With another strong offense showing last week, the Chicago Bears will look to keep their momentum going in another prime-time showdown when they head to Seattle to take on the Seahawks on Monday Night Football.
Seattle is coming off one of their most impressive victories this season, when they defeated the previously undefeated Kansas City Chiefs, and holding the NFL's leading rusher, Kenneth Walker, to just 36 yards on the ground. While the game against Walker and the Chiefs was a bit personal, as Walker won Super Bowl MVP with Seattle last season then departed in free agency, but it was also a sign that Seattle still has a very strong defense that'll be tough for any offense.
Now, Bears head coach Ben Johnson will have his work cut out for him
to find ways to exploit Seattle's defense, which is giving up a league low, 234 yards per game. It'll be a very difficult task to get momentum with the Seattle home crowd making it a tough place to play, on top of their stellar defensive play, but the Bears have been a highly-effective offensive team with Caleb Williams at quarterback this season.
Here are the top offensive keys for Chicago on the road for their Monday Night Football showdown.
Capitalize in the red zone
For as great as Seattle's defense is as an entire unit, they're one of the worst teams in the red-zone, ranking 30th in the league in red zone touchdowns allowed, with a 78.57% conversion rate allowed to opponents. Chicago's offense has been significantly better in capitalizing in the red zone while on the road, with a touchdown conversion rate at 81.82% on the season. During last week's win over New England, the Bears left plenty to be desired in the red zone, even though they were 3-4, the play calling could've been better in that area.
Get out in space
When looking at the particular's of weakness for Seattle's defense, they struggle the most when opposing tight ends get behind the linebackers, when running backs are catching screen passes, and when quarterbacks extend the play with their legs. Putting all of that together means all eyes should be on Colston Loveland, D'Andre Swift, and Caleb Williams in this matchup, three of the Bears top playmakers that really keep their offense moving. Ben Johnson will most certainly have designed schemes to get Loveland and Swift out into the open, while Williams ability to create out of nowhere, should be a thoughtful tactic in this game.
No fear on fourth down
Not only does Seattle rank dead last in stopping opponents on fourth down, they're allowing a conversion rate of 90% through the first seven games of the season. One of the biggest narratives for Chicago and Ben Johnson has been their head coach's willingness and aggressiveness on fourth down, and that should be a big factor going into Monday night. If the Bears are in go for it territory, more often than not in this game, they should be highly considering to keep the offense on the field until Seattle proves they can stop it.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: 3 keys for Bears offense vs. Seahawks in prime-time showdown
