The most impressive thing about the Chicago Bears is that, even though they’re tied for the second-best record in the NFC at (8-3), they can be even better. There’s so much more room for the offense to grow, and the defense should be getting healthier for the playoff push.
This has been an opportunistic team so far, and on Sunday, they made plays when they had to, knocking off the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-28.
Pittsburgh had more total yards (345 to 328), more first downs (22 to 19), had a better time
of possession (33:09 to 26:51), and was slightly better on third downs (57.1% to 53.8%). The Steelers had fewer penalties with 6 for 41 yards to 7 for 83 yards for the Bears, and each team had two turnovers.
The Bears had the edge in average starting field position, with their 12 drives beginning on the 35-yard line, and the Steelers’ average starting field position was the 24.
Let’s look at the Bears’ playing time breakdowns and a few individual stats from the game.
OFFENSE
For the second week in a row, Caleb Williams faced an aggressive defense, and while he took one horrible sack that resulted in a fumble and a Steelers touchdown, that was the only time he was hit the entire afternoon. The pass protection was solid, and Caleb was getting the ball out quickly.
The running game wasn’t nearly as effective as in previous weeks, but the offense still found a way.
After the game, head coach Ben Johnson was asked to assess Caleb and the offense.
“Once again, I got to go look at that tape, but you know, 31 points on offense and that’s always a good thing when you get over 30,” Johnson said. “So, you know, from my perspective, we probably had a couple (plays) that we let get away from us, but, you know, I don’t know many quarterbacks that do play a perfect game.”
DEFENSE
D’Marco Jackson wore the green dot as the defensive signal caller, and he had a game-high 15 tackles and a tackle for loss.
Amen Ogbongbemiga came in when Ruben Hyppolite II left with an injury, and he racked up 14 tackles.
Montez Sweat had 3 tackles, 3 TFL, 2 sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.
Jaquan Brisker had 7 tackles and a pass defended on Pittsburgh’s final offensive play.
Nick McCloud came in when Tyrique Stevenson left with an injury, and he had 7 tackles.
Kevin Byard III had 6 tackles and a TFL.
Nahshon Wright had 6 tackles, an interception, and 2 PD.
Grady Jarrett had 3 tackles, a QB hit, and a PD.
SPECIAL TEAMS*
*The above image has players who only played in the third phase.
Cairo Santos hit 4 extra points and a 47-yard field goal, plus he had a hand in the Steelers’ field position on kickoffs.
Tory Taylor had 4 punts and a 50.5 average (39.5 net) and 1 punt inside the 20-yard line.
Josh Blackwell has 3 kickoff returns and a 29.7 average.
Practice squad tight end Nikola Kalinic had 2 special teams tackles and a forced fumble.
To check out the complete Bears vs. Steelers box score, I find ESPN’s site is easy to navigate.
All statistics and snap counts, as well as the accompanying pictures, are taken directly from the NFL’s Game Statistic and Information System.
