As we’ve been doing for many years now, we break down the Pittsburgh Steelers’ opponent each week, telling you what to expect from a scheme and individual player standpoint. Like last year, Josh Carney and I will cover the opposing team’s offense. I will focus on the scheme, Josh on the players.
Today, our scouting report on the Chicago Bears’ offense in Week 12’s game against Pittsburgh.
Alex’s Scheme Report
Bears Run Game
The Bears running game has been strong and a full-team effort. Chicago enters Week 12 ranked second in the NFL in rushing yards per game at 146.6, only trailing the Buffalo Bills. D’Andre Swift is the main back but hardly the only one who gets involved. Still, he has carried the ball 134 times for 634 yards, four touchdowns and 4.7 YPC. He’s playing 60 percent of the offensive snaps.
Kyle Monangai is the backup and has shown an increased role throughout the season. He’s carried the ball 87 times for 413 yards and three touchdowns while also averaging a 4.7 per carry. He’s just under 40 percent of the snaps and has a hearty 55.2 percent run success rate.
QB Caleb Williams has three rushing touchdowns on the year and is a mobile threat. The receivers are a semi-regular component of the run game. DJ Moore leads the way with 13 carries and is often aligned in the backfield. Twelve of them have come on first and second down, though they ran a toss to him on 3rd and 4 in recent weeks. In total, the receivers have 19 rushes. Most have come on first down.
As a unit, the Bears have 46 carries of 10-plus yards. That is No. 1 in the NFL. Swift leads with 12, Williams has 12, and Monangai with nine.
Schematically, the Bears like split zone/inside zone with some interesting variations. Typically a Y-off tight end pulls across the formation to take the backside defender. That alignment is often a “tell” to defenses. Chicago has adopted a popular concept this year of having the tight end as a fullback and running counter action to take the end man.
Chicago has really increased its 12 personnel in recent weeks. The Bears will also use 13 personnel, sometimes all next to each other to create far more gaps to one side than a defense is accustomed to defending.
The Bears also mix in outside zone concepts.
Chicago hasn’t gone for it on 4th down at a high rate but have shown more aggression in recent weeks. Two weeks ago against the New York Giants, the Bears went for it four times on fourth down, only once when game circumstance said they “had” to. On one 4th and 2, the Bears came out with unique and wide splits between left tackle/left guard and center/right guard. The team ran duo with the bounce back out wide.
There’s also a pin/pull element to the run game when the ball gets out wide.
Some other offensive stats. Chicago is averaging 25.8 points per game, eighth entering the week. In seven games, the Bears have scored 24 or more points seven times but have been held to 24 and 19 the last two weeks. In yards, the Bears are even stronger at fourth in the league at 373.8 yards per game.
Situationally, the Bears are 11th on third down (41 percent) and 20th in the red zone (54.3 percent). Chicago is No. 1 in turnover differential and an excellent plus-16, six better than second place. Chicago has turned it over just six times this season, tied for second fewest.
Bears Pass Game
It’s led by second-year QB Caleb Williams, a changed man for the better under first-year head coach and offensive guru Ben Johnson. While Williams’ completion percentage is down compared to a season ago, his other stats are strong: 13 touchdowns, 4 interceptions and a 7.2 YPA. Compared to 2024, his touchdown rate is up, his YPA is up, and most importantly, his sack rate is down. Way down. Here’s the difference.
2024 – 10.8 percent
2025 – 4.7 percent
He’s on pace to be sacked just 27 times this season after being dropped a league-high 68 as a rookie.
Chicago is a heavy trick play team. Two non-quarterbacks have thrown passes. WR DJ Moore and TE Cole Kmet have attempts. Kmet’s came on 1st and 10 from his own 41 early in the first quarter. Moore’s came on 4th and 2 from the opposing two, a pass to Caleb Williams for the TD.
At receiver, there are plenty of weapons. Rome Odunze leads the way with 75 targets, catching 39 of them for 600 yards and six touchdowns. D.J. Moore has a 31/421/1 line, a short-area chess piece. As mentioned above, the tight ends are getting more involved especially first round rookie Colston Loveland. He has 13 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns over his last three games, making up for more than half his catches, yards and both of his scores.
As a team, the Bears have 36 completions of 20 or more yards. That’s tied for fifth in the NFL. Odunze leads with 12 (tied fourth-most in the NFL)) while Loveland has six. Loveland has five in his last three games, another nod to his increased involvement.
Chicago loves running play-action on 1st and 10 from under center. Coverage pieces have to be ready for that Sunday.
The Bears utilize tight splits similar to a Kyle Shanahan/Matt LaFleur type of offense. Chicago likes to use in-breaking routes/crossers on possession downs.
Williams has 15 fumbles over the last two years, tied for second-most of anyone (Baker Mayfield is the leader with 20). He has cleaned up that issue this season, but his scrambling ways puts the ball in peril. He lets it swing off his hip and likes to spin out of pressure. There’s a chance here to knock the ball away from a Steelers’ defense that probably has as many strip/sacks as any defense in recent years.
Chicago likes using vertical/divide routes to try and put safeties in conflict. Either isolate the single-high safety or split the coverage against 2-high. May see more Cover 4 this week to take some of those vertical routes away.
At the end of the first half last week, the Bears started out with a shot play down the sideline. The team went back to a dig/switch man-beater followed by a smash concept.
Josh’s Individual Report
It’s Bears week, Steelers fans!
With it comes a trip to the Windy City to take on the red-hot Chicago Bears in a place the Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t won at since 1995.
They’ll go against a Bears team that has won seven of its last eight games. Chicago is starting to really feel it on offense under head coach Ben Johnson and second-year quarterback Caleb Williams.
