The Chicago Bears beat the Seattle Seahawks by 17 points. This was the first time the Seahawks lost a game by more than 4 points since December 15, 2024. Chicago’s 34 to 17 victory was their third consecutive 30-point output this season. But as good as the offense was, this game was about the new-look defense thanks to Jeffery Simmons.
“We got a high-character locker room, and he (Simmons) is that himself,” head coach Ben Johnson said about his newest player after the game. “And you can feel his presence
out there, whether it’s during the play or even after the play; you can feel him talking a little smack as well, which I think that elevates everybody around him. So I thought he played outstanding. To come in there and have a share of the lead of tackles and a sack in his first game, his impact was profound.”
In his postgame interviews, quarterback Caleb Williams called Simmons “Jefe,” Spanish for boss. I’m not sure if that’s a new nickname or if it came over from Tennessee, but it fits the dominant Simmons.
Caleb was asked what it’s like watching Jerrery Simmons play football.
“I’m happy he’s… It’s Jefe… I’m happy he’s on our side,” Williams said. “He helps everybody on that field on the defense. He helps the D-line when he gets double teams. He frees up other guys to be able to go be special. And then when he gets one-on- ones, he, you know, allows him to wreak havoc. I’m excited he’s on our team. He’s a big key piece for us.”
The Bears outgained the Seahawks (363 yards to 252), had more first downs (22 to 18), won the time of possession (35:03 to 24:57), and ran more plays (70 to 56).
The Bears were better on third down (46.7% to 9.1%) and went 1 for 1 on fourth down, while Seattle went 1 for 2 on fourth down. The Bears also committed more penalties (10 for 85 yards to 5 for 43), but the turnovers were equal with 1 each.
Let’s look at the Bears’ playing-time breakdown and a few individual stats from the game.
OFFENSE
From our guy Ken Mitchell (on Twitter @WCGBearsDenDude), Caleb entered last night’s game against Seattle tied with Aaron Rodgers at 35 consecutive regular-season games with no more than one interception and at least 20 pass attempts. And with 34 attempts and no picks, the NFL record is now 36.
Seattle’s defense has stymied opposing quarterbacks all season, with none of them passing for more than 189 yards in a game, but Williams was patient; he pushed the ball downfield when he had the chance and also worked the quick game.
DEFENSE
Jeffery Simmons made an even bigger impact than I hoped. ESPN shared a graphic after the game that in the plays with Simmons on the field the Seahawks averaged 3 yards per play, and in the plays with him on the sideline, they averaged 13.3. The Bears held Seattle to just 1-for-11 on third downs, and that one conversion came with Simmons not on the field.
According to Tej Seth, who pulled some data from Sumer Sports, “With Jeffery Simmons, the Bears blitz rate dropped from 41% coming into this week to 25% in this game. Despite that, they were still able to generate pressure at around the same rate they had been this season while getting to keep more players in coverage.”
This is the first time Simmons has played on a winning team since December 11, 2022.
SPECIAL TEAMS*
*The above image has players who only played in the third phase.
Cairo Santos was perfect on the night, hitting all 4 extra points and all 3 field goals.
Tory Taylor punted 3 times for a 49.0 average (45.0 net average), and one was blocked.
Zavion Thomas returned 4 kicks for 88 yards.
Kalif Raymond returned 2 punts for 7 yards.
Austin Booker blocked a field goal.
Noah Sewell and Daniel Hardy each had 2 special teams tackles.
To check out the complete Bears vs. Seahawks 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.
