Bears defensive end Montez Sweat sacks Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and causes a fumble during Sunday’s game at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Mark Busch/Shaw Local News Network
The Bears needed a win and got one against the Rams.
This wasn’t exactly a dominating performance that cements the Bears as true contenders in the NFC North, though. At the end of three quarters, the Rams led in total yards 274-171. They were missing top receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua.
The Rams also lack the dominant edge rushers that have been toying with Bears offensive tackles early this season. Heading into last Sunday, the post-Aaron Donald defense had 4 sacks in three games, then added 3 at Soldier Field. Pass blocking is a long way from being solved.
What the Bears did do very well was pull off some game-changing plays on both sides of the ball. They likely fall to 1-3 on the season without Montez Sweat’s strip sack and forced fumble in the second quarter.
At the end of the day, this was easily the best performance of the season by the Bears’ rushing offense, so let’s begin Film Study by looking at what they did differently.
For starters, they ran outside a bit more. D’Andre Swift’s first two carries were around right end. The Bears seemed to telegraph their intentions by lining up two tight ends on that side, but Rams edge Byron Young still crashed inside on both plays. Breaking tendency is always good.
Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron threw in some Caleb Williams designed runs, another nice change of pace. On the first two, Williams picked up first downs and hit the turf before getting touched. The third time, the Rams were waiting for him. Still, the threat of a QB run generally opens more room for the running backs if the defense has eyes on the QB.
There was a nice wrinkle in the first half when D.J. Moore got the ball on a reverse and took it up the middle for 11 yards. Well-designed play, but it was called back with by a puzzling illegal formation penalty.
After the Sweat forced fumble, the Bears used 2 yards of offense and a pass interference penalty to reach the end zone. It was great to see Hinsdale native Doug Kramer take the field as the fullback at the 1-yard line. With Khari Blasingame out for the third straight week, moving Kramer from center to blocking back was exactly what the offense needed.
For nearly three quarters, the offense sputtered. Waldron was calling quick pass plays, but Williams often held the ball a couple beats too long, which led to Moore taking two hard hits early in the game. The Bears also turned to max pass protection, which usually meant no one was open because there weren’t enough receivers in the pattern.
But credit both Williams and Waldron for the 9-yard touchdown pass to Moore that put the Bears up 17-9. It was a nice play design, using five receivers, but Moore was on the inside, next to Cole Kmet and Swift. That got him matched up against a linebacker. Williams made a perfect throw and Rams linebacker Christian Rozeboom never saw it coming.
Then Swift’s 36-yard touchdown sprint was as perfect a run play as the Bears have pulled off in a while. Guard Matt Pryor pushed the nose tackle halfway across field. Kmet took out the edge, center Coleman Shelton put a nice block on a linebacker and Rome Odunze even held off corner Cobie Durant to finish the path.
See, this offensive line can still run block.
Best play
As mentioned above, the Sweat strip sack was a game-changer, but another defensive gem helped seal the outcome.
This was third-and-goal at the 7-yard line with the Rams trailing 10-6 in the third quarter. Sweat lined up on the left side, isolated against tackle Rob Havenstein. Not sure if this was planned or improv, but just before the snap, Kyler Gordon flew in and basically blitzed straight at Havenstein’s chest.
The Rams had no time to adjust and now no one to block Sweat. The Rams had the right play called, a likely touchdown, but Sweat deflected Matthew Stafford’s pass toward Tutu Atwell and they settled for a field goal.
Two-minute drill
One issue to watch is depth on the defensive line. Nose guard Andrew Billings has been on the field for 68% of the snaps. Last year it was 47%. Gervon Dexter has been even busier, logging 72.4% of the defensive snaps, after played 40% as a rookie. One problem is second-year defensive tackle Zacch Pickens hasn’t played since early in Week 1. The Bears trusted Byron Cowart to play just 11 snaps against the Rams. …
On the strip sack, the Rams used tight end Colby Parkinson to block Sweat. Bad idea. … This week’s opponent, Carolina, has 5 total sacks in four games, which could be good news for Williams and the offensive line.