The Chicago Bears opened up the month of October by opening up a haunted house for the New York Jets. It featured plenty of Kyle Monangai jump scares, yellow flags dangling from the ceilings, and the constant first down calls from the public address announcer. The Bears scared the Jets straight with a dominating 23-12 victory in Week 4 to wrap up the proverbial first quarter of the season at 3-1.
For the second week in a row, the Bears started a backup quarterback in place of Caleb Williams. This time, it was Tyson Bagent's turn to operate the offense, and he did a solid job of moving the ball up and down the field. The real star, however, was Kyle Monangai and the ground game. The Bears produced 232 yards of rushing, 146 of which came from Monangai,
along with two scores. Ultimately, Chicago controlled the time of possession and dictated the game by holding the ball for over 42 minutes and converting 34 first downs.
Defensively, Chicago stifled quarterback Geno Smith and the Jets offense. While they were unable to create any turnovers, the defense held the Jets to 157 total yards and 12 points with quick three-and-outs and excellent coverage at every level from Dennis Allen's group.
Here are our takeaways from the Bears' dominating win on the lakefront.
1. Bears are proving to be one of the best teams in the league
Now that we have four games of a sample size to look at with the Chicago Bears, it's becoming clear they're at or near the top of their class when it comes to NFL franchises this year. The defensive anomaly from Week 1 and the offensive stinker that was on display in Week 2 aren't indicative of what this team is capable of doing on a regular basis. This offense is built around a punishing running game that can function with multiple backs, and it can not only survive but still thrive with a backup quarterback under center. It only gets exponentially more dangerous when Caleb Williams is in the fold.
And the defense has found its groove with what the coaches like to call a "no-name group." There isn't a star pass rusher or All-Pro linebacker patrolling the middle. It's a collection of players who are learning every week how to play off one another. There is significant buy-in from everyone on the field, and it's only getting better. The Bears should become the class of the NFC by the time Thanksgiving arrives, if not sooner.
2. Tyson Bagent is fine as the backup QB
There's nothing like a backup quarterback controversy to make you feel alive. Unfortunately, you're not going to get any of that from me. I understood and supported the Bears' decision to go back to Bagent as QB2 with Williams out, and despite some questionable throws, he's more than fine as the primary backup.
Bagent completed 73.5% of his passes and threw for 268 yards, both career highs. He was inches away from throwing two touchdowns to Colston Loveland before he was stopped just short of the goal line and spread the ball around effectively to him, Rome Odunze and Luther Burden, who all set or matched season highs in yards.
Every quarterback has a couple of throws that should be intercepted whether they're wiped out by penalties or not. Bagent was also able to settle down as the game progressed. Keep in mind, he's gone a few months longer than Case Keenum when it comes to his last start and doesn't have the same game experience as the veteran.
If your big takeaway from Sunday is that the Bears screwed up their quarterback depth chart by making Bagent second string, then you're nitpicking. Bagent played perfectly fine as the backup, and I'm confident in him and Johnson putting together next week's gameplan.
3. Kyle Monangai is avoiding the sophomore slump
I was honestly a little worried about Monangai heading into Year 2 as the RB1B in this offense. While he was fantastic as a rookie for much of the year, Monangai slowed down considerably at the end of the season and wasn't as effective as he had been in October and November. Perhaps that was due to wear and tear, but I also believed his effectiveness could be limited as a bruising runner. Fortunately, I was wrong.
Monangai already has two games with more than 100 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns this year. He's on pace to eclipse 1,300 rushing yards this year with more than 12 touchdowns. If anything, he's proving he can shoulder the load more often with 30 carries and put teams away with his violent running style. And it helps that his ball security is top-notch, having never lost a fumble in college or the NFL. Monangai avoided any sophomore slump that could have been coming his way, and that's not only a testament to him but also to the offensive line he works behind as well.
4. We owe Dennis Allen an apology
It appears our fears about the Bears defense have been vastly exaggerated. For now, at least. After Week 1's concerning performance against the Carolina Panthers, the defense has exceeded expectations for three weeks in a row. They've allowed just 28 points across three games, the fewest amount across a three-game stretch since 2012, and have surrendered fewer than 250 total yards in that same span for the first time since 1985. And they accomplished this without creating a takeaway in two of the three games. Who could have predicted those numbers back in August?
Allen has been stellar with his blitz calls and moving personnel around to get the most out of each player. The defensive line, seen as a glaring weakness all offseason long, looks solid at worst and doesn't stay down for long. Meanwhile, rookies Dillon Thieneman and Malik Muhammad continue to progress and are paramount to their success. Everyone seems to be doing their part, and that's a credit to Allen. They're bound to hit a rough patch sooner or later but this group deserves all of the praise for how they've looked this year.
5. Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo are an excellent duo
Part of the formula Allen figured out was how to get the best of Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo. It seems like he solved it. Booker and Odeyingbo have put together strong starts to the season to give a big boost to the defensive line. Odeyingbo leads the team in sacks (three) and is tied for the lead in tackles for loss (three), while Booker is right behind him with two sacks and two tackles for loss, along with a forced fumble. But the best part is they're doing all of this while playing off one another.
Odeyingbo has been playing more defensive tackle with Booker out on the edge. That has allowed the Bears to create havoc on the left side of offensive lines, which happened again on Sunday. On one play, Odeyingbo took on three blockers to create a sack opportunity for Booker, and on another, he chased Smith down from the interior and forced him out of bounds for a sack of his own.
These two players never got to share the field together last year for more than a day due to injuries. Booker was coming back from a knee injury, and in his first game back, Odeyingbo tore his Achilles. Perhaps this is the vision the Bears had for this duo, and it's paying off now.
6. The red zone offense still needs work
The only thing stopping the Bears from taking the next step is their red zone offense. That was apparent early on when the offense sputtered at the half-inch line and couldn't convert on four straight plays inside the five-yard line. The Bears were just 2-7 in red zone opportunities on Sunday, though one of the drives was at the end of the game when they were simply trying to run out the clock.
Still, Johnson and the coaching staff need to have a better plan going forward, and it's on the players to execute that plan. Stop the shotgun runs, utilize the talented tight ends on passing downs, and don't be afraid to mix in some more quarterback sneaks. It worked with Keenum on Monday night, and it can certainly work with Bagent. These errors and issues could cost them down the road if they persist.fraid to mix in some more quarterback sneaks. It worked with Keenum on Monday night and it can certainly work with Bagent. These errors and issues could cost them down the road if they persist.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: 5 takeaways from the Bears' dominating win vs. the Jets
