CHICAGO (670 The Score) -- What was supposed to be a matchup of equals was anything but.
The Bears were "embarrassed" by a 26-3 loss to the Chiefs at Soldier Field on Sunday night, but the setback wasn't surprising given what we've seen transpire in Chicago's season.
Here and the observations from the matchup:
Nagy's bad night
On a night Bears coach Matt Nagy was in the spotlight in facing his mentor in Chiefs coach Andy Reid, he was left humiliated.
It couldn't have gone any worse for Nagy, whose Bears suffered their most lopsided loss in his two-year tenure. Reid outcoached and outschemed him. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes outclassed Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. The Chiefs defense performed better than the Bears'.
For Nagy, this loss has to sting in a different way. It wasn't a game of what-if moments. There was no squandered 20-0 lead lost or a double-doink. The Bears were beat badly.
It came after Nagy explained that he hoped to see the Bears bring their best fight. He was confident in the pride his team had despite being eliminated from playoff contention a week prior.
Instead, the Bears played uninspired football, as if they just didn't want to be there.
"Too sloppy across the board in every area," Nagy said.
Nagy's arrival to the Bears brought the promise of a potent offense, growth for Trubisky and a tight-knit culture. On Sunday night, it was completely missing.
It's why blame for this lost season begins with Nagy. That was certainly clear on a night he'll hope to forget.
Check down for what?
Trailing 23-3 in the fourth quarter, the Bears faced a fourth-and-23 situation. Trubisky then made the kind of mistake we've seen too many times before.
With four targets running routes -- including Tarik Cohen and Anthony Miller at intermediate depths -- Trubisky took the checkdown to recently signed tight end Eric Saubert, who gained only 11 yards.
"I probably should have took a shot," Trubisky said of the play.
Trubisky made similar decisions all night, looking for the easy completion instead of taking chances. He was 18-of-34 for 157 yards, averaging 4.2 yards per dropback.
Meanwhile, Mahomes was 23-of-33 for 251 yards and three touchdowns -- two passing and one rushing. After a touchdown pass in the second quarter, he trolled the Bears by reminding them that he was selected 10th in the 2017 draft -- eight spots after Chicago took Trubisky.
Trubisky realized the primetime stage against Mahomes would bring comparisons to Mahomes. He understood the magnitude of his performance.
Mahomes was much better than Trubisky, and that's no surprise at this point.
Hicks sits
Perhaps the only positive for the Bears on Sunday was their decision to sideline defensive lineman Akiem Hicks and preserve his health.
The Bears ruled out Hicks late Saturday after he practiced during the week. The team had planned for Hicks to play through a left elbow that previously sidelined him for eight games, but they finally thought better of it with the game carrying no playoff stakes for the Bears.
"We just decided that we got it looked at, had some further examinations and we just felt like after that, through all of us talking, collaborating, that was the best thing to do," Nagy said. "So, that's what we did."
Hicks' acknowledged recently that his hope is to avoid surgery, and he would of course be risking further injury to his elbow by playing. Which means it wouldn't have been wise for him to suit up.
The hope is for Hicks to heal his injury naturally.
Pro Bowl hopes
Bears defensive lineman Eddie Goldman exited with a concussion and entered the protocol. He walked off Soldier Field slowly before heading to the locker room.
Goldman was selected as a Pro Bowl alternate and could get the nod to play the game in Orlando on Jan. 26. It's a goal that he has strove to achieve, and he's certainly deserving.
Extra points
-- Before the game, the Bears played a video montage of their 2010s decade. They skipped over everything from 2013-'17, going from a Devin Hester highlight to Nagy being hired. It was a mostly miserable decade of setbacks.
-- When the Bears scored three points in their loss to the Packers in their season opener, it was stunning. When they did it in the home finale, it was anything but surprising. That's what we've come to know in 2019.
-- The "Bear Raid" siren got a workout Sunday night, but there wasn't anything that was going to wake up the home fans.
-- Would this game had been different if receiver Anthony Miller didn't fumble a pitch on the Bears' first drive? Or if Trubisky didn't overshoot receiver Allen Robinson on a potential touchdown pass in the first quarter? Who knows.
-- Pro Bowl returner Cordarrelle Patterson will be fined for wearing his neon orange socks on the opening kickoff.
-- In 2018, Nagy called trick plays in goal-to-go situations. In 2019, he calls ill-advised fade routes. What happened to Santa's Sleigh?
-- The double-doink extra-point attempt miss by the Chiefs' Harrison Butker was just kicking the Bears while they were down.
-- Late in the game, the Bears' team Twitter account wrote the following: "Sigh."
-- The Bears were a punchline to America on Sunday night.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
