The Chicago Bears had a blowout victory over the Carolina Panthers in their Week 5 matchup. Here are some of what we learned from the game.
Well, the Chicago Bears have certainly turned things around. After their Week 3 loss, it seemed like the sky was falling and crashing all over Halas. Hall. The offense looked the same as it had been over the past decade and a half. That was despite General Manager Ryan Poles’s supposedly vast improvement this offseason.
Things changed in the past two weeks. The offense looks crisp and effective. Two of the Big Three wide receivers have been playing well. The third is still trying to involve himself in the offense. The offensive line, which was truthfully a trash bin fire, has improved and is now doing a decent job. With that, the struggling running game is now improving.
In Week 5, the Chicago Bears took on the Carolina Panthers. This is the team for which Chicago Bears Nation is so grateful. That 2023 trade of the number one pick will live on as one of the greatest trades in franchise history. Because of that trade, the future of the team is very bright.
Meanwhile, things have not been so good for the Panthers. In that trade, they gave up a lot of picks so they could select Bryce Young. After two weeks in his second season, however, Carolina benched him. They are where the Chicago Bears are getting out of.
After the Young benching, the Panthers were playing better. They went with veteran and former Chicago Bears quarterback Andy Dalton to lead them. They split their first two games with him and were competitive. Dalton came into Chicago hoping to beat his former team.
That was not the case as the Chicago Bears took control early and never looked back. They had an easy win, 36-10. Nearly everything went well for them. It was an important step for the Bears. They now have back-to-back wins. It gives them momentum going into London in Week 6.
The Chicago Bears now look like a team that can compete for a playoff spot. Sure, it is not a finished problem. However, considering that just two seasons ago they had only three victories. Last season, they had seven victories, more than double than in 2023. This season, they already have three in five games.
Let’s look at what we learned from the Bears’ big Week 5 victory.
The Chicago Bears are very tough at home
© David Banks-Imagn Images
Quick, who has the longest current home winning streak in the NFL? Of course, it is the Chicago Bears! With their win over the Panthers in Week 5 the streak is now at eight. It is amazing that happened, since they have been bad so quite some time.
We saw in the recent past that the Bears struggled at home. In the Matt Eberflus era, Chicago won their first two home games. They then proceeded to lose 10 straight home games. It is nice to see an eight-game winning streak now.
The Chicago Bears are now rewarding their infinitely patient fans for standing by them. They are becoming a team that can start winning a lot of games and bring in a new era of winning. They aren’t there yet, but they are trending in the right direction.
The Monsters of the Midway defense is back
© David Banks-Imagn Images
The Chicago Bears defense is on a mission to show that it is an elite unit. Well, it is doing just that. The Bears harassed Dalton all game long. Even when he completed passes, they were for short gains. In his first six completions, Dalton had only eight yards.
The defense forced two turnovers against Carolina. It now has eight for the season. The unit has at least one turnover forced in every game this season. In fact, it has a turnover in seven straight games.
The pass rush was a huge concern going into the season, but it continues to be a positive. The Bears had four sacks against the Panthers. They also had plenty of pressure come from the middle of the line. Gervon Dexter continues to shine.
Having that pressure come from the middle helps the edge rushers. If opponents have to worry about the middle, that gives more room for the edge rushers to work with and they are doing a great job of harassing quarterbacks.
It was nice seeing the offense play so well in conjunction with the defense. That has been a rare occurrence. When the offense plays well, it just motivates the defense even more. Once the Chicago Bears took the lead and then grew it, the defense was in attack mode.
Dexter explained how the big lead forced Carolina to try to throw the ball to get back into the game. That gave the Bears’ pass rush opportunities to hit the quarterback.
When the score is like that, they’re going to have to try to get the ball in the air. You got a lot of opportunities to rush the quarterback.
Dexter took advantage of those opportunities. He had a sack and four quarterback hits.
Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson explained the defense’s mentality.
It was more like, we don’t stop now. We keep the ball rolling. It could be 99-7. We’re still going to push hard to go out there and be the defense we know we are.
Brisker is becoming the player the team expected him to be
© Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images
Safety Jaquan Brisker had a huge game in Week 4. He was all over the place making big plays. In Week 5, he did not stuff the stat sheet like he did last week. However, he still had a big impact.
Brisker helped the pass rush with a few blitzes that forced Dalton (and later Young) to hurry up his throws. Additionally, he had a huge hit that forced a fumble.
It happened in the second quarter with the Chicago Bears nursing a 14-7 lead. Chicago’s offense failed to convert on a fourth-and-short. Dalton and the Panthers wanted to take advantage before the end of the half and maybe tie the game.
Tight end Tommy Tremble caught a pass on third and five and tried to get a first down. After he caught the ball, Brisker lowered the boom and practically obliterated Tremble. He lost the ball and Dexter recovered the ball. The Bears went on to score another touchdown to make it 21-7 and never looked back.
Brisker is starting to show that he could be another in the long list of Chicago Bears safeties who are big hitters and make huge plays. This is exactly what Poles expected when he drafted him. He can make tackles all over the field, rush the quarterback, and make game-changing plays.
The offense was efficient and balanced
© Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images
We are seeing quarterback Caleb Williams grow up before our very eyes. Each week he is getting comfortable. He has not been trying to play as much hero ball as he did in the first three games. Last week he did not have a turnover after having five turnovers (4 interceptions and one lost fumble) in Weeks 2 and 3.
That continued in Week 5. He once again had zero turnovers. Additionally, he was efficient. He completed 74 percent of his passes against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 4. Against the Panthers in Week 5, it was 69 percent.
Williams is showing that he can be disciplined and not just try to force the big play. He now understands that the more efficient you are, the more opportunities you will have for the big play.
Speaking of discipline, the offensive line corrected what ailed them against the Rams. In that game, the unit had several pre-snap penalties that made the offense feel like it was moving in mud. They cut that down and the protection was much better for Williams. Carolina had just one sack in the game.
With the offensive line playing better, the Chicago Bears rushing attack was deadly. D’Andre Swift had 120 all-purpose yards and a touchdown. Roschon Johnson had two short-touchdown runs. The two running backs are showing that they are a great complement. Johnson is the battering ram while Swift is the quick, tackle-evading back.
The Chicago Bears were much more balanced in their play-calling. Williams attempted 29 passes and the running backs ran 36 times (not including the kneel downs). That is much more efficient than when Williams threw 89 passes in the two losses. He needs the running game to help him develop and become the quarterback he, the Chicago Bears, and the fans expect.
Everything clicked for the Chicago Bears. This could be the moment that sends them off to a big season. Next up for them is a battle in London against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville is another team that has struggled this season. The Bears hope that continues this week.
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