Bears’ defense knows it can be better — ‘We wanted to have a goose egg’

Inside linebacker Danny Trevathan expected more.

“We were at the point where we wanted to have a goose egg,” he said after the Bears’ 17-16 loss to the Chargers. “It didn’t hit like we wanted to. We could be a little bit better — like one or two plays hit us over the top.”

The first one came with three minutes to play in the first half. Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, not known for his arm strength, threw from the left hash to the right sideline, where Mike Williams caught the pass for 43 yards. Melvin Gordon scored on a 19-yard run on the next play.

The only other touchdown the Chargers scored came after Mitch Trubisky’s fourth-quarter fumble gave them the ball at the Bears’ 26.

The Bears benefitted from Keenan Allen’s touchdown drop and Chase McLaughlin’s 42-yard missed field goal.

“Our defense, we’re going to get back in the lab,” Trevathan said. “We’re still the best defense in the league in my opinion.”

The numbers don’t back that up. After sacking the Vikings six times, the Bears have had two in the last three games. Outside linebacker Khalil Mack had the team’s only one Sunday — on the Chargers’ last play before the two-minute warning. The Bears’ only takeaway was Kyle Fuller’s interception in the first quarter.

“Just gotta cut down those points,” said Mack, speaking for the first time to the media in more than three weeks. “Even though it was some tough positions we were in, we want to cut those points down substantially.”

After giving up a 100-yard rusher in consecutive games, the Bears allowed Gordon, the Chargers’ leading rusher, to gain 31 yards on eight carries.

“It was [a step] in the right direction, especially with stopping the run,” Mack said. “We wanted to make them one-dimensional. In that aspect, it was OK, but everything else, we gave them. It’s tough.”

Asked how the team would respond, Mack was his typical tight-lipped self.

“There’s a whole bunch of talking we could do,” he said. “I’m an action guy.’’