 28-7, he needed to make Russell Wilson much more uncomfortable than he did. There is no other legitimate threat to rush the passer, and while that’s not Ngkaoue’s fault, he needs to pick up the slack. Especially against a Commanders line that is allowing six sacks per game.
Stock up: G Nate Davis
The last few weeks—really months—have been difficult for veteran guard Nate Davis. He didn’t play the last couple of games after experiencing a death in the family, which had been lingering throughout his time at training camp. When he was able to play, Davis wasn’t the same player the Bears thought they were getting when he signed a three-year, $30 million deal in March.
But Davis was back in the lineup Sunday and appears to have turned a corner and had a productive game. Davis gave up zero pressure on Sunday, the only offensive lineman to do so. He stonewalled rushers, and his protection allowed Fields to flourish. People were frustrated with Davis’ continued absences, but he was excellent last week and should be good to go moving forward. If that’s what he’ll be showing every week, the interior of the offensive line just got a whole lot better.
Stock down: DTs Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens
After a few weeks, rookie NFL players usually start to see their snap totals and production rise. That hasn’t been the case for defensive tackles Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens. The second and third-round draft selections, respectively, had shown a flash here and there but have been ineffective to begin the season and are still playing behind veterans Andrew Billings and Justin Jones.
Dexter logged just 10 snaps on Sunday, finishing with one tackle. Pickens had nine snaps, and though he did account for half a sack and a QB hit, he’s still not able to make a difference yet. The rookie defensive tackles need to start making their presence known more consistently.
