Collins Only Bright Spot in Bears Loss

 In the preseason finale, the Chicago Bears failed to get a win for the fourth time by losing to the Cleveland Browns 13-10. Not much can be said about the game from the Bears’ perspective, since the starter didn’t play but one series. The only point of interest was the play of quarterback Todd Collins.

Collins, who signed with Chicago on August 23 rd, looked good enough in Mike Martz’s offense to solidify the number two quarterback spot. The fact that Collins played in a similar offensive scheme under Dick Vermeil in Kansas City seemed to work in Collins’ favor. The Bears will be Collins’ fourth team in his 16 year career. Chicago signed the seasoned veteran after Caleb Hanie went down in the first preseason game with a shoulder injury.

The former University of Michigan quarterback completed 10 of 15 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown. But other than that, that is all the Bears had to hang their hat on. Only 58 yards was amassed on the ground, and after Collins exited the game, only 44 yards was gained through the air.

> Find Chicago Bears jerseys & hats online through Pro Football Fans for all your team gear!

On the other side of the ball, Chicago’s defense gave up 224 yards on 23 of 28 passing by Cleveland’s quarterbacks, and 122 yards rushing and a touchdown by from their backfield. The pass rush showed some signs of life with Jarron Gilbert, Kevin Malast, and Barry Turner all recording a sack. Unfortunately, all three of those players were cut after the Bears made their final 53-man roster.

And to add injury to insult, the special teams allowed another blocked punt, making it a total of three blocked punts in the preseason.

Even though the starters didn’t play a significant role in the final preseason game, much can be looked upon when analyzing the Chicago Bears 0-4 record. A win, even in the preseason, could have given the Bears some momentum into the regular season—which was much needed since the overall performance of the offensive line, the defense, and special teams wasn’t too impressive. For Chicago’s sake, let’s just hope that everyone in every phase of the game is on the same page, because if the preseason has given us a true glimpse of who the Bears are, then we can say goodbye to Lovie Smith at the end of the season.

By Clyde Speller
ProFootball-fans.com Chicago Bears Correspondent