The NFL season is reaching the halfway point, the point in which we generally know where teams are going.
For the first time in a while, the Chicago Bears aren’t completely irrelevant by Halloween. But,
they have a long way to go before they can really get into the playoff conversation in the second half of the season.
Sunday’s loss showed how far they still have to go. The defense is decimated by injuries and the pass rush is still non-existent. The offense remains up-and-down and dependent somewhat on if they’re facing a bad defense or not.
And naturally, there are still raging debates about the quarterback.
While it’s far from ideal, it’s still a better spot than recent seasons.
Let’s take a look at the power rankings as we head into the halfway point.
16. Chicago Bears (4-3) Previous Week: 14
Reality hit hard for the Bears and their fans on Sunday. In a game that felt like a huge opportunity to solidify themselves as playoff contenders, they ended in disappointment, as they were widely dominated on the road by the desperate Ravens. Quarterback Caleb Williams has yet to throw a touchdown in two straight games, and the offense continues to struggle getting into the end zone. To make matters worse, their defense is about as banged up as anyone in the league. It’s gut-check time with a pair of winnable games against the Bengals and Giants coming up before a brutal eight-game finish in November and December.
The Athletic – Josh Kendall and Chad Graff
16. Chicago Bears (4-3)
Last week: 14
Sunday: Lost to Ravens 30-16
Something scary: Caleb Williams’ accuracy
After completing 25-of-38 passes Sunday for a 77.2 passer rating, Williams is 24th in the league in completion percentage (61.9 percent) and 33rd in off-target throw rate (16.6 percent), according to TruMedia. By comparison, Jared Goff completed 72.4 percent of his passes in Ben Johnson’s offense last year, and it’s fair to wonder if the system can work without more accuracy from the quarterback.
17. Chicago Bears (14)
Progress is rarely linear, but the Bears’ offense feels like it has taken steps backward over the past few games. Two encouraging drives against Baltimore ended in disappointing field goals, and then it got worse, as they scored only one TD in their lowest point total of the season. Caleb Williams had two critical grounding calls and threw a back-breaking pick with nine minutes left. The defense was working with a shorthanded secondary, but the pass rush was invisible most of the game, with Dominique Robinson and Shemar Turner both getting hurt. It’s hard to get too upset, with this loss coming after four straight wins, but the Bears caught a huge break with Lamar Jackson inactive and couldn’t take advantage.
15. Chicago Bears (14)
The Bears losing to a Tyler Huntley-led Ravens team wasn’t ideal, but it was a road game in which they were down multiple cornerbacks. They’ll bounce back. But they can’t afford to lose at Cincinnati in Week 9 to make it a two-game losing streak.
17. Chicago Bears (13) Caleb Williams and the offense had a bad day against the Ravens. But it’s just one game. They have to get the passing game going again.
16. Bears (No. 15; 4-3): That ping-pong trolling of the Ravens boomeranged.
The Ringer – Diante Lee – (Editor’s note: I double-checked, but yes, this entry reads like it was written last week)
21. Chicago Bears (19) Since Chicago’s bye in Week 5, the Bears have found something sustainable in the run game, which gives me confidence that this team is now balanced enough on offense that it can be a frisky competitor the rest of the season.
Playing against porous defenses like Washington last week and New Orleans on Sunday certainly helps, but it’s not lost on me that Chicago’s doing a much better job of executing up front lately. If this recent trend holds up, that takes a ton of stress away from quarterback Caleb Williams—and that’s a good thing for everyone in Chicago.
17. Chicago Bears (13): Their league-high 16 takeaways have greatly contributed to the fact that the Bears’ average starting field position is their own 33-yard line, best in the league. Coulda used one of those turnovers Sunday in Baltimore.
Most rankings have the Bears around average to slightly-below average. Is that where you would have the Bears at the halfway point?
I’m not upset, they haven’t beaten any winning teams, but they’re clearly establishing themselves under Ben Johnson. It’s just frustrating that it’s the same shortcomings every week.
What do you think of their rankings?
