HOUSTON — Upon further review, these are your father’s Chicago Bears.
At least they were on Sunday night.
Great defense, bad offense, a lot of sacks, a couple of turnovers, a chance at the end to win a road game against a playoff team squandered.
And not a lot of answers postgame beyond “Play better” or “Try and block the flying edge rusher.”
You’ve seen this game a time or two hundred.
The names change and the expectations shift, but the results were very recognizable for the second straight game to open this Bears season that is supposed to change everything.
The big difference between last week and Sunday night was the quality of the Bears’ opponent, which is why the Bears are now 1-1 after an uglier-than-it-sounds 19-13 loss to the Houston Texans.
Caleb Williams, the quarterback savior, is here, but the offense, currently directed by Shane Waldron, looks as lost as ever. The phrase “concepts of a plan” comes to mind.
Through two games, the Bears have a total of 353 yards, averaging just under 3 yards per play.
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Every series in the first two games, you know what you’re getting from the defense, which held C.J. Stroud mostly in check. And you also know what you’re getting from the offense, which is almost nothing. The Bears did score an offensive touchdown this time with Khalil Herbert getting a 2-yard score in the second quarter.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “I think I’ve had this talk for a few years now. We understood this would be a process a little bit. We’ve got a lot to work on. The reality of the NFL is kind of setting in for a little bit.”
I’m not saying it’s getting late early, but Kmet was asked if it’s taking too long for the offensive to jell.
“Well, it’s only Week 2,” he said. “So I don’t want to freak out here.”
That’s smart. Kmet hosts a podcast, not sports-talk radio. He’s supposed to have reasoned takes and use a lot of football jargon in between the ad reads.
Of course, it’s too early to freak out. The offense’s ceiling will be dictated by Williams, and he’s played two whole games. If he’s as good as people think, he’ll figure things out and get incrementally better until you start seeing real growth.
But let’s be honest, it’s probably not too early to make a list of up-and-coming quarterback coaches and passing game coordinators to be Williams’ next offensive coordinator. No offense to Waldron, but we have to think one coordinator ahead at all times.
Forget watching tape, all you had to do was see the pounding that Williams took to understand the fundamental challenges of this offense. With no running game and a line that couldn’t handle third-and-long pressure from a bloodthirsty band of Texans, Williams was battered and baptized by fire.
“A little bruised up,” Williams said. “I took a couple hits today.”
A couple?
He was sacked seven times and hit an additional four times. Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson were coming off the top rope like a couple of old-fashioned WWE wrestlers.
Caleb Williams struggled against the Texans blitz, completing only 3 of 12 attempts for 15 yards and an interception (-21.0% CPOE), including 5 of his 7 sacks.
When not blitzed, Williams completed 20 of 25 passes for 159 yards & INT (+4.6% CPOE).#CHIvsHOU | @HoustonTexans pic.twitter.com/YIHK5uWTkq
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 16, 2024
In the locker room, the offensive linemen we talked to all had that guilty look of guys who didn’t get the job done. Of Williams’ seven sacks, three were on third-and-long plays. The Bears went 6-for-17 on third-down conversion attempts, which was actually better than the Texans’ 4-for-14 but not good enough to win.
At least Williams had better numbers, yardage-wise, than in his debut, going 23-for-37 for 174 yards. But unlike his first game, he threw two interceptions, along with one that was called back. He’s still waiting for his first touchdown. The interceptions, which came on downfield throws near the sideline, bothered him because that wasn’t his MO in college.
“It’s not something that I’ve done,” he said. “Not something that I do.”
In the first half, though, he showed why people believe in him, as he was zipping throws to a receiving corps missing veteran Keenan Allen. He looked confident and more comfortable.
“I felt better today,” he said. “I felt more in rhythm.”
But when the Bears needed him to be great, he again looked like a rookie. Matt Eberflus’ defense got him a final drive to try to win it, but a sack on second down led to a third-and-18 and a fourth-and-17. Williams’ final pass was a fling down to the field that didn’t come close to its intended target.
It wasn’t just Williams, though. The second half was a classic Bears disaster on offense. As John Fox used to say, everything was a problem. Pass blocking, play calling, quarterbacking, running backing. The film review will look more like a grindhouse double feature.
“When it finally connects and we’re all in the same cylinder, it should be good,” said receiver DJ Moore, who led the team with six catches for 53 yards. “Right now, we’re building a puzzle together. Until we get that puzzle fully complete, it’s going to be an up-and-down road.”
Cylinders, puzzles, bumpy roads. Give Moore credit for trying to paint a picture of an offense looking for an identity.
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I suppose it all comes down to doing the simple things a little better. Next week in Indianapolis, we’ll see if they can execute a consistent running game and let the offense flow from there.
As he met with the media after his first NFL loss, Williams was engaged as usual, tapping his fingers on the lectern as he tried to put together words to describe his feelings or remember specific mistakes.
“Everything’s about the response,” Williams said. “It’s Week 2. I’m a young guy but I understand it’s a long season.”
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(Photo of Caleb Williams getting sacked by Will Anderson Jr.: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)
