17 takeaways from the Bears’ 23-17 overtime win vs. Steelers

Some thoughts and observations after watching the film and going through the stats of the Bears’ 23-17 overtime time against the Steelers on Sunday (as previously shared on Twitter):

1. Let’s start with Bears’ special-teams ace Sherrick McManis. This guy is a Pro Bowler. Again. Just a big playmaker in the third phase.

2. Antonio Brown always will produce. He’s the best wide receiver in the NFL in my opinion. But the Bears cornerbacks competed all day. They totaled six pass breakups. They played the ball and the hands.

3. With Kyle Fuller playing well, cornerback might actually turn into a strength for the Bears. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio will have options with matchups.

4. There isn’t a coaching/teaching point whatsoever on Bears cornerback Marcus Cooper’s blunder on his blocked field-goal return. Just score.

5. There are two schools of thought regarding Cooper.

A. Bench him/yell.

B. Let him redeem himself.

I go with B. Cooper was solid in coverage for #Bears.

6. Bears running back Jordan Howard’s right shoulder was ailing. He started to only carry the ball in his left arm. He deserves praise for his toughness.

7. The Bears’ offensive line and tight ends deserve credit for the run game. But so do the wide receivers. They held their blocks down the field — see Deonte Thompson.

8. The Bears defense was very sound vs. running back Le’Veon Bell: gap control, patience of their own and then sound tackling. Big day for linebacker Danny Trevathan.

9. Rookie running back Tarik Cohen’s ability to abruptly change his direction is special. He’s special. The Bears found a gem in the fourth round this year.

10. I counted 11 times where Bears outside linebacker Leonard Floyd dropped into coverage. The Steelers’ weapons made it a must. His sacks will come.

11. To be fair to Bears quarterback Mike Glennon, I counted 4 dropped passes — two for Markus Wheaton, one for Dion Sims and one for Zach Miller.

12. But … Sims’ drop would have been negated by a penalty and Miller’s drop was on third down and well short of the first-down marker.

13. Criticize the Bears’ wide receivers. Fine. But Mike Glennon also is missing them when they’re open. There were examples again vs. the Steelers.

14. Bears quarterback Mike Glennon said his interception was the result of reading Zach Miller’s option route wrong. But Miller wasn’t an open option anyway.

15. If Steelers safety Mike Mitchell picks off Mike Glennon in final minutes of regulation — a bad, behind throw — today’s talk would be all about No. 10.

16. Bears quarterback Mike Glennon did step into two nice throws to Markus Wheaton (drop) and Zach Miller (first down).

17. Last note: Bears tight end Adam Shaheen : He hurt a finger, caught his first touchdown pass and had a key block on Jordan Howard’s game-winning touchdown run.