The Chicago Bears are 0-2 and just got stomped by the Detroit Lions.
It’s another rough start for fans, who have had a rough decade.
But enough commiserating. The NFL world moves fast and we have to move on to week three.
There are plenty of teams that have it as bad or worse than Chicago.
But those are just kind of empty words right now with how bleak it feels for Bears fans.
Anyway, let’s just get to this week’s power rankings.
26. Chicago Bears (0-2) Previous Week: 23
The three-time
offseason champions are off to another underwhelming start. Following their Week 1 fourth-quarter letdown, they laid a giant egg on the road in Ben Johnson’s homecoming to Detroit. On the plus side, quarterback Caleb Williams looked considerably better. Outside of that, it was all bad on Sunday afternoon.
The Athletic – Josh Kendall and Chad Graff
25. Chicago Bears (24 last week) Last week: 24
Sunday: Lost to Lions 52-21
Overreaction: Rome Odunze has turned a corner
The No. 9 pick from the 2024 draft had seven catches for a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns to provide the only silver lining to the Bears’ dark cloud Sunday. It was just the third 100-yard game of his career and his first since Week 8 last year. Odunze is tied for the league lead with three receiving touchdowns after two weeks. (We won’t talk about the No. 1 pick from the 2024 draft just yet.)
22. Chicago Bears (18) Even the most patient Bears fan had to look away Sunday. Chicago was nominally in the game for most of the first half, but the wheels came off quickly and never found their way back to the axle. I’m still not completely burying this team because I think it will get better. But how do you walk away from this beatdown in Detroit without some serious measure of concern? The offense had two turnovers and was stopped twice on fourth down. The Bears got themselves into a slew of long-yardage situations they couldn’t find their way out of, even with Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze making some big plays. Defensively, Chicago was atrocious, allowing Detroit 15 plays of 10-plus yards. Fifteen! The Bears have two more games before the Week 5 bye, and neither one (vs. Cowboys, at Raiders) is a gimme.
25. Chicago Bears (21) In the Bears’ past five quarters, they’ve given up 73 points. J.J. McCarthy’s struggles in Week 2 make Chicago’s defensive failure in the opener look even worse. It doesn’t matter how Caleb Williams plays if his defense is giving up almost 15 points per quarter.
24. Chicago Bears (21) So much for the idea that Ben Johnson would turn things around right away. Then again, it’s way too early to panic or judge.
26. Chicago Bears (24) Biggest QB takeaway: Caleb Williams is a work in progress
Williams was better against the Lions (19-of-30, 207 yards, 2 TDs, INT) after second-half accuracy issues plagued him versus the Vikings. His development in the pocket is an encouraging sign, as is his chemistry with receiver Rome Odunze (3 TDs in two games), but Williams’ decision-making could still improve. There was a play against Detroit on which he needed to throw the ball away but threw an interception instead. Coach Ben Johnson said the Bears would not look like a finished product in the first month. That holds true for Williams and his mastery of playing quarterback in this system.
26. Bears (No. 18; 0-2): On Friday, Ben Johnson didn’t want to talk about the Vikings game. By Sunday night, he probably would’ve preferred it.
28. Chicago Bears (25) When a defense gives up 52 points, the first topic of conversation can’t be the quarterback, even if that quarterback is Caleb Williams. While the clip of Williams’s interception on second-and-32 was making the rounds on social media, people spent more time debating whether Williams is a bust than focusing their energy on just how awful Chicago was playing around him.
The Bears are currently tied for the league’s worst rushing attack and have the worst defense by DVOA, and now cornerback Jaylon Johnson may miss the rest of the season with a groin injury. Williams certainly hasn’t been a franchise saver thus far, but the Bears haven’t even begun to build a competitive product around him yet.
