Making the grade: Assessing Bears players, coaches in victory against Panthers
Rookie Caleb Williams was as productively efficient as he has been in his first season. Shane Waldron’s offense was committed to the run and produced open receivers. Defensive tackle Gervon Dexter keyed another strong game from the defensive line.
4 Bears overreactions from demolition of Panthers
Don’t look now, but the Chicago Bears have a winning record. With Sunday’s win over the Carolina Panthers, the Bears moved to 3-2 and now sit in third place in the highly contested NFC North.
With a dominant victory over the Panthers—beating them by nearly four touchdowns (36-10)—Chicago fans probably feel they have something to gloat about. After all, this marks the Bears’ second consecutive win and a perfect 3-0 record at home this season.
Though it’s only Week 5, the Bears appear improved. But that notion in and of itself may be an overreaction. It’s a cycle Bears fans have come to know all too well: early promise followed by a late-season collapse from inconsistent play.
Two weeks of solid play is hardly a large enough sample size to make a judgment. Still, it’s impossible to ignore what’s happening in Chicago right now, which, naturally, comes with its share of overreactions—starting with the performance of Bears’ starting quarterback, Caleb Williams.
Caleb Williams has arrived
Caleb Williams’ start to the season was far from memorable, even if the Bears did come away with a win in Week 1. It’s not as if Williams had much to do with that victory. He didn’t turn the ball over, but he failed to reach 100 passing yards or score a touchdown. His next two games were even worse; despite increases in yardage and completions, the Bears went 0-2 as he threw four interceptions and scored just twice.
However, in his last two games—including Sunday’s matchup against the Panthers—Williams has shown significant improvement. He has averaged a 71.4% completion rate over that span, a jump from the 58% he posted in his first three outings. Additionally, he has thrown three touchdowns and no interceptions in those two contests.
On Sunday, Williams missed on just nine pass attempts, averaging 10.5 yards per pass attempt, and racked up 304 yards with two touchdowns (both to DJ Moore). Though he faced some pressure at times (one sack), the game seemed to slow down for the rookie quarterback. So, was this Williams’ arrival game? It certainly appears that way, but it’s still too early to say definitively—especially considering the opponent was the struggling Panthers.
