Bears guard Jonah Jackson brushes off Luke Goedeke's complaints about Jeffery Simmons
Bears guard Jonah Jackson said the holding and launching Tampa Bay's Luke Goedeke complained about is normal trench play. Next up: the Saints.
Chicago Bears guard Jonah Jackson isn't buying what Tampa Bay tackle Luke Goedeke said about Jeffery Simmons. After the Bears' 27-24 Sunday night win over the Buccaneers at Soldier Field, Goedeke complained that Simmons kept launching himself into Tampa Bay's linemen, held them, and took a cheap shot at his head, according to Sports Illustrated's Bears On SI.
Jackson answered on 104.3 The Score, and ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports wrote up his comments. He said Tampa Bay's defenders were doing the same thing to Chicago's line all night, and he singled out nose tackle Vita Vea. His summary was simple: "This is football, man." On the holding charge, he said every defensive lineman does it and blockers have to find a way to deal with it. PFT's Mike Florio agreed, writing that line play is a free-for-all limited only by what officials choose to flag.
Bears On SI also pushed back on Goedeke. It pointed to a two-play stretch in which Simmons tossed a Tampa Bay lineman aside and Goedeke answered on the next snap with what the outlet called a cheap block in the back. Its read is that the complaints came from a lineman frustrated by a loss and by losing his matchup.
No discipline has been reported, so the back-and-forth changes nothing for Chicago's roster. If anything, it reinforces the identity Simmons has brought to this defense. Coverage of the game credited him with lifting the whole defensive front, and that front had to carry the team in a game where Chicago turned the ball over five times, four of them on Caleb Williams interceptions, and still won.
What it means for the Saints game
The Bears went into their bye at 7-2 with four straight wins since a 31-7 loss at Green Bay. They beat Atlanta, New England, Seattle and Tampa Bay in that run. Through nine games Chicago has scored 241 points and allowed 184. Only one loss was close: a 9-3 defeat to Minnesota at home. Next up is New Orleans at Soldier Field on Sunday, November 22, on Fox.
The Bears are heavy favorites on the board. Novig has Chicago at -567 on the moneyline. The best price anywhere is DraftKings at -485, a real gap between the venues for a favorite this big. On the other side, Novig lists the Saints at +441, with Kalshi best at +456. Chicago is favored by 9.5 points. Novig prices the Bears side at -115 and DraftKings is best at -110, while Novig has New Orleans plus the points at -104. The total sits between 48.5 and 49.5 depending on the venue, and sportsbook hold runs roughly 4 to 5 percent across the markets.
The bigger question is ball security, not Goedeke. A defense led by Simmons can make up for some mistakes, but five giveaways won't hold up every week, even against a team the market rates this far below Chicago. Follow the full board on the game page and the season on the Bears team page.