The Bears had good reason to hype their defense throughout the preseason after a strong finish to last season, some good additions and seeing an ever-improving young core taking steps forward.
Assembling that talent is one of the most helpful things the Bears have done for rookie quarterback Caleb Williams because it lowers the bar for what he and the offense need to do to win amid his incremental development. They’d be 4-0 if they’d managed merely 20 points against the Texans and 22 against the Colts. That’s pretty doable.
It sounded ambitious, though not far-fetched, when the Bears talked about believing they’d be one of the five best defenses in the NFL. And while they aren’t quite there heading into their home game Sunday against the Panthers, it appears to be a reachable aspiration.
As an overview, the Bears have allowed the eighth-fewest points (18.8 per game) and 10th-fewest yards (295.5) over their first four games. They’re confident, no doubt, but highly aware they haven’t played all the way up to their own expectations.
“It’s a solid start, for sure,” nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon told the Sun-Times. “There are a lot of plays we talk about in meetings that are left out there, though.
“We could make it an even more elite defense if we minimize mistakes. There’s a lot to capitalize on. There’s more to do.”
The Bears also are third in the NFL in takeaways with three and have been fifth-best on third downs, allowing conversions just 29.4% of the time.
There isn’t necessarily one specific aspect they need to fix, and top defensive stars like Gordon, cornerback Jaylon Johnson and defensive end Montez Sweat didn’t pinpoint any particular shortfall. Instead, the consensus was that the defense needs to turn it up a notch across the board.
Johnson has been an especially harsh grader and, perhaps still irritated by his uncharacteristic lapse against the Colts that led to Alec Pierce’s 44-yard catch, and his standard for the secondary — a unit that could make a case for being the NFL’s best — is near-perfection.
It should be, by the way, given the resources the Bears have invested. Johnson, Gordon, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and safety Jaquan Brisker all were second-round picks, and the Bears shelled out $76 million on a four-year extension for Johnson this year. Their other starting safety is two-time All-Pro Kevin Byard.
Those moves have paid off. The Bears have yielded a 69.0 opponent passer rating this season, just one point higher than the league-leading Saints, and have allowed only two passing touchdowns. Quarterbacks have a disastrous 27.8 passer rating when throwing at Johnson, according to Pro Football Reference.
The pass defense is sixth in opponent completion percentage (61.5), eighth in yardage (174.5 per game) and third in interceptions (five). The best performance any quarterback has put up on them was C.J. Stroud’s in Week 2, when he had 260 yards and a touchdown for a 94.7 rating.
“Too many passing yards, too many explosive plays in the air,” Johnson said, matter-of-factly. “We’ve done a hell of a job not allowing many passing touchdowns, but overall [we need to be] taking away big plays and just smothering guys in coverage.”
The Panthers have been the laughingstock of the league the last few seasons, but they present certain challenges with veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, a former Bear, and talented running back Chuba Hubbard.
Throughout the week, there weren’t any eye-rolls about the Panthers, and it was clear from the tone defensive coordinator Eric Washington struck Wednesday that no sleepwalking would be tolerated against a spiraling opponent. That tenacity is encouraging, and it’s driving the Bears to step up from good to great.
“We’re a relentless group,” Johnson said. “We’re a damn good defense. Don’t get that twisted, by any means. There’s definitely more that we can do to be a dominant defense. It’s about not letting anything slide.”