Following a surprising win in Week 1, the Chicago Bears‘ fortune ran dry on Sunday night against the Houston Texans.
While it was another strong defensive performance from the Bears, offensive woes continue holding this team back from reaching the potential set out for them this offseason.
Chicago Bears’ Offense in Week 2 Looks Even Worse on Stat Sheet
After adding their first tally in the loss column, here’s what was uncovered when diving deeper into the stats of this game through TruMedia.
Bears Offensive Line Was Among League Worst on Sunday Night
Though someone could’ve come to this conclusion after just watching Sunday night’s loss, the stats support this claim even more.
In Week 2 alone, the Bears’ offensive line was one of the worst units across the league.
- 7 sacks allowed (32nd)
- 15.9% sack rate (31st)
- 20 PFF pressures allowed (32nd)
- 41.7% PFF pressures allowed per dropback (23rd)
- 35.4% blitzes faced per dropback (6th most)
After a Week 1 performance that painted the picture that maybe Caleb Williams wouldn’t be mutilated each play, Chicago’s offensive line came back in Week 2 and lost much of its credibility moving forward.
With how poorly the offensive line played, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans — a former two-time Pro Bowl linebacker and 2006 Defensive Rookie of the Year — made it clear he knew how to attack this offense.
And that was through Chicago’s disheveled offensive line.
The Texans defense blitzed Caleb Williams on 41.7% of his dropbacks (20 times), the unit's highest blitz rate in a game under DeMeco Ryans.
The Texans generated 12 pressures and 5 sacks when blitzing, with nine defenders finishing with multiple pressures.
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— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 16, 2024
So, not only was Chicago’s offensive line play incredibly poor Sunday night, but Ryans knew it was how he was going to take over the game.
And he did just that in front of a national audience.
Difficult To Blame Caleb Williams for Week 2 Struggles
For NFL fans who only look at box scores, there’s likely an idea floating around that Williams played poorly in Week 2. After a poor Week 1 performance by the stats, this would be Williams’ second poor performance in a row to start his rookie season.
However, while the stats say one thing, they can be deceiving.
- 51.0 passer rating (32nd/33)
- 62.2% completion percentage (24th)
- 4.7 yards per attempt (32nd)
- 7.6 yards per completion (32nd)
- 5.4% pass interception rate (28th)
- 15.9% QB sack rate (32nd)
- 35.3% blitzes per dropback (6th highest)
When looking at these stats, it could appear as though Williams was the problem this week. However, when compounded with the prior offensive line stats, there’s a way to dig deeper into his performance.
Per Next Gen Stats, Williams completed just 3 of 12 passing attempts for 15 yards when being blitzed. Five of Williams’ seven sacks also came when Houston brought the blitz.
However, when the Texans didn’t blitz, Williams was 20 of 25 for 159 yards.
Now, sure, opposing defenses are going to blitz the living daylights out of Williams from here on out after seeing what Houston could get away with, but that doesn’t change the fact that he wasn’t the problem here.
No matter who was playing quarterback behind this offensive line, the performance would’ve been ugly.
Chicago’s Rushing Attack More Stagnant Than Rush Hour Traffic
This offseason, the Bears went out and signed running back D’Andre Swift, adding to a rushing offense that led the league last year. However, through the first two weeks of this season, Swift hasn’t led Chicago to the same type of standing across the league.
When looking solely at the performance of starting running backs for all 32 teams this week, Swift was one of the league’s worst.
- 18 rushing yards (29th)
- 1.3 yards per rush (31st)
- -0.5 yards before contact per rush (30th)
- 1.79 yards after contact per rush (31st)
Now, former Bears quarterback Justin Fields was a big help to Chicago’s rushing attack last year, but Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson pulled their weight as well.
For Herbert and Johnson to be missing out on snaps to Swift and Travis Homer, some mind-boggling decisions are being made on personnel calls for the rushing attack.
.@roschon finds the end zone 🤘
📺: #ATLvsCHI on CBS pic.twitter.com/aAH6kKEzZx
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) December 31, 2023
When the Bears lack a run game as drastically as they do now, Johnson and Herbert’s lack of usage remains a mystery, especially after seeing the type of power Johnson brings as a downhill rusher.
As a member of the “RB1schon” campaign, his lack of usage could be a major reason why this rushing attack has been so stagnant. Getting Johnson involved more could be huge for Chicago’s offense moving forward.
Bears Defense Remains Elite Through Week 2
As has been the case since last season, the Bears’ defense is among the league’s best in many ways. However, one way they’ve separated themselves from the crowd is by how few points they allow per game.
Yes, they’re a team that capitalized on turnovers frequently since last season, but simply keeping opposing offenses from scoring is an area Chicago has been elite at since Week 12 of 2023.
- Week 12, 2023: 10 points allowed
- Week 13, 2023: 13 points allowed
- Week 14, 2023: 20 points allowed
- Week 15, 2023: 16 points allowed
- Week 16, 2023: 17 points allowed
- Week 17, 2023: 17 points allowed
- Week 1, 2024: 17 points allowed
- Week 2, 2024: 19 points allowed
This streak of allowing fewer than 20 points per game leads the entire NFL, as Chicago’s defense is truly giving off 2018 Bears vibes once again.
If the offense can figure out a way to find their identity quickly, the Bears could be a hot team down the stretch.
Plus, needing to score 20 points per game is a very attainable goal for an offense led by a rookie quarterback. If Chicago’s defense can carry most of the weight while the offense plays well enough, it could be a special season in the Windy City.