After an impressive win for the Chicago Bears over the Carolina Panthers in Week 1, they expected an encore of their 59-point output on offense. The Minnesota Vikings came to Soldier Field with the intent of spoiling Chicago's home opener, and that they did.
Despite having the ball within five yards of the end zone twice, the Bears managed to score a total of three points as they lost, 9-3, in what was a sloppy performance. The defense, which was awful in Week 1 despite the win, didn't allow a single touchdown, but the offense gave them nothing.
Minnesota stacked their defensive line, brought intense pressure throughout, and made it so Ben Johnson's crew could get nothing going. The Bears having one of the most stunning drop-offs on a week-over-week
basis in NFL history was the story...until the fourth quarter, when disaster struck.
Caleb Williams looked like he was about to run into the end zone, which likely would have given the Bears a win, but he fell with a non-contact leg injury. Immediately, it was clear that something terrible had happened. Williams put no weight on his leg and was then carted off from the injury tent to the locker room.
The initial report from the Bears is that Williams suffered a hamstring injury. Although that is bad, it is not an Achilles injury, which would have been one of the worst-case scenarios. The waiting game to see the grade of the injury and the timeline for recovery is on.
Tyson Bagent came in and did an okay job driving the Bears down the field in an attempt to have a game-winning touchdown drive, but they came up short. Although he is a good player, he is not Caleb Williams.
Rainy conditions did not help the cause. Williams was injured, and neither offense was able to move the ball with much consistency, but it was not a well-played football game either.
Williams, before getting hurt, didn't get much help from his receivers. There were some badly dropped passes, routes were run poorly, and they didn't adjust to the weather properly. The run game was strong for Kyle Monangai and D'Andre Swift, as it needed to be with the conditions, but it wasn't enough.
As mentioned before, the defense deserves credit. They didn't relinquish a single touchdown to Carson Wentz's group. They allowed three field goals, which is an outcome that the Bears are built to win. They won't face a backup quarterback in the rain most of the time, but there is film from this game that they can build on. You know Dennis Allen will continue working to get this group to a consistently good place.
If Williams is going to miss multiple weeks, it is going to be an issue for the Bears. They have put all of their eggs in the basket of their offense, and the on-field leader left on a cart with negative emotions on his face. It is not going to be a good week at Halas Hall.
Ben Johnson is pushing the status of an elite head coach. He knows offense, but he also knows how to galvanize his team. This is his next test, as he will have to have them prepared for Week 3, regardless of how the news cycle goes this week. It will be a long week, as they have the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football at Soldier Field.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Instant analysis of Bears' sloppy loss to Vikings in Week 2
