To put it mildly, last Sunday was nothing short of an early-season disaster for the Chicago Bears. Not only did they lose a game they had multiple chances to win, but they also lost starting quarterback Caleb Williams for the next three to four weeks. As if that wasn’t complicated enough, there was plenty of quarterback shuffling during the week, which ultimately led to 38-year-old veteran Case Keenum getting the start on Monday against a very good Philadelphia Eagles defense. With the Bears already
down one game at home, a strong finish to their three-game homestand was needed.
Thankfully for the Bears, head coach Ben Johnson dialed up the perfect game plan, and the team delivered a 27-7 victory in front of a home crowd. Keenum was incredible, the offense did their jobs despite a lack of a run game, and the defense came out in the second half in dominating fashion. Following a long week of quarterback talk and simmering on a tough 9-3 loss to the Vikings last Sunday, we’ll work quickly to turn the page before turning our focus to Week 4 on Sunday. All of that and more in Week 3’s 10 Bears Takes.
1. Monday night was the first time in Ben Johnson’s play-calling career that he had a backup quarterback leading his offense. Although Case Keenum ended up receiving the starting nod, the way they got there was more chaotic than last Sunday’s game.
There has been much that Johnson hasn’t experienced over his first five years of play calling at the NFL level, but starting a backup quarterback was first for the Bears’ head coach on Monday night. To make matters more complex, his primary backup, Tyson Bagent, entered concussion protocol Tuesday morning after self-reporting symptoms. Despite being officially cleared on Sunday, the team opted to give Keenum the starting nod due to a full week of practice.
The mechanics of losing a starting quarterback (for any team) are already a rough process, especially in the first week it happens. For a team’s primary backup quarterback to go down before even taking a snap in practice is almost unheard of. Thankfully, Johnson and his offensive staff have kept three full-time quarterbacks on the roster since last year. Many wondered why Keenum was brought in last offseason, and it was a fair question. Most teams don’t carry three quarterbacks on their roster, and when they do, the third quarterback is usually younger. Not a 38-year-old who was on the verge of retirement before receiving a call from Johnson mid-offseason.
While many, including myself, believed that Keenum was a glorified “player’s coach,” having that caliber of player with his experience sitting on the bench and ready to play proved to be a valuable commodity. Just think- if Keenum wasn’t on the roster, Miller Moss might have been making his first career NFL start on Monday night. Otherwise, the team would have been in scramble mode to sign a veteran who did not know the offense. Either option would have been nothing short of a disaster, and considering the situation, it probably should have been.
Even if the results don’t show a starting-caliber player like they would have had Caleb Williams not strained his hamstring, the alternatives beyond Keenum would have made Monday night a much less enjoyable experience. It’s becoming more common for teams to lose their starting quarterback for stretches in a season; it’s much less likely for a team to lose two quarterbacks in just over 24 hours. Teams may look at the Bears situation and put a little more value into keeping a third quarterback on the 53-man roster. After all, had Bagent not been cleared, Moss would have needed to be elevated for a second time just for the team to have a backup.
Despite many scratching their heads after the team extended Keenum this offseason on a two-year deal, the guaranteed money he’ll receive over the life of that contract was more than paid off following Monday night’s amazing performance.
2. On Sunday morning, ESPN reported that starting quarterback Caleb Williams suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain. Here’s why fans shouldn’t panic too much about an extended return-to-play timeline.
If the Bears’ loss and losing their starting quarterback for the foreseeable future wasn’t bad enough, the hot takes from media, fans, and former players on Williams’ reaction to his injury were enough to make even the most patient Bears fans lose their minds. That’s exactly what the lead-up to Week 3 felt like, and to make matters worse, Chicago didn’t play until Monday night.
Although NBC Sports’ Mike Florio originally reported Williams’ hamstring strain as a Grade 1, both Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday morning that the team’s franchise quarterback had indeed suffered a Grade 2 strain, which could keep him out three-to-four weeks. While some fans felt immediate validation for defending Williams all week, others immediately started thinking about how the team could stay afloat if his timeline stretched by a game or two.
