CHICAGO — Heading into the last weekend of September, the Chicago Bears rank 22nd in the NFL in points scored. with the two return touchdowns they got in Week 1 from their defensive and special teams.
Offensively, the Bears have had 35 possessions this season but have managed just three touchdowns and 38 points. The running game has been nonexistent. The passing attack has been inconsistent. And the team’s five turnovers in the last two weeks have contributed to the losing formula.
On the plus side, two of the touchdowns came from rookie quarterback Caleb Williams in the fourth quarter Sunday in Indianapolis, as the offense appeared to find more fluidity than it had in the first two games.
The Bears’ seven passes of 15 yards or more against the Colts were more than double the combined total (three) they had in games against the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans.
Perhaps a notable increase in production is in the offing? Perhaps a recovery performance this weekend against a vulnerable Los Angeles Rams defense could put the Bears back on the winning track and, by extension, put them in a better mood?
Williams certainly spoke optimistically Wednesday about the offense’s efforts to get going. “We’re constantly getting better,” he said.
To set the stage for this weekend’s game, here’s our latest contribution to the Caleb Williams dossier.
The buzz
Coming off Sunday’s loss, Williams expressed the need for “constant communication” as the offense tries to find its rhythm and build an identity before the season gets too far into the future.
On Wednesday, the rookie quarterback was assertive in defining his role in that process.
“It starts with me,” he said.
In a word, Williams promises to be more communicative, first with the coaching staff, but also with his teammates, as the offense works to identify what it does best. That happens on the field during games. But, more importantly, it happens during the week at Halas Hall. On the practice field. In meetings. In one-on-one conversations.
It’s about fine-tuning the details of what the Bears are trying to make work. But it’s also about agreeing on the concepts and plays that work best for the players.
“We’ve got to make sure we communicate that and we run things that we’re all comfortable with,” Williams said, “things that are good plays, that work well against the other team, but more importantly, things that we know and feel comfortable doing.”
“Comfort” and “communication” are the two main focuses for the offense in Week 4, with Williams promising to go “deeper” with coordinator Shane Waldron to express his preferences — or opposition — in hopes of agreeing on plays Williams feels confident about rather than uncertain.
Said Williams: “When I’m out there on the field and I’m making split-second decisions, I hesitate and I’m not very comfortable. For certain plays or certain runs, I think that’s the most important thing. So it’s important that I can communicate with him. I understand him. And I have to do that consistently.”
Williams and the Bears had plenty of positive moments in the loss at Indianapolis, as the rookie threw for 363 yards and two touchdowns. Count tight end Cole Kmet among those who believe Williams has made big strides this month, especially with the way he played against the Colts.
“You can see him getting into a rhythm a little bit more,” Kmet said. “Anybody that watches the video can really see him trying to improve his reads and trying to see things clearly. And I think his processing speed has improved from game to game. That’s always very encouraging to see.”
“When he feels comfortable and gets going, you can see his confidence grow.”
Projector game
Just after Sunday’s loss, Williams had a solid defense for the second of his two interceptions — a throw down the left sideline to Rome Odunze in the third quarter. Noticing that Colts safety Nick Cross had turned his back on coverage, Williams aimed to give one of his go-to players a chance to make a contested catch. And he delivered a pretty decent one, too. But Cross found a way to disrupt Odunze at the catch point, and the ball bounced to cornerback Jaylon Jones, who made a brilliant interception.
Eberflus, while appreciating Williams’ aggressiveness, also reiterated the importance of ball security. “(Rome) was open,” Eberflus acknowledged. “But again, those windows close in the NFL.”
Eberflus would have preferred that Williams a) notice the Colts shifting their coverage to that side of the field; and b) choose to drop a safer checkdown pass to running back D’Andre Swift in the flat.
“He’s got to have some wisdom and some judgment to know when to throw the ball,” Eberflus said. “You can’t ever take away his aggressiveness. But he’s got to be really good at taking care of the ball. That’s his primary job as a quarterback.”
It’s always a difficult balancing act for a young quarterback. And for a rookie like Williams with such unique playmaking skills, Eberflus and his staff will face the challenge all season of teaching him the wisdom of the NFL game while not diminishing Williams’ willingness to regularly take calculated risks.
