Dennis Allen finally gets plainly honest about Bears beating Saints in Week 7
The whole city of Chicago was elated to see Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen get one on his old team, the New Orleans Saints, in Week 7, but expected that he would be silent about the win.
All week leading up to the game, Allen downplayed the "revenge game" narrative that he wanted to win one against them. No one was buying it, and they had every reason to be correct on that front.
Bears fans were happy to finally see Allen open up about his excitement for winning against the Saints. First, with the locker room celebration with his current team, but he was still open to adding a little more.
He told the media how he felt about it, but was quick to keep the focus on the upcoming matchup against the Baltimore Ravens.
“It felt good at the time, certainly one that I wanted to get, but in this league you don’t have a chance to sit and reflect, and we’ve moved on to Baltimore.”
Fans will reflect on Allen's performance coaching the Bears against the Saints for him
Allen may want to move on from the Saints game, but the defense put up an excellent performance that fans want to celebrate for him. His defense allowed just 44 yards, forced four turnovers, and sacked Spencer Rattler four times to help the Bears win their fourth straight game.
It's almost like four is a lucky number for the Bears.
This defensive performance was different from the others this season, as everyone contributed to the win. Chicago's secondary, despite being banged up, has made a lot of the plays. Still, the once-struggling defensive line finally picked up some much-needed momentum, adding seven quarterback hits to the sack number.
Now, the Bears' defense has created 15 turnovers during the four-game winning streak and leads the NFL with 16. That's an impressive feat for any team.
Read more: Colin Cowherd stuns Bears fans with complimentary Caleb Williams commentary
All the credit has to go to Allen for working through all the injuries this defense has had and still has, and for performing. Okay, now Allen and the Bears can focus on Lamar Jackson and the Ravens.
Colts gets big Josh Downs injury update ahead of Titans matchup
The Indianapolis Colts will face off against the Tennessee Titans for the second and final time in the regular season, and they’ll be getting one of their key receivers back, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
“Colts WR Josh Downs has cleared concussion protocol, coach Shane Steichen announced,” Rapoport wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Downs entered concussion protocol after the Colts’ Week 6 game against the Arizona Cardinals, and he didn’t play against the Los Angeles Chargers. With Downs out, Daniel Jones had to rely on Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce, Tyler Warren, and others, and it was enough to get them the win.
Getting Downs back is big for the Colts, as he’s recorded 26 catches this season for 217 yards and one touchdown. Out of 26 of Downs’ receptions, 15 of them have been for first downs.
Jones has been getting his receivers in easy situations to make plays, which has been the big difference with the team this season. When the Colts played the Titans earlier this season, they won 41-20, and Pittman made some comments after the game that showed that the opposing team wasn’t ready for what was coming to them.
“Saw it on the pre-game intros. They kinda looked a little sluggish, they were kinda walking around, nobody was really bouncing,” Pittman said. “Right then and there we all sat there and were like ‘They don’t want to play today.’”
The Titans will look a little different this time around, with them firing Brian Callahan since then, and they may come out with some better energy. It probably won’t matter to the Colts, as they’ll be ready for whatever the Titans throw at them.
The Colts are one of the hottest teams in the league right now, and as they get Downs back on offense, they’ll continue to play at a high level.