Williams has taken a true second-year leap, much like many expected him to do once the Bears hired Johnson as head coach. Williams is dealing in the passing game, playing with great confidence. He’s also utilizing his legs to create splash plays.
That element of his game makes his so dangerous, and a real challenge for the Steelers on Sunday.
He can extend plays in the pocket to move around and allow things to happen out of structure, whether it’s with him taking off and running or being able to extend. He lets guys work open, then throws impressive balls on the move for chunk plays.
The Bears have done a great job building around him offensively, particularly with the pass-catching weapons he now has at his disposal.
Wide receivers DJ Moore and Rome Odunze are a great place to start as a strong 1-2 punch. Odunze is the big size/speed weapon that can run every route in the route tree. He’s gone a few games this year without getting much work as the Bears under Williams can really spread the football around.
But when he’s on his game, he’s a very dangerous receiver, one the Steelers know well having done some pre-draft work on him.
The Bears will utilize Odunze on a lot of in-breaking routes, giving him the chance to work over the middle.
He’s a tough receiver with good hands and is very dependable when the ball is coming his way. Him and Williams are still trying to establish chemistry overall, but there’s a trust there from the quarterback, particularly when targeting him over the middle of the field.
As for Moore, he’s becoming Johnson’s new version of Amon-Ra St. Brown, moving all over the place, getting looks in different situations, and becoming the dependable, tough receiver within the offense.
They like to utilize Moore on a lot of misdirection looks, which is similar to how St. Brown was used in Detroit.
The misdirection stuff from Chicago really concerns me. Defenses have to be on their toes and communicating well at all times. Not exactly something the Steelers have done all that well consistently this season, have they?
The Bears will align Moore in different formations, too, looking to get him into advantageous matchups, much like this one here against the Bengals. Moore is in the backfield and runs a wheel route against a defensive back, utilizing a natural rub from his teammate’s route and leading to an explosive play.
The Bears also have guys like rookie Luther Burden III and Olamide Zaccheaus at receiver that have made some splash plays this year. Burden can be similar to Moore and can really create after the catch, while Zaccheaus has great speed and can stretch the field.
The tight end position is starting to become a key spot for the Bears in the passing attack, too. Rookie Colston Loveland is emerging as a true game-changing tight end, and Williams is trusting in him more and more.
Of course, he had the big splash play to win the game against the Bengals in Week 9 that was on highlight reels everywhere, but he’s more than just that one play. He has a good feel for finding space within his routes, and his hands are very dependable.
He’s becoming a real problem after the catch, too. He’s a strong runner with good pad level and contact balance. It takes more than one defender to get him on the ground, typically. Cole Kmet is a good tight end, too, and while he’s battled with injuries, he had five catches for 45 yards last week and was on the same page with Williams.
That could be trouble for the Steelers Sunday.
In the backfield, D’Andre Swift returned from injury against the Vikings and had strong day. He’s a patient runner with good feet and vision. He’s averaging nearly 5.0 yards per carry when he’s on the field and has been quite good for Chicago.
He’s not going to rip off huge chunk plays, since his long on the season is just 25 yards. But he is going to keep it between the tackles, wear down defenses and will hit the explosive play (20-plus) pretty consistently.
Backup rookie Kyle Monangai has been a nice development for the Bears, too. With Swift dealing with injuries, Monangai emerged as a legitimate No. 2 in the backfield this season, and maybe even a future No. 1.
He’s a tough runner, has good hands and had a tremendous career at Rutgers.
The Bears really like him and it’s easy to see why.
He’s also averaging nearly 5.0 yards per carry, too, and had a dominant day against the Bengals, rushing for 176 yards on 26 carries in that shootout win.
Regardless of who is in the backfield Sunday, the Bears have a solid running back to lean on.
Up front, the offensive line is much improved and is playing some good football, particularly in the run game. Here’s how I expect the Bears to line up left to right on Sunday:
LT — Theo Benedet
LG — Joe Thuney
C — Drew Dalman
RG — Jonah Jackson
RT — Darnell Wright
The Bears invested quite a bit in the offensive line this offseason, trading for Thueny and Jackson, and signing Dalman in free agency. Thuney has been terrific, shaking off a rough final season in Kansas City and has turned back into an All-Pro caliber guard.
Jackson has rediscovered his play, too, after being traded from Los Angeles. Dalman has been the glue up front, and though he’s battling with an ankle injury, he’s been a great addition for the Bears.
At right tackle, Wright has really taken off. He’s a force in the run game and is continuing to improve in pass protection. He provides real snarl to the group and is on track to become one of the better right tackles in football. Benedet has been a nice find, too. He’s allowed just 22 pressures and two sacks on the year.
On special teams, the Bears are hit or miss.
They allowed a kick return for a touchdown in Week 9 to the Bengals on the opening kickoff. They also allowed a 43-yard punt return last week to Minnesota, so some opportunities should be there.
They are dangerous in the return game though. Wide receiver Devin Duvernay returns kicks and punts for the Bears and had a 56-yarder last week to help set up the game-winning field goal against the Vikings. The Steelers are familiar with him from his days in Baltimore.
Cairo Santos drilled the game-winner last week for the Bears and is having a decent season kicking the football. He’s 16-for-20 on the season and has a long of 54 yards. He’s had some struggles as of late though, missing one kick in three of the last four weeks.
Punter Tory Taylor has a monster leg averaging 48.1 yards per punt. He has a long of 69 yards and 11 of his 35 punts have been downed inside the 20-yard line. He’s good punting at Soldier Field, and his high punts can get up into the swirling win and create problems for returners.
But, he tends to outkick his coverage at times, which has led to some chunk returns against.
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