“It’s all about play design,” Eberflus said. “Play design and coverage contour in terms of what they are (defensively) tells you where you need to go with the ball. We’ve just got to do a good job with that throughout the game.”
That’s something to watch for Sunday against a Rams defense that will give Williams some pretty intriguing windows of opportunity.
To be continued
The season is still underway. But no team has given up more yards than the Rams, with 1,277 in three games. With a 3-4 defense led by new coordinator Chris Shula, the Rams are also giving up a league-worst 6.8 yards per play and are tied for 28th in sacks with four.
However, Eberflus noted that he was struck by the talent the Rams have on the edge with pass rushers Jared Verse and Byron Young. Verse was a prospect the Bears had high on their pre-draft radar this spring, a player with impressive strength and momentum and a natural eye for finding quarterbacks.
Eberflus also enjoyed his time with Verse during the rookie’s pre-draft visit to Halas Hall.
“I like this guy a lot,” Eberflus said. “You could say he’s going to be a good professional and have a long career in the NFL. He’s going to be a leader of this group and his football team.”
Verse’s skills will pose a significant challenge for the Bears’ offensive tackles, especially if right tackle Darnell Wright remains hampered by a back injury. Also keep an eye on fellow rookie Braden Fiske on the Rams’ defensive interior.
Still, if Williams is well protected and the Bears can consistently create a clean pocket, they should have opportunities to chase down big plays.
The Rams have allowed a receiver to pass for 100 yards in each of their three games, with Jauan Jennings of the San Francisco 49ers exploding for 11 receptions, 175 yards and three touchdowns Sunday. Marvin Harrison Jr. of the Arizona Cardinals (4-130-2 in Week 2) and Jameson Williams of the Detroit Lions (5-121-1 in Week 1) also had big games.
Receiver DJ Moore admitted to taking note of those performances, but also taking them with a grain of salt.
“It gets attention,” Moore said. “But it always does when your team goes out on the field and they’re the Monstars and you’re like, ‘That didn’t look exactly like it did on film.'”
The big number: 363
Williams’ passing yards in Indianapolis set a Bears rookie record, breaking the previous record of 314 set by Mitch Trubisky in Week 15 of 2017. The Bears also lost that game, with Trubisky completing 31 of 46 passes with one touchdown and three interceptions.
Williams had 61 completions Sunday, going 33-of-52 with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He was also sacked four times, ran for eight yards on another play, helped the Bears score 26 yards on two Colts pass interference penalties and was penalized for another 15 yards when linebacker E.J. Speed was called for roughing the passer on an incomplete pass from Williams. (Williams also had a 17-yard pass on the move to Moore that was negated by a pass interference penalty from Braxton Jones.)
Last word
While it’s well known that Williams modeled his game after four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers, the Bears quarterback has also long admired Matthew Stafford, his counterpart for Sunday’s game. Williams traces his introduction to Stafford’s talents to his childhood, when he loved the playmaking skills of Lions star receiver Calvin Johnson.
“I started watching Megatron, getting covered in threes and stuff like that,” Williams noted Wednesday. “Then I grew up a little bit and realized how good Matthew Stafford was at his job.”
Williams noted in particular that he was impressed with how Stafford “controls the game as a quarterback.”
“He knows how to get in and out of situations effectively,” Williams said. “He also knows where people are going to be. He knows where defensive players are going to be and he can move them on a rope.
“To see him be able to move defenders and move in the pocket while delivering great passes down the field (is impressive). Or even just getting the ball to the back and allowing him to work. He keeps the ball in play.”
With 223 passing yards on Sunday, Stafford will pass Eli Manning for a spot in the NFL’s all-time top 10. His 359 career touchdown passes also rank 11th all-time.
Like Williams, Stafford has been a No. 1 overall pick before. That was in 2009, when Williams was just a freshman. After 12 seasons with the Lions — but just three playoff appearances — Stafford was traded to Los Angeles in 2021 and led the Rams to a Super Bowl LVI championship in his first season there.
“Looking at someone like that who has had the success that he has had, you want to learn from that,” Williams said.
This class will take place again at noon on Sunday.
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