Bear Down, Nerd Up: Justin Fields is facing a monumental pressure rate

What are the odds of scoring a touchdown from inside the 5-yard line?

Probably pretty good.

The Bears somehow managed to go 0 for 3 in that situation during Thursday night’s loss, 12-7, against the Washington Commanders. Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said Friday that he will reevaluate everything this week, as the Bears embark on an 11-day layoff.

They certainly have a lot to think about. Here are some of the facts and figures from this week that will give Bears fans something to think about.

Under 100: The odds of scoring from inside the 5-yard line are probably pretty high, and so too are the odds of winning a football game when the opponent throws for fewer than 100 yards. Yet, somehow the Bears have held teams below 100 passing yards twice this season – and lost both games.

The Bears allowed only 86 net passing yards Thursday. Commanders QB Carson Wentz threw for 99 yards, but lost a few on sacks. The Bears also allowed fewer than 100 net passing yards two weeks ago in a loss to the Giants.

Not since 2012 have the Bears lost two games in the same season during which they allowed fewer than 100 net passing yards.

Under pressure: Quarterback Justin Fields faced 18 pressures on Thursday night, which tied for the most in his career. Through six games, he has been pressured on 46% of his dropbacks, according to ESPN Stats & Info. That is the highest pressure rate for any quarterback through the first six games since ESPN began tracking pressures in 2009.

The Commanders recorded 12 QB hits in the stat book. Washington’s Montez Sweat got his hands on Fields four times. Efe Obada hit the QB three times. The Bears have only two defenders with three or more QB hits on the season. Star pass rusher Robert Quinn isn’t one of them [Quinn has two QB hits].

Washington defensive tackle Jonathan Allen’s sack of Fields was tied for the fifth-fastest sack (2.5 seconds) in the NFL this season entering the weekend. The Commander have pressured the QB 37.4% of the time when rushing only four pass rushers, per Next Gen Stats. That is first among all NFL teams.

Combine that with a young Bears offensive line that has struggled all across the board at various times, and the result is a QB under constant pressure. Fields stood up at the podium after the game with grass-stained pants and a defeated look on his face.

“I’m hurting,” Fields said. “I’m hurting pretty good, but we’ve got a long weekend.”

You can’t blame him.

The positives: Fields continues to show positive moments. That’s why it’s far too early to give up on him, certainly when considering the supporting cast he is currently working with at wide receiver.

Fields’ 40-yard touchdown pass to receiver Dante Pettis in the third quarter had a 22.9% chance of being complete, according to Next Gen Stats.

That is the most improbable completion of Fields’ career so far. Per Next Gen Stats, the ball travelled 54.7 yards through the air.

Fields also showed his exceptional speed on Khalil Herbert’s 64-yard run on Thursday. Herbert took a pitch to his left and broke a tackle, then veered right and found an opening. He wound up being tackled inside the 10. Herbert travelled 99.1 yards on the 64-yard run. It was a career best 58 rushing yards over expected on the play, according to Next Gen Stats.

Many yards, few points: The Bears out-gained the Commanders significantly in the game, 392 yards to 214. They out-rushed them 238 yards to 128.

According to Pro Football Reference, it marked the most total yards of offense for the Bears while scoring seven points or fewer since at least 1940.

After going 0 for 3 from inside the 5-yard line Thursday, the Bears have now converted a touchdown on only 46% of their red zone trips this season.

In the first half, the Bears totaled 202 yards and had zero points. Per ESPN Stats & Info, that is the most yards by a team to be scoreless at halftime all season.

The Bears have now rushed for 200 or more yards in two games already this season [they did so in Week 3 against Houston]. In four years under former coach Matt Nagy, the Bears never once rushed for 200 yards in a game.

Snap decision: Rookie receiver Velus Jones Jr. played 12 snaps on offense Thursday, or 17% of offensive plays. He touched the ball twice on offense with one reception and one carry.

Backup running back Khalil Herbert played on 16 snaps and touched the ball on seven of them. He ran for 75 yards on seven carries. Starter David Montgomery continues to out-snap him significantly with 56 snaps Thursday.

Sackin’ safety: Bears rookie safety Jaquan Brisker recorded his second sack of the season on a third-down blitz in the first quarter. Brisker is the Bears’ first defensive back with multiple sacks as a rookie since Al Afalava in 2009.

Can’t beat Washington: Since beating Washington early on during the 1985 Super Bowl season, the Bears are 4-16 against Washington over their last 20 matchups. That includes a 1-9 record in the last 10 matchups. The two teams don’t play very often, but for some reason the Bears can’t seem to beat the Commanders.