Bears quarterback Caleb Williams hugs teammate Case Keenum after Keenum led the Bears to a 27-7 win over the Philadelphia Eagles at Soldier Field on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams hugs teammate Case Keenum after Keenum led the Bears to a 27-7 win over the Philadelphia Eagles at Soldier Field on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
They played football Monday at Soldier Field.
It was football, wasn’t it? Even if Caleb Williams — leader of men, star of stars, hope of a generation, spectator in a Bears ball cap, hoodie and shades — wasn’t out there in the middle of it?
You’d better believe it was. It was good football. At times, it was great.
A 27-7 win against the Eagles will be remembered as the Case Keenum game, a 38-year-old has-been and never-was delivering on a prime-time stage like a man two-thirds his age and with triple the talent.
That might be a bit heavy on the hyperbole given how long a career Keenum has had and how respected he is, but it would be impossible to overstate the extent to which he exceeded expectations during three of the finest hours of his NFL experience.
“This is going to go down as one of the more special nights of my life,” Keenum said.
It isn’t wrong — at all — to surmise that Keenum lifted his team to a 2-1 record with more than just his throws that kept the ball moving down the field and the calm demeanor that was necessary in a test against a formidable opponent. He also pumped belief into an offense that needed it and attitude into a team that, coming off a 9-3 loss to the Vikings, needed it.
When Mad Hatter coach Ben Johnson went for it on fourth-and-goal from the 3 and the Bears missed, having shunned a chance at an easy field goal and a two-score lead in the early going, it came off as a brazen misjudgment. But Johnson had Keenum. Maybe the coach knew it wasn’t the risk it seemed with Williams out and No. 2 QB Tyson Bagent still not far enough removed from a concussion to start the game.
Williams remains out with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, but for how much longer? Another week or two or three? Until he comes back, just keep rolling with Keenum. Squeeze every drop he has left in his football body. Bagent’s time can wait, or continue to wait. Harsh, but the right way to go.
The sentiments in the previous paragraph come almost out of nowhere. Bagent is a good backup many teams would love to have. The Bears aren’t paying him $5 million a year because they don’t believe in him. Playing when Williams can’t literally is Bagent’s job.
But Keenum just turned things that upside-down.
Keenum doesn’t possess a howitzer of an arm, doesn’t sprint 20-plus mph to paydirt, hasn’t authored fourth-quarter comebacks galore. He isn’t Williams; isn’t close. He might not be Bagent. But he has earned the next start against the Jets, assuming Williams isn’t ready.
Ten years ago with the Rams, Keenum, a good soldier, kept the starting job warm for half a season until No. 1 overall draft pick Jared Goff was ready to take over. Now, still a good soldier, he can keep it warm for Williams for a bit.
“There’s so much emotion,” Keenum said. “Man, these guys that I’m with in this locker room, it’s incredible.”
Who knew he had it in him?
MAKING THE GRADE
QUARTERBACK — A
Case Keenum got the ball out fast, spread it around — eight different receivers caught passes in the first half alone — threw for two touchdowns, snuck in from the 1-yard line for another, injected his team with obvious confidence and, let’s face it, accomplished far more than any of us had reason to believe he would or could. Yes, the Eagles did him a solid by failing to deliver on possible chances for interceptions, but it was Keenum’s night. How ’bout that?
RECEIVERS — B-PLUS
Rome Odunze’s end-zone drop was a bummer. Tight end Colston Loveland had a touchdown, then didn’t — stretch out those long arms at the goal line, dude! — but at least he finally reappeared with some catches. Kalif Raymond continues to make every play and might be the most underrated player on the team. Luther Burden was a big factor early and made the play of the game, taking a shovel pass in for a score from the 8, his legs churning inside a scrum of defenders while lineman Braxton Jones plowed the pile forward — it was glorious.
RUNNING GAME — C-PLUS
The Bears couldn’t prevent D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai from getting hit in the backfield until holes started to open up a bit — just a bit — in the second half. Still, grinding out the fourth-quarter clock with the ground game was a great way to end things and had to feel good. Sometimes you just have to keep at it. Swift ended with 84 hard-earned yards on the ground.
DEFENSE — A
On another night, the Eagles’ ability to run Saquon Barkley would’ve been a bigger problem. Not on this night. The Bears more than made up for any softness up front by getting pressure on QB Jalen Hurts — Montez Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo got him for sacks — and, more important, by taking the ball away three times. Congrats on interception No. 1, rookie safety Dillon Thieneman, and in the end zone, no less. Linebacker Devin Bush wrapping up Tank Bigsby so Austin Booker could pile in and punch the ball out was picture-perfect.
COACHING — A-MINUS
What a bounce-back for Ben Johnson, who had a good-to-go offensive game plan dialed up after the debacle against Minnesota. Johnson believed in Keenum — believed the two of them could make it work together — and he was right. Just like that, Johnson looks like a guy with a heck of a gift again. Passing up a field goal in the first half wasn’t his finest hour — a 10-0 lead would’ve beaten the heck out of 7-0 at the time — but that’s just him. Even with his No. 3 QB in there, he’s never going to be afraid to go for it.
TOMORROW’S HEADLINES
Who starts at QB for the Bears? Until we see Williams run out there again, this is story No. 1.
Flip that turnover switch: The Bears can beat anybody when they win the turnover battle 3-0. They certainly can win the division again if they make a habit of it.
Thieneman has arrived: Where does the first-round pick go from here? So far, it has been very promising.