Ugly Win, Beautiful Progress: Bears hit the bye at 2-2 record |
Anthony Pasquale
· · 18 hours ago
As October approaches, the Bears are 2-2 heading into their week 5 BYE. This past weekend, the Bears joined the Kansas City Chiefs as the only two teams in football to turn their 0-2 start into .500 by week 4.
Anybody who has put their eyes on the Bears in 2025 knows that this team is far from perfect. In fact, many of the same issues that reared their ugly heads in years past have plagued this team through the first month of the season: pre-snap penalties, shaky offensive line, inconsistent quarterback play, and difficulty stopping the run. But there is something different about this Bears team under Ben Johnson, and that was on display on Sunday against the Raiders. Chicago forced four turnovers and had a blocked field goal - yet they were only able to secure a one-point win. The pessimistic crowd could easily say that a team that forces a fumble and creates three interceptions shouldn’t need a blocked field goal to win. Any Monday morning quarterback could say that the offense failed to take advantage of strong field position all game long, and wouldn’t need to watch the film to come to such a conclusion. But instead of harping on those valid concerns with this imperfect team, let’s acknowledge something that the Bears did accomplish on Sunday: a win. While it certainly wasn’t pretty, any Bears fan knows all too well that the Bears don’t typically win games like that. With blocked field goals, Hail Marys, and double-doinks ingrained in their memories, games that come down to the final play don’t typically garner a lot of confidence in Bears fans. Sunday’s game was a game that the Bears typically lose. Monday would then feature sports talk radio segments about how familiar the loss felt. Newspaper articles would discuss whether the Bears made the right decision at quarterback, coach, or coordinator, and the list would go on and on. Instead, the discourse has been about the Bears battling back to 2-2, looking to build off the momentum they have carried into their Bye Week. Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams have a growing connection as a head coach and QB duo. This Bears team might be different. This isn’t to say that you should book your trip to Santa Clara for the Bears Super Bowl, but rather pointing a finger at the first domino to fall in a culture that is changing. The Bears are a team that can win an ugly game. The Bears are a team that can make the game-winning play as time expires. The Bears are a team that believes. Much of that is more than Bears fans could say in a long time. Forget the fact that it wasn’t pretty, remember the fact that the Bears won.
