Quick impressions. [Highlights]
1. Caleb Williams was on point. [17/28, 242, 2 TDs, 112.5 QB Rating]
Been making a lot about his comp% because regardless of what some Caleb-stans want to believe, accuracy does matter.
So many games are lost on balls that are behind, drive dead. Game over.
Ball too high, off hand, right into a critical INT. Or just plain ole misfires that leave a fan scratching his head.
I was actually surprised to see that Caleb’s comp% was ‘only’ 60.7% vs Browns.
Caleb Williams managed to crack the 60% completion percentage barrier for the 5th time this season (out of 14 games) vs. Browns. • Vikings 60.0% • Lions 63.3% • Cowboys 67.9% (Season-High) • Ravens 65.8% • Browns 60.7%
Luckily for the Bears, they faced an even less efficient QB!
Caleb’s comp% felt higher because it wasn’t simply completing the passes, but the ball placement of said completions. They seemed to strike that hit-box over and over again.
The Kmet catch where he gets up-ended really excited me. It was nothing spectacular. A simple play-action boot to a wide open Kmet in the flats, but Caleb didn’t sail it, or throw it too low, or late. He floated it in there allowing Kmet to turn up field and convert a 1st down.
That was the theme of the day. YAC. And the receivers YACked it up ’cause Caleb for the most part hit them in stride on a chilly day.
If Caleb keeps playing like that consistently over 4 QTRs, I tell you now, they have a legit SB chance especially if Swift keeps running like Forte [what du fook did Swift eat!]and defense continues creating TOs.
2. Speaking of which, wowzers, Dennis Allen wasn’t screwing around. The NFL gods threw him a raw QB who struggles with recognition, accuracy and timing, and unleashed the hounds of hell. No quarter offered – nor given. I love it.
TBH, this is sorta what I expected. My only reservation was if the Bears could generate enough pressure on Shedeur Sanders for him to implode, and boy did they. As the Latin maxim goes, “If you’re not strong, you better be smart” and Allen completely outflanked the Browns’ O. Austin Booker specifically had himself a game.
Austin Booker vs. The Browns
4 TOT; 3 solo; 2 sacks
In 6 games, he has 22 TOT, 14 Solo, 3 sacks, 2* TFL.
The defense dominated. The 3 points only came because BJ failed on a 4rth and gave the Browns the ball at midfield.
Add junk-time yards in that final drive where the Browns still couldn’t score, and that’s about it. This Browns teams wanted nothing to do with winning at a freezing SF.
Overtime:
We’ve given the special teams the biz [and for good reason], but they were good on Sunday [Outside the Santos missed FG]. Nice returns from Duvernay, solid gunning, Tori/Blackwell pinning Browns inside 1. I think it had more to do with the Browns sucking than the Bears’ sp teams transforming into Toub-ers, but hey, I’ll take it.
All in all, by far the Bears’ most complete game this season. I didn’t even have to bust out my glue in the 4rth QTR! Only took 15 weeks, but hey, it’s better to be gelling late heading into the playoffs then falling apart like the Chiefs.
Maybe it’s the eggnog, but I’m getting 2009 Saints/2011 Giants vibe.
In those seasons, neither were SB favorites in August, and both squads were far from a perfect roster.
The Saints particularly remind me of this D
The 2009 New Orleans Saints defense, under aggressive coordinator Gregg Williams, wasn’t dominant in yards/points but excelled at forcing turnovers (2nd in NFL with 39), leading to their Super Bowl XLIV win, featuring key playmakers like Darren Sharper (9 INTs), Will Smith (13 sacks), Jonathan Vilma, and Tracy Porter, who sealed the championship with a famous pick-six
Meanwhile the ’11 Gmen [9-7] had a young QB with ‘so so’ stats, but all he did was make clutch plays to win games in Eli Manning.
Bears are some hybrid of those two SB Champs, and in a year where no true juggernauts exist, hey – why not the Bears?
