1-0! Damn right Da Bears are 1-0 in the Marc Trestman era and it couldn’t be sweeter. Cutty said today during the “Jay Cutler Show” with Waddle & Silvy that whenever you are in a meeting or encounter with Trestman he is unquestionably the smartest guy in the room/conversation regardless. How sweet is that to have your QB buying into his forth system in five years more than he has with any of the previous regimes?

Going into the game with a -3 spread there was major validity to bet the Bengals and to be concerned about what Bears fans could expect to see on the field. Despite my obvious homerism in being a fan and in being the Bears contributor for this great blog, if I were a betting man, which I am, I would have no doubt bet on the Bengals with my Money.

As the game went on, ultimately the team looked like they were primed to come out with a loss deemed to be a “learning lesson”. The offense was boring & uneventful. The running game, which was the focal point of the offense, was having a hard time getting going. The secondary was getting torched by AJ Green. The Defensive line was quite possibly the most disappointing unit of the group.

Then Cincinnati wasted all of their time outs, Tim Jennings came up in the clutch with a turnover, and boom insert Cutty on his majestic Black Unicorn slinging and running clutch pig skin across the field and the Bears got a win.

Why was everyone so shocked with the win? 

A few easy answers:

• Bears fans are not accustomed to winning when trailing going into half under Lovie Smith
• Bears fans are not used to seeing Jay Cutler pull out a clutch drive
• Bears fans are not used to having the offensive weapons capable of this comeback.

All of these bullet points can now be brushed to the back under the confidence in a new system. With that being said, taking one out of the NHL’s book, here are my Three Stars of the game and my Position Grades:

1. Game Ball – Marc Trestman – You have to give the game ball to the former Canadian CFL coach, who looks like he’s never played football, who wins week one against a (some would consider) Super Bowl contender in the AFC right?
   
2. Charles Tillman – Charles is a rare gem who only gets better with time and let’s his star flex the brightest as he goes out like a winner. Man does Tillman keep showing up effectively, he’s turned himself into one of the leagues best play makers. Does anyone question that? If you do, Tillman has 8 INTs (5 of which are for TDs) & 14 forced fumbles in the last 2 years + Sunday’s game. Peanut keeps showing up.
3. Jay Cutler – Cutler starts at a modest three here. His ego’s too big to get the #2 or #1 right now. Cutler did it in the clutch yesterday which was most important for him in a pressure season, and played great (sans the INT). Give him high regards for the first game under Tress.

Team: C+ – Lots of good in this C+ though.  As a team they could have played a lot better. Offensive play calling was real timid until mid-3rd quarter, running was tough, secondary looked questionable at times, no Bostic at MLB, Defensive line (more to come) didn’t perform up to par. The talent on the Bears as a whole needs to be able to flex more to reach A+ potential.

Quarterback B: Wanted to go B- here because I wanted to be hard on Jay to start the season. His numbers were efficient and guiding but his on the field performance never made me say “wow” once. At times it was painful, but in the end he led, he was happy and he won a game in the clutch.

Running Back: B- : Forte’s grade is the opposite of Jay. His numbers weren’t great but Forte was noticeable on plays. Looked a step quicker but he still looks like he needs to learn this system. He got in the end zone and fed off of the offensive energy at times.

Wide Receivers A- : Feels great to say doesn’t it. Marshall looked great, per norm. Jeffery was really a great part of our offense making valuable catches when needed. Martysaurus looked ‘ok’ but helped himself with a great TD catch. Earl needs to be a bit more involved .

Offensive Line B: I want to give these guys an “A” based on just pure emotion of having a better line. Zero sack for Cutler against one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. But they didn’t give us much in the run game and need to gel as a unit

Defensive Line D+: This is the most talented unit on the team on paper with Melton, Peppers and then all of the young talent destined to blossom in Paea, Shea & Corey. The vets’ Melton & Peppers were virtually non-existent (Peppers didn’t record a single stat). They barely got to Dalton, didn’t knock any balls down and looked to be beat at the point of attack. Expect this to get better.

Linebackers B: No complaints. Officially on TEAM BOSTIC though.

Corner Backs A: Tim Jennings can thank Peanut for this A because Charles is about to deserve a statue. Jennings had some soft coverages in my opinion and didn’t recognize a free ball opportunity on a fumble he forced and kicked out of bounds. Other than that, these were the play makers.

Safeties C: Felt like they were getting beat and missing tackles more than they were really helping. Expect that this gets better.

Special Teams: Good as Gould – see what I did there – A+ for Robbie’s 58 yard FG.