Kyle Long Aims For Improvement During Bears' Bye
By Chris Emma--
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (CBS) -- There will be no blowout trip to Las Vegas for Kyle Long during this Bears bye week.
Now six games into his tenure at tackle, Long is looking forward to using the time off for walking his dog, going to see the Cubs play in the NLCS and figuring out how he can help the Bears improve.
"We need to get better at football," Long said Tuesday. "There's nobody we're preparing for necessarily, but we can self-scout and where we're struggling in terms of technique and assignment. We can really pound on those things."
On Tuesday, the Bears were back at Halas Hall. Two days ago, they suffered a 37-34 letdown loss in overtime to the previously winless Lions, in which they faltered with multiple chances to win the game.
The theme of practice Tuesday was self-improvement, with no opponent awaiting this Sunday. Now 2-4, the Bears have plenty to make better. For Long, the bye week will be spent evaluating how to improve at right tackle, specifically where his trip to Detroit went wrong.
"I let (Lions linebacker Josh Bynes) look like an all-star," Long said. "I personally was probably one of their top defenders."
Long pointed to his two holding penalties and pair of tackles for a loss he allowed. After the game on Sunday, he tweeted his own harsh criticism, saying he "played like dog s--t" and that Chicago deserves better.
Even when asked a light-hearted question about whether he wants to line up as a tackle-eligible receiver in a goal-line formation, Long turned the tune to his own personal frustrations.
"I got to do my job before I can worry about doing somebody else's job," Long said. "Trust me, I've thought about it. Do I think anybody can guard me? Absolutely not. But at this point, it's not a sure thing my guy gets blocked every play. Until that's the case, there isn't anything else I should be worried about."
The Bears enter their bye week on a down note but with a positive attitude still. Unlike the 2014 season, this team isn't falling apart -- it's a group eager to improve.
As one of the Bears' key leaders, Long's vowing to keep growing at his new position. Long's play at right tackle is one of many things the team can build upon during this busy bye week.
"I feel like it's getting better," Long said. "My pass protection is getting better. I just can't continue to make mistakes in the run game."
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