Kyle Long: Falls on our shoulders
Chicago Bears guard Kyle Long criticized fans at Soldier Field for booing Sunday as the team trotted into the locker room down 14-0 to the Miami Dolphins, but on Monday admitted "it was wrong for me to point fingers at the fans."
Long, speaking during his weekly appearance on the WXRT Morning Show, said the Bears should've given the fans a reason to cheer.
"I just think [reporters] had asked everybody in the locker room how they felt about [fans booing], and a lot of the guys didn't take the bait," Long said. "Obviously emotions are running high after a game. Obviously if we were giving them something to cheer about there would be a lot more cheers coming off the field at halftime. Hopefully the score would be a little bit closer, as well.
"That falls on our shoulders. It's unfair to put it on the fans. There was a lot of frustration after the game. You work hard all week. You're trying to string some wins together. You're at home. You feel like you're riding some momentum, and to be down 14-0 going into the half, it's tough. It's tough on everybody obviously."
In the minutes following the team's 27-14 loss to the Dolphins, Long called the fans' actions "unacceptable."
"I don't know if upset is the word I would use," Long said Sunday. "As somebody that is blood, that has blood, sweat and tears in this locker room like the other guys, the coaches, the trainers, the staff and the equipment guys, to be getting booed at home when you're walking off the field down two possessions is unacceptable; especially when there is not a lot of noise being made on third down [when Miami possessed the ball], period."
The loss to the Dolphins drops Chicago's record at Soldier Field to 0-3, and the club has now lost four in a row at home dating to last season.
In the first half of Sunday's game, the Dolphins outgained the Bears 209-54 and dominated in time of possession (19:10 to 10:50).
As reporters waited outside to be admitted into the locker room, heated exchanges could be heard. But Long called the exchanges a normal occurrence after a disappointing loss, saying "a lot of it is blown out of proportion."
In each of the club's four losses, quarterback Jay Cutler has turned over the ball multiple times.
"We are competitive guys. We want to win," Long said. "We work our tails off all week, all year to get ready for these games we play. When things don't go our way, it's tough. It's really tough. That's when you've got to kind of circle the wagons with one another, figure it out and move forward."
