It isn’t difficult to find people who have opinions about Ben Johnson. Just throw a rock in a random direction and you’ll hit somebody. The challenging part is finding somebody with an informed opinion who worked with him directly and is willing to say things that aren’t carefully worded. Most of the comments from people in the league about Johnson are similar. He