The Chicago Bears entered their bye in Week 7 on a three-game winning streak, and they expected to only get better as the season wore on. Instead, the team has been unable to secure a victory since returning from their week of rest.
The Bears allowed a game-winning Hail Mary to the Washington Commanders in Week 8, and then had their game-winning field goal blocked by the Green Bay Packers in Week 11. The team’s four-game losing streak has already resulted in the firing of offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, and head coach Matt Eberflus is now facing immense pressure to steady the ship.
The Bears are hoping to bounce back from their heartbreaking 20-19 loss against Green Bay, but they’ll face another difficult divisional matchup against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 12.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams will have his hands full against Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, whose proclivity for the blitz is well documented.
Caleb Williams is preparing to deal with pressure against Vikings
During a press conference on Wednesday, Williams discussed the challenges of facing Flores’ blitz-heavy scheme.
“Obviously, he’s going to blitz you,” Williams said. “He’s the king of cover zero blitz and finding a bunch of different ways to do it. And then you know, they’ll switch it up and just fly [safety Harrison Smith] out from two yards away from me and fly him all the way back to the [deep] safety and things like that.”
Williams has faced the blitz on 30.7 percent of his drop-backs this season, per NFL Next Gen Stats. That figure will surely rise against a Vikings defense that leads the league with a blitz rate of 37.7 percent and pressure rate of 29.6 percent, per Pro Football Reference. Minnesota’s man-coverage pressure has generated 35 sacks, third-most in the league.
Bears running back D’Andre Swift may not find much room against a defense that has allowed just 3.58 yards per carry, so Williams may have to do much of the heavy lifting.
“Us being decisive, us having a plan for all of that [is key],” Williams continued. “And then from there, get the ball to your playmakers, run the ball well and efficiently. And from there, when they give you shots and give you explosive plays, you make those plays. It affects the play calling for the defense when you’re able to hit explosive plays or when you’re able to get the ball out and be decisive when they’re sending all these different exotic blitzes and things like that. I think it affects the play-caller on the other side, and you got to find other ways to attack [the offense].”
Finding explosive plays in the passing game is easier said than done. Frazzled quarterbacks have tossed up plenty of balls, allowing Minnesota’s opportunistic secondary to snatch a league-high 16 interceptions.
Still, the aggressive approach has created opportunities for big plays in the passing game. The Vikings have surrendered the fifth-most passing yards this season, but their success in the red zone and against the run has kept opponents from scoring points. As a result, Minnesota has allowed the fourth-fewest points and 10th-fewest yards through 10 games this season.
The Bears will have to neutralize the pressure early in the game with quick passes to get the ball out of Williams’ hands. When the opportunity arises, the rookie quarterback will have to make sure he capitalizes on his deep shots.
If Chicago can’t handle the pressure on Sunday, they’ll likely be left with their fifth consecutive loss.