History has shown us that fans should never get too hyped up about what they see in the preseason. Sometimes contending teams look the part the moment they put their pads on for the first time, and sometimes good things that happen in August turn out to be nothing but a mirage.
Chicago Bears fans know better than anyone the cost of getting too hyped, too soon. The team that has been derided by opposing fanbases for being the "offseason champs" of the last couple of years has consistently failed to deliver when the games actually matter, and a reasonable person would conclude that until the Bears prove that they're worthy of the faith placed in them by their fans, we should all just pump the brakes a little bit.
That's all well and good after suffering through the Matt Eberflus years, but now Ben Johnson is running the show, and it's extremely difficult not to want to run through a brick wall for him. The former Lions offensive coordinator has said and done all the right things, and the players seem to be responding to the novel concept of being held accountable by their coach.
Johnson's Bears went out and beat the Buffalo Bills so badly on Sunday that some people are ready to give Josh Allen another MVP already just because of how awful his team looked without him. The 38-0 final score was perfectly indicative of how lopsided the game really was, as the Bears dominated on every level with the starters and reserves.
It's only the preseason, but this is the kind of performance Bears fans dreamed of seeing when Johnson traded Ford Field for Soldier Field back in January. Caleb Williams has had his every move scrutinized since being drafted first overall in 2024, but he looked poised for a sophomore breakout after carving up the Bills defense. Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III both looked like rookie matchup nightmares, and Dennis Allen's defense flew all over the field as they made the Bills (and former Bears QB Mitch Trubisky) look miserable all night.
Week 1 can't come soon enough, but first the Bears have one more preseason test, this time against the defending AFC champion Chiefs on Friday. Here's everything Bears fans need to know before then.
Bears news: The secondary took another big hit on Sunday
On paper, the Bears secondary is up there with the best units in the league. Jaylon Johnson is an All-Pro cornerback, Jaquan Brisker is back after losing last year's breakout season to a concussion and Kyler Gordon looks to be the perfect Swiss Army Knife in Allen's creative, aggressive scheme.
In practice, the defensive backfield is looking more raggedy by the day. Johnson has been out with a hamstring strain, though he was seen working out on the field before the Bills game and is expected to be in the lineup in Week 1. Gordon signed a three-year, $40 million extension in April, but he's week-to-week with a hamstring injury of his own. His Week 1 status is unknown.
One of the best training camp battles has been for the No. 2 cornerback spot opposite Johnson. Tyrique Stevenson, Terell Smith and Nahshon Wright have each made their case, but the field of potential candidates narrowed after Smith went down with a non-contact injury late in the second quarter on Sunday.
Smith was carted off the field, and on Wednesday the Bears got the bad news that he would have to miss the season with a torn patellar tendon in his left leg. Smith was a fifth-round pick in the 2023 draft, and he's quietly been one of the Bears' most reliable defensive players. Last year he earned a 78.5 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, the 13th-highest mark of 222 cornerbacks around the league.
Smith's absence will force Stevenson and Wright to step up, especially if Johnson and/or Gordon aren't ready for the season opener. The Bears got a break with the news that Vikings No. 2 receiver Jordan Addison will be out after being suspended for the first three games of the year, but they'll still need all the help they can get to contain Justin Jefferson and TJ Hockenson.
Bears news: It looks like Chicago has decided on Caleb Williams' backup
The backup quarterback spot has been a source of much interest this training camp. Case Keenum was brought in as a veteran to help mentor Caleb Williams, while Tyson Bagent has continued to look good in Ben Johnson's system after his Cinderella story going from undrafted Division II free agent to the clear No. 2.
It remains to be seen whether the Bears keep Keenum on the roster for his leadership, but it sure seems like if he makes it, he won't be QB2. That's because Bagent signed a two-year, $10 million extension that could be worth as much as $16 million with incentives, as first reported by Mark Carman of CHGO Sports.
Bagent kept the offense humming against Buffalo after relieving Caleb, completing 13-of-22 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown. Coach Johnson has had nothing but great things to say about him all camp, calling him "smart as a whip" and saying, "I couldn't be more thrilled that he's here with us."
Extending Bagent is a smart, low-cost move by the Bears to solidify their quarterback room with someone whom coaches and teammates love. In his rookie season, Bagent became the first undrafted rookie from a Division II school to start an NFL game, and he's only continued to impress since then. Caleb was unbelievably durable in enduring 68 sacks while never missing a start in his rookie season, but in the event he goes down at any point, the Bears know they have someone they can trust to fill in.
Bears news: We haven't seen the last of the starters in the preseason
After Caleb led the Bears down the field by hitting five of six passes for 97 yards and a touchdown on the first possession against the Bills, most Bears fans figured the team would encase him in bubble wrap and set him aside until Week 1. He did get one more series the next time the Bears got the ball, but even more surprisingly, it looks like he's going to play against the Chiefs on Friday, too.
On Monday, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said that he would play his starters against the Bears, and one day later, Johnson said that his team would do the same.
HC Ben Johnson says the Bears starters WILL play in their final preseason game against the Chiefs 👀@heykayadams | @ChicagoBears #DaBears pic.twitter.com/cDABrxnR2K
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) August 19, 2025
"We'll see how long it is," Johnson said, after confirming that he would play his starters against Kansas City. "We're gonna get through a couple days here at practice, and we'll determine how long, but we need to go through this."
This will be the Bears' first visit to Arrowhead Stadium since Week 3 of the 2023 season, a game remembered most for being the hard launch of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift's relationship. The Bears got annihilated by Patrick Mahomes and company by a score 41-10 in that one, and though this upcoming preseason game doesn't ultimately matter all that much in the grand scheme of things, it will be interesting to see how the team responds to being back. Neither Caleb nor Ben Johnson were there for that one, so the result should be a bit different.
Bears fans would love to see the team look as sharp as it did against the Bills, but more than anything, we just want to see everyone make it through safely in one piece.