The Chicago Bears have officially wrapped the preseason. They went 2-1, finishing with a 24-15 win over the Tennessee Titans on Saturday night. They played a solid football game without most of their Week 1 starters dressed.
It was mostly a roster comprised of players fighting for their lives in the league. Some of them are going to be cut, and some of them are going to sneak onto the football team. A handful of them will stick around via the practice squad, and that will be determined by Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles on Sunday.
As a unit, each group played well on Saturday. Any potential decisions one way or another won’t diminish that fact. This is how each unit grades out based solely on how they played against the Titans on Saturday:
Offense: A
The offense
was solid. Tyson Bagent, going against Tennessee’s second team, was magnificent. He went 16-for-17 for 208 yards, and two touchdowns. Case Keenum went 7-for-13 for 84 yards with no scores. Finally, Miller Moss was 1-for-2 for 12 yards and no touchdowns. None of the quarterbacks threw an interception.
Bagent ran the ball for 21 yards on two carries, which showed some excellent speed and skill. Moss also ran four times for 12 yards. That is overall less impressive, but he did have one explosive 15-yard rushing gain. Roschon Johnson was the only running back who had more yards than either of them, as he had 52 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown. It was okay, but Brittain Brown only had 11 yards on 6 carries. It will be interesting to see what the running back room looks like in Week 1.
One key weapon was Zavion Thomas, who had 140 yards on 5 receptions. One of those catches was a 97-yard touchdown. He is going to be a nice complementary piece behind the guys whom you’d expect to be starters on offense. Overall, the offense was explosive enough to earn an A grade. The quarterbacks played well, the running backs did their job, and the receivers who dressed made an impact.
Defense: A
The Bears only allowed 15 points. If they only allowed 15 points a game all year, they would probably have one of the best records in franchise history. That is likely not going to be the case, as there are some serious issues in the secondary and in the trenches, but they played well against the Titans on Saturday.
One player who stepped up was Terell Smith. He was noticeable in pass defense, which made it difficult for the Titans to attack his side of the field at any point. With Chicago's secondary declining during camp due to injuries, it seemed like he might have had a shot to make the team, but he was cut on Sunday morning.
Overall, they get an A for their effort against the Titans, but it is fool's gold knowing what might be ahead for their starters once the games begin. Their offense is going to have to outscore their opponent more often than not, but this was a nice game for guys fighting for jobs.
Special Teams: A
Special teams didn't make any blunders that cost the Bears, so that gets the grade to a C as a baseline. Overall, they played a great game and earned an A for their effort in this win over the Titans. For one, Cairo Santos connected on his lone field goal attempted and knocked down all three extra points. He doesn't have the biggest leg in the NFL, but he is excellent when the Bears put him in a position to succeed.
The kick return game is where some skilled players have a chance to make the team if they weren't going to at their normal positions. Kaden Davis had three kick returns for 47 yards, including a long of 20. Zavion Thomas had one kick return for 22 yards.
It is on punt returns where Thomas is becoming a weapon. He is as fast and elusive as any player on the team, which makes him dangerous in these punt-return situations. He only had one return in this one, but he took it up for 39 yards to tremendously improve the field position of the offense. If that carries into the regular season, the special teams will get a big boost and receive a lot of A grades.
Coaching: A
Ben Johnson and his staff are getting an A. Sure, there are issues to work out on the defensive side of the ball, but that wasn't on display in this game at all. The scheming that they had in this game, along with how prepared they were for it, showed a valiant coaching effort.
Johnson is going to cook up plenty of offensive plays to get the team points. Caleb Williams, Rome Odunze, Luther Burden, and Colston Loveland, among other starters, will be typical stars, but Johnson will be smart enough to create a new "unlikely hero" from time to time as well. Nobody on opposing defenses will see it coming. Dennis Allen has one job, and it's the same job as last year: get these guys on defense to outperform expectations. If he can get the most out of what he has, they will still be a double-digit win team.
Overall, it is an A grade for the coaching staff, who will give the Bears a tactical advantage in most games that they play. Going into the regular season now that preseason is over, it is fair to be confident in this group because of the leadership on the sideline.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears report card: How we graded Chicago in preseason win vs. Titans