Here’s my take: Nothing has changed with Williams and his timeline. Considering the backlash surrounding Williams’ injury and reaction, there’s a form of damage control going on through the media from the Bears’ side. That’s not to say that he didn’t suffer a Grade 2 strain, but it could have also reached a point where the team, which is typically very tight-lipped when it comes to anything health-related, decided to fight back and “set the record straight”. Even if Williams has laughed it off and is thick-skinned, the narratives have run wild, and it’s easy to see why the team stepped in and spoke through the media without making a direct statement.
Regarding Williams and his timeline, none of the information put out on Sunday is new from the Bears’ standpoint. When Johnson spoke with the media last Monday and said he wasn’t ready to rule out Williams because he’s a quick healer, he was basing that on the information we all have now. I’ve long suspected he would miss at least two weeks, but would push hard to play in the Packers game. Some of the team’s willingness to allow that to happen could revolve around their record coming out of the Jets game. Still, with a modified plan of attack for how Williams operates in the pocket, it’s not out of the question for him to be ready to go for Green Bay. After all, that would be three weeks on the dot post-injury, which technically fits into the timeline given.
It should also be noted that the timeline given in ESPN’s report was more of a generalized approach based on past cases, and not so much on Williams himself. The Bears will be smart with his return, but they also have a season to keep afloat, so the balancing act will continue over the next week plus, but make no mistake, nothing that came out Sunday was a surprise to the Bears. Maybe Monday night’s win changes the calculus a bit, but I’m still expecting a return in Green Bay in Week 5.
3. Case Keenum came out firing. He was 5-of-6 for 45 passing yards and a touchdown on the opening drive. He went into the half 15-of-21 for 149 yards, and when the offense needed him to make a play in the second half, he did… Multiple times
Heading into Monday night’s game, most Bears fans would have probably told you they thought their team had a shot, but it was going to take a strong run game to be able to support their QB3. Instead, Johnson had Keenum out there firing pass after pass, completing 5-of-6 on the opening drive for a touchdown, and 149 yards overall in the first half. It would have been easy for Johnson to take a more conservative approach in the second half, but the run game struggled to get much of a push for most of the night.
Instead of taking a more conservative approach in the second half, the Bears’ offense threw the ball 13 more times, amassing an extra 98 yards through the air and 17 more points overall.
By all accounts, what Keenum was able to accomplish on Monday night was nothing short of a miracle. The 38-year-old was 10-of-10 for 140 yards, a +1.18 EPA per dropback, and a 90% success rate against the blitz. The more Vic Fangio sent extra pass rushers after Keenum, the more he delivered. Not only did the veteran deliver through the air, but he became the oldest quarterback in franchise history to record a rushing touchdown. In total, Keenum was responsible for all 3 of the team’s touchdowns. It also helped that close to 60% of his throws came out in under two seconds. To put this into a little more perspective: This was his first three-touchdown game since the season opener in 2019, against… You guessed who, the Eagles.
We all knew this offense would have to change its approach to succeed. Most of us, including me, assumed that approach would be run-heavy. Instead, Johnson focused on quick throws to avoid pressure, and high-percentage passes to keep his offense ahead of the chain.
Only time will tell how the Bears choose to approach next week, but after this performance, it’s going to be hard to put Keenum back on the bench, regardless of what the depth chart says.
4. After giving up 37 points in the season opener, it would have been easy to accept that this was just who the defense was. Instead, they’ve continued to find ways to take the ball away, and despite struggling against the run, they’ve given up just 16 points over their last two outings.
This unit is still far from good, and I’m not even convinced they are average yet. That said, they’ve come a long way since they gave up 37 points and 478 yards to the Carolina Panthers in Week 1. Part of that is simply settling in, but it’s also clear that as the season moves along, Dennis Allen and his defensive staff are figuring out the personnel they want on the field.
In the two games since Week 1, the defense has averaged 8 points per game and just 247 total yards per game. They are pressuring the quarterback at a quality rate and have gotten home to the quarterback five times. Even more encouraging, they’ve combined for 10 tackles for loss over that time. That has led to more second- and third-down stops and longer gains, allowing them to get off the field more often.
