A lot has been made about this being the Chicago Bears’ first four-game winning streak since 2018, but did you know it was just the second time they’ve had four straight wins since 2012? That 2012 team was the final year of the Lovie Smith era, and this 26 to 14 win over the New Orleans Saints had an old-school, Lovie Smith feel to it.
When asked about the key to the game on the ESPN postgame show, head coach Ben Johnson said, “Defense, defense, defense for four quarters.”
That defense had 4 takeaways, 4 sacks, 9 passes defensed, 7 tackles for loss, and they held the Saints to just 44 yards rushing (2.6 yards per carry).
The offense wasn’t clicking on all cylinders, but one aspect did provide a complement to Chicago’s stout defense: the rushing attack that racked up 222 yards.
Run the ball and play good defense has been a Bears’ staple for every era of respectability they’ve had, and even in this day and age of “modern” football, it’s still a winning formula.
More on the running game in a bit, but here are some game totals. The Bears had more yards (386 to 253) and more first downs (23 to 16). The Saints were slightly better on third downs (30.0% to 25.0%), but they were 0-2 on fourth downs, while the Bears were 1 for 1 on fourth down. New Orleans was penalized 5 times for 30 yards, and the Bears were penalized 10 times for 92 yards.
Let’s look at the Bears’ playing time breakdowns and a few individual stats from the game.
D’Andre Swith and Kyle Monangai combined for 32 rushes for 2o5 yards and 2 touchdowns. This was Monangai’s best day as a pro by far, and Swift has rushed for 232 yards on 33 carries in the last two weeks (7.0 ypc).
“Both ballcarriers ran physical, ran violent,” head coach Ben Johnson said at his postgame press conference. “Huge credit to our offensive line and the tight ends in that core blocking unit because you could feel that line of scrimmage move at times, and our backs were finding the holes.”
Johnson clearly tweaked some things in the running game over the bye week, and he’ll need to do some work this week to get the passing game on track after a couple of less-than-stellar games from the quarterback.
Caleb Williams had an off game, and he knew it. “I didn’t play well today,” he said in his postgame presser while praising the defense, the offensive line, Swift and the running backs. He specifically pointed out missing “5 or 6 passes” while on the run, and I thought Williams left some yards on the field by not running off a few of his scrambles. I got the sense he was trying to look for a big play instead of just taking what the defense gave him.
The positive thing about this team is that they’re learning to win while still riding the roller coaster of inconsistency. The arrow is pointing up on the franchise.
Tremaine Edmunds had a team-high 9 tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack, and an interception.
Montez Sweat had 4 tackles, 2 TFL, a sack, 2 QB hits, and a forced fumble.
Kevin Byard III had his 4th pick of the season to go along with a couple of tackles and 2 passes defended.
Jaquan Brisker had 6 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 QBH, a sack, and a FF.
Kyler Gordon chipped in with 4 tackles, a TFL, and a sack.
Nashon Wright had 2 tackles, a pick, and a couple of passes defended.
Gervon Dexter Sr. had a fumble recovery and a tackle.
SPECIAL TEAMS*
*The above image has players who only played in the third phase.
Jake Moody filled in for an injured Cairo Santos again, and he hit all four field goals and was 2 for 2 on extra points.
Tory Taylor had 3 punts for a 43.0 yard average, with none returned, and 2 inside the twenty.
Josh Blackwell and Carl Jones Jr. had 2 tackles each on special teams.
The kick coverage team had a physical presence all afternoon.
To check out the complete Bears vs. Saints box score, I find that ESPN has an easy-to-navigate site. Hit that link if you want to see all the game’s numbers.
All statistics and snap counts, as well as the accompanying pictures, are taken directly from the NFL’s Game Statistic and Information System.