I don't get how people do mailbags consistently. The other week I tweeted out a mailbag call-to-action like, six times and got ONE response. Today? One tweet got me 38 responses. HOW DO YOU DO IT, BILL SIMMONS. I'll start making 80's pop culture references that I wasn't alive for if I have to.
To the tweets!
Shawn (Meridian, ID) - Why was Mack dropping in coverage against the Pats? Why not rush him from the opposite side, change it up? Where is Leonard Floyd?
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Great question Shawn! Let's let our Bears Insider JJ Stankevitz hop in here and answer for me:
“We had the plan to mix in some three-man rush with maximum drop because (Brady) likes to get the ball out quick and try to inter-mix that in there with everything else we do,” Fangio said. “We rushed three, four, five even six a few times. Just part of the plan to mix it against a good quarterback.”
I don't quite get it either, but Fangio clearly had a gameplan and who am I to dispute that. Next!
Iron In The Fire (Chicago, IL) - Is there any evidence to the contrary of the proposition that as a top 10 pick, Leonard Floyd is a bust!
NFL
LOTS of people are Mad Online about Leonard Floyd. Lots of people.
They're not being totally unfair, either. Make no mistake about it: Floyd has struggled since getting drafted in 2016, and is having an especially tough year this season.
I don't have a great answer for you, Iron In the Fire. What I will do is point out that another highly-drafted linebacker from the SEC East -- Jadeveon Clowney -- was at one point considered a bust before growing into a dominant defensive player sometime in the Year 3-5 range. Sometimes it just takes raw pass-rushers some time to develop. He flipped Danny Ammendola in the Miami game? That was cool?
Joseph (Indiana) - Can we finally stop the discussion that Bellamy is a better option on offense than Kevin White?
I'm not entirely sold on that idea yet. White definitely hasn't panned out like the Bears expected, but the coaches have talked about him in ways over the last couple weeks that had a surprisingly new tone. He's not their first, second, or third option, but he's been an asset as a blocking reciever. Bellamy is not *bad* persay, but doesn't really bring anything on his own to the offense. Are either of them longterm answers for the Bears? No. But White has carved out a niche for himself, while Bellamy is more a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none type.
And now, the quick-fire round:
Henry (The Web) - Do you think Khalil Mack’s injury is related to the fact that he did not attend training camp?
I do not.
David (The Web) - How concerned should we be about the poor tackling from the secondary?
As concerned as you want to be! I'm not the boss of you. However, I'm not all that concerned yet.
Martin (Taft, CA) - When do you think Howard will break for 100 yards?
If he's not traded by then, 12/2 vs. the New York Giants. Book it. If he IS traded before then? His first game with his new team, because that's how it always works.
Jonny (The Web) - Could we see Mack carry the ball on first and goal from the one?
We could! We won't, but we could!
Joshua (The Web) - If we traded for Manning, would the giants give us their first round for next year too just for taking him off their hands? Bears give up nothing or maybe just Sims.
I do not see a world where the Giants trade their 2-time Super Bowl champion/franchise leader in like every statistic/best QB and a first-round pick for nothing/maybe just Javon Sims.