The pass rush still leaves plenty to be desired, and their run defense is still spotty at best. After giving up a 100-yard game to Aaron Jones last week, they had much better success against Saquon Barkley in the second half on Monday. It’s worth noting that he averaged 6.6 yards per carry in the first half, but they were able to shut him down in the final 30 minutes, in large part, thanks to a growing lead.
Similar to last year, they’ve forced 5 takeaways in two games, which includes a goose egg against the Vikings last weekend. Paced out over a 17-game season, that would be 28 takeaways, which would be just five takeaways off their pace from last season when they led the league with 33. They say takeaways don’t translate year to year, but so far, the Bears are doing their best to prove that with the right coaching philosophies, they can.
Pro Football Network’s Impact Scores also rate the Bears eighth overall with a 78.8 grade. That shows how far this unit has come over the last two games.
Again, this group still has a long way to go, and from a talent standpoint, they are well behind some of the league’s top defenses. That said, it’s clear they are starting to figure out their personnel preferences better. Assuming they keep improving, maybe an addition (or two) at the deadline can move this group out of the “not holding them back as Super Bowl contenders” category. For now, fans should enjoy the impressive two-game turnaround, while properly appreciating how good of a defensive mind Dennis Allen truly is.
5. Less than a year after the Bears went into Philadelphia on Black Friday and announced their legitimacy to the NFL, things felt much different this time around, considering the Bears’ quarterback health situation. Somehow, the result felt the same.
Last year’s 25-14 victory in Philadelphia on Black Friday felt like a “coming out party” for this team. This year’s 27-7 win at Soldier Field feels more like a reminder that the Bears are still a very good team, even without their starting quarterback. Make no bones about it, the Eagles, although maybe not elite, are still one of the better teams in the NFC. Home game or not, nobody expected the Bears to come out on top, and rightfully so. How many of us would pick a team with their QB3 starting on a national stage like Monday Night Football?
For most of us (both locally and nationally), we’re still getting used to this Bears team actually being good. In most cases in the past, them starting a backup quarterback would have been a borderline disaster. Even under Matt Nagy, Chase Daniel barely kept his head above water, and in turn, had a .500 record in his starts filling in for Mitchell Trubisky. Although the Bears had a nice one-year run in 2018, they were never built for sustained success (as we learned a year later). Under Johnson, it’s clear that the Bears can win in multiple ways. Even though they lost a tough one against the Vikings last weekend, when nothing went right and the offense failed to score in the red zone four times, they still had multiple chances to win. That’s not something that anyone has been able to say before Johnson came to town last season.
It would have been easy to write this game off as an expected loss. Last week was about as emotional as it gets, and the Eagles are a good football team coming into town on a national stage. Typically, those are games the Bears don’t win. Even had they lost this game, there was still a chance to go 2-2 heading into a crucial Week 5 matchup against the Packers. Admittedly, I shared that mindset. Instead, Chicago has put itself in position to finish its three-game homestand with a 2-1 record and guarantee at least a game lead over the Packers before Week 5. We’ll dive into the Jets matchup more in a few, but that won’t be an easy team to beat. The Bears have shown twice that they can put teams away in the fourth quarter.
As we talked about after Week 1, it’s always best not to overreact to one game specifically, no matter how good or bad the result might be. That said, Monday night’s 20-point victory should serve as a reminder to all of us that the good team from last year hasn’t gone anywhere. Even with their starting quarterback out and everyone picking against them, this team is still dangerous enough to win almost any game.
With Williams’ timeline revealed, a 3-1 start with two-plus of those games without him under center would be about as best-case a scenario as anyone could have hoped for, and they are one win away from doing that. Just remember, as the doubt starts to creep in throughout the week, the Bears are a good team, and Week 3’s Monday Night Football victory was simply confirmation of that.
6. Linebacker Devin Bush was one of the team’s two big free agent signings in the offseason. Yet, so far, it has been T.J. Edwards who has looked like the best linebacker on the field—more on some unlikely heroes standing out over the last two weeks.
