Bear Digest

Week 2 Bears at Texans: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Analysis: There was far more bad and ugly about Sunday night's Bears loss than there was good, starting with their lack of a running game and the blocking for Caleb Williams.

Gene Chamberlain

Gervon Dexter closes in on Texans QB C.J. Stroud in Sunday's loss by the Bears to the Texans, 19-13.
Gervon Dexter closes in on Texans QB C.J. Stroud in Sunday's loss by the Bears to the Texans, 19-13. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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Finding the good in Sunday night's 19-13 loss to the Texans requires a good imagination.

This is always a requirement when the game of "If" is played.

If Kyler Gordon has his hand fully underneath the interception, it's a touchdown return and the game changes drastically. If Caleb Williams sets his feet and throws to DeAndre Carter breaking free down the left sideline, it's a touchdown.

These are good things. Getting chances at big plays always helps.

Making them helps more.

Here are the actual good things that happened in Sunday night's 19-13 Bears loss, as well as the bad and the ugly.

Until the ugly gets corrected or altered, all games will be in jeopardy.

The Good

The Bears defense continues to be exactly what they expected it to be.

Getting three sacks of C.J. Stroud is difficult to do when a team comes out running and passing well. The Bears silenced what the Seahawks did during the game and forced them to turn to the pass. This played right into their hands in terms of strategy. They were able again to produce a takeaway at a crucial time to give themselves a chance to win with the fumble forced by Andrew Billings and recovered by Kevin Byard. They came within an inch or replay reversal of a game-altering pick-6 by Kyler Gordon. Giving up 75 yards rushing was more in line with what they expect to do per game than in Week 1, when they allowed 140 yards rushing.

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It's ironic Caleb Williams told punter Tory Taylor after the draft that their plans are not to let him on the field. So far, Taylor's success rate is far better than Williams' success rate or anyone else's. His 45.5-yard net Sunday night was outstanding and 47.5 yards per punt would set him a Bears record if he continued it throughout the year.

But who's celebrating punters?

The Bad

One of the worst things the Bears came away with from the game wasn't on the field but from information the team divulged to NBC Sports' broadcast crew that they wouldn't tell other reporters. The injury to Keenan Allen is plantar fasciitis and not a "cleat issue" as Ryan Poles had said.

That means he has a stabbing pain in the bottom of his foot near the heel.

There can be any number of days away to heal. It only depends on the severity and the treatment he's getting. In some cases, the injury of this type can go on for months. The Big Three will be the Big Two for the foreseeable future.

Travis Homer got 20 play reps. Khalil Herbert had six and Roschon Johnson none. Johnson did get 15 special teams reps but none on offense.

Homer couldn't even get on the field last year but all of the sudden he's better than Herbert and Roschon Johnson?

This sounds like someone playing favorites because Homer was one of Shane Waldron's players in Seattle, and he really didn't accomplish much there. He made 52 receptions in four years with Seattle and although they like his pass blocking ability, he is a 5-10, 202-pound pass blocker. A 235-pound blitzing linebacker might be slowed down some by the thought of being blocked by someone 33 pounds lighter. He'd be laughing too hard to get to the QB.

In Week 1, Waldron used former Seattle tight end Gerald Everett 34 times and Cole Kmet, who had 70 catches the previous year, 27 times.

Someone needs to put away the Seattle toys and pick up their Bears toys.

The Ugly

Seven sacks and the overall play of the offensive line.

Even worse might be the line's run blocking. That's two games without springing the running game. This could be a case where Ryan Poles totally misjudged at least two members of the offensive line, if not three.

When the Bears had Justin Fields, their offensive linemen looked more like good run blockers because they had an extra blocker helping them with Fields carrying it. Fields was able to use his speed on planned runs, or he would pick up yardage on scrambles.

The threat of Fields' running drew attention from their running backs and their offensive line's skill level was overvalued.

Now, with a more conventional running game, they're not creating holes. Their backs have  This lack of running hurt their ability to pass. During two points in the game, they came away with a decent run or in one case a couple of decent runs, and Williams was able to follow with play-action passing right after that for gains.

They would love to run it and play-action all day long but you're not going to play-action of the running game hasn't slowed down the rush.

D'Andre Swift averages 2.0 yards a rush in two games. Khalil Herbert averages 1.8 yards. As a team, minus the scrambling yards from their leading ball carrier, Caleb Williams with 59 rushing yards in two games, the Bears average 2.8 yards on runs by backs or receivers and 5.9 on Williams' rushing.

They changed quarterbacks and the quarterback is still their leading rusher.

If they hit strike three in the rushing game this week against a Colts team giving away rushing yards in bunches, then it's going to be a difficult start to the Bears season and everyone knows how difficult the end of their schedule will be.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.