CHICAGO (104.3 The Score) – Dark clouds lingered over Soldier Field well after the Bears’ disastrous 9-3 loss to the Vikings on Sunday in a home opener in which third-year quarterback Caleb Williams was carted to the locker room with a hamstring injury.
All the joy that the city had felt a week prior – when the Bears posted 59 points and 552 yards of offense in a dominant win over the Panthers – is now soaked in agony after a rainy day along the lakefront. The Bears had a poor performance and may have lost Williams for an extended period of time.
In the immediate aftermath of the game, the Bears didn’t yet have clarity on the status of Williams, who limped out of the locker room as a scrum of reporters surrounded backup quarterback Tyson Bagent. Williams will undergo imaging Monday to determine the extent of his hamstring injury. The most optimistic scenario is a short-term absence while Bagent fills in capably.
But Chicago met its worst fears Sunday. The Bears finally have a budding franchise quarterback, and there he was writhing in pain at the Vikings’ 6-yard line near the north end of Soldier Field. Williams had scrambled around left end toward the pylon as the Bears trailed 6-3 when his right leg gave out as the hamstring popped. He went down on the soggy turf before being taken to the sideline for further evaluation, then was carted to the locker room.
Bears head coach Ben Johnson tried to take the glass-half-full viewpoint after the game.
"I'm actually happy it's nothing with the knee,” Johnson said. “That was my first inclination. But yet the hamstring can be pretty damaging as well. We'll see how bad it is (Monday), and we'll go from there. But quickly, you got to turn the page.”
As for top cornerback Jaylon Johnson, the reaction was full of pain alongside Williams.
“Oh, s---,” Johnson said to himself.
Four plays prior, the Bears nearly had a go-ahead touchdown in the hands of rookie tight end Sam Roush. As he ran a route between defenders toward the goal line, he got his hands on a nice pass from Williams but couldn’t keep control of the ball.
After Williams was injured on the first-and-goal play, the Bears capped that disastrous sequence by having a 23-yard field-goal attempt blocked as Roush’s block along the left side was blown up. It was part of a sloppy performance from a Chicago offense that seemed unstoppable one week ago.
The Bears were held to 297 yards of offense and 4.2 yards per play Sunday. They posted more yards in the first half alone in their win against the Panthers a week before. Williams was 15-of-26 for 138 yards and an interception before leaving with his injury.
On the Bears’ final drive, Bagent led an eight-play drive that reached the Vikings’ 12-yard line, but he was sacked on the final play as the clock hit zeroes
“We didn’t win, we didn’t do enough to win, we didn’t create turnovers and we missed opportunities,” Jaylon Johnson said.
“I’m frustrated because we lost.”
Sunday was as bad of a day as Ben Johnson has had as Bears head coach. A team that prides itself on details lacked discipline throughout the game. Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores had his unit swarming throughout the day, and Johnson failed to adjust. And that was true even before Williams went down.
“It’s a challenging day for a lot of people,” Johnson said. “We only scored three points.
“I got to do a better job for these guys.”
On Sunday, a Bears team that has been resilient couldn’t get off the mat, a brilliant tactician in Johnson was out-schemed and a budding star quarterback in Williams was knocked out.
In one afternoon, the Bears were reminded why it’s so difficult to sustain success in the NFL. One Sunday you can post historic numbers, and the next you log three points. One week your quarterback is thriving and the talk of the league, and the next he’s carted off the field.
The Bears’ season didn’t end with their loss Sunday, but they were served a sobering reminder of how difficult it is to win in this league. The newfound joy Chicago had just captured was washed away in the pouring rain.
Chris Emma covers the Bears and the Chicago sports scene for 104.3 The Score.