Considering how he looked for most of last season, Edwards being a plus-player for the Bears in 2026 is a pretty big win, considering his extension last season. That doesn’t mean Bush has been “bad” by any means, but the most impactful linebacker on this roster has been Edwards, without question.
Edwards lacks the athleticism to be an overly versatile linebacker. Still, he’s very instinctive and has proven that the closer to the line of scrimmage he plays, the more impactful he is. With injuries and Kyler Gordon’s lack of availability shuffling the back end, their linebacking corps has been better than expected, which is a big reason this group has performed considerably better over the last two weeks.
In addition to Edwards, the two rookies have stood out as net-positives through three games. First-round safety Dillon Thieneman has been nothing short of impressive. Not only did he notch his first NFL interception on Monday night, but he’s been consistent in coverage and extremely impressive in run support as a tackler. Pro Football Network rates him as the second-best safety in the league with a 92.7 grade. Admittedly, I had some concerns without a more stable option next to Thieneman, but so far, he’s been one of, if not the best player on that unit.
Malik Muhammad is another player who has impressed, even if he wasn’t as sharp as a boundary corner on Monday night. His work in the slot has been impressive, especially since this was the first time in his career (going back to college) he was asked to play nickel. He has impressed the coaching staff so much that they moved him to the boundary and effectively benched Tyrique Stevenson, yet again. We’ll see what role he plays on Sunday, especially if Cam Lewis’ hip injury causes him to miss time, but getting this type of production from a fourth-round rookie is nothing short of a great development for this group.
Overall, there have been a few nice developments for the defense so far, but none bigger than these three.
7. As strong as the passing game looked on Monday night, the Bears’ lack of a consistent rushing attack over the last two weeks needs attention—and an explanation for why they have struggled to find success in back-to-back weeks after a historic Week 1 performance.
On paper, things might not look as dire as they did on the field for three quarters on Monday night, but 84 of the team’s 128 rushing yards came on the Bears’ final two drives of the game. For the majority of the night, their run game was ineffective, averaging less than three yards per carry. Some of that can be attributed to the lack of rushing threat at quarterback, but their inability to run between the tackles was on full display, albeit against a very good Eagles defensive front.
Going back to last week’s monsoon game, the Bears’ offense averaged 4.3 yards per carry and totaled 134 yards on the ground. The trick was that without Williams’ 42 yards on five rushes, their two running backs averaged just 3.5 yards per carry. Although it’s not a concerning trend yet, Johnson and his offensive staff will have to work hard to make a more traditional rushing attack work consistently, regardless of the defense.
We saw something similar happen last season, though. They had a few big games, including one against the Eagles, but they also had a few ordinary performances. The bigger concern, at least for me, is that Drew Dalman is no longer at center, and Garrett Bradbury hasn’t been close to the same player. Each week will have its ebbs and flows, but with the Jets coming to town on Sunday giving up just 87.3 yards per game on the ground, this group must find a way to be more productive on the ground if they expect to have the same offensive success overall.
8. Through three weeks of the regular season, the NFC looks as winnable as ever.
Now, that’s not me saying the Bears are the best team in the NFC, but looking at the conference landscape, it’s easy to envision multiple scenarios where they are in this thing until the very end. The defense has stepped up, and despite a three-point performance last weekend, they are still 3rd in overall scoring in the NFC.
Through the first month of the season, only the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers remain undefeated. Of the 16 teams in the conference, only the 49ers have a better point differential (+48) than the Bears (+36).
Another bonus to the Bears’ solid start is that they are 2-1 within the conference, which is better than all but three teams. They now hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against both the Eagles and Panthers. Of the 16 teams in the conference, only half have winning records.
There’s still a long way to go in the season, but the Bears blew out the Eagles with a backup quarterback, and were a self-inflicted mistake (or two) away from beating the Vikings in monsoon-like weather last weekend. The NFC West continues to look like the best division in football, but the NFC North is still very much up for grabs, as are all three Wild Card spots. How the Bears fare over the next month will be telling, as they’ll have two very winnable conference games, even if both are on the road against the Packers and Falcons.
A win next weekend against the upstart Jets would go a long way in their overall record, but much like last year, how they fare within their own division and conference could play a large role in tiebreaking scenarios once the calendar flips to 2027. No matter how you cut it, the Bears have put themselves in a good spot heading into October, but must continue to find ways to win games, especially those against conference opponents.
9. NFC North Lookaround: The Vikings roll in Tampa Bay, the Lions outlast the Jets at home, and more about the Packers’ embarrassing home-opener blowout loss on Thursday Night Football.
For a second straight week, an NFC North team kicked things off via Thursday Night Football. This time, it was the Green Bay Packers getting absolutely demolished by a (then) winless Atlanta Falcons team that had yet to reach the end zone through its first two games. It was more of the same for the Packers on Thursday night, with a defense struggling to make things happen, an offense that has become far too predictable, a bad run game, and an even worse offensive line. Things couldn’t be going much worse so far for the Packers, and being booed off the field for their home opener was a symptom of that. On the plus side, they’ll face a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team on Sunday that will be without quarterback Baker Mayfield for the next 3-plus weeks.
In the early slot on Sunday, the Lions once again went down to the wire with another team at home. This time it was the Jets. Despite completely taking the game over in the third quarter, the Lions’ defense let New York’s offense back in, and at one point, the Jets tied up the game late in the fourth quarter. Thankfully for Detroit, their offense was rolling in the second half, and 31 points ended up being enough after Jets quarterback Geno Smith took a sack and fumbled the ball, despite being in prime scoring territory. There’s still a lot for the Lions to clean up, but a 2-1 start is far from a worst-case scenario. Sunday night’s matchup against the Carolina Panthers should be a high-scoring affair.
Finally, the Vikings continued their winning ways with another close win against the Buccaneers. Despite a relatively sloppy offensive outing, they made enough big plays. The bigger story for this Minnesota team remains the defense. They are destroying run games and getting after quarterbacks at a rate that almost feels unreal to watch in real time. It was Kyler Murray’s first game back from the concussion he suffered in Week 1, and although he had some nice deep passes, his overall game was very uneven. With the Miami Dolphins on the horizon, a 4-0 start feels like it’s all but guaranteed at this point. Even better, the Vikings are 2-0 within the division and 3-0 within the conference.
Here are the standings after Week 3:
(3-0) Minnesota Vikings
(2-1) Detroit Lions
(2-1) Chicago Bears
(1-2) Green Bay Packers
10. Week 4 Look Ahead: A home trio finale against the upstart and pesky (1-2) New York Jets, who have taken two straight NFC North teams down to the wire.
2025 was a tough season for the Jets, but once they committed to a direction (rebuilding) at the trade deadline, the path to eventual success became much easier to understand. After finishing 3-14 a year ago, it would have been easy to write this group off as an “easy win” heading into the season. In reality, they’ve given every team they’ve played all they can handle, including taking the Packers into overtime and a back-and-forth game last Sunday against the Lions on the road. New York is far from a perfect team, and there are still plenty of flaws all over this roster. That said, they are playing much harder than they did a year ago, and their defense is light-years better than anything we saw last season.
On paper, this is a game the Bears should win, regardless of who starts at quarterback. That said, the Jets are a pesky team that has shown an ability to come back and hang late in games. Their offense was missing multiple key pieces at skill positions and could be down even more on Sunday, depending on the status of running back Breece Hall. The Jets don’t have an explosive offense, but they are strong in the trenches on both sides of the ball, and have a defense that can hang with almost any offense.
The Bears will have their work cut out for them on Sunday at Soldier Field, but simply put, it’s a game they need to win. This will also be the first time that Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn face off as head coaches against each other. While the Jets are still considered a year or two away, this game marks a crucial point for the Bears to stay in playoff contention, even this early in the NFL calendar. No matter which backup starts at quarterback, expect a quick passing attack as they set up shots deeper downfield. More importantly, the running game must find a way to get moving, especially going at the middle of this Jets defense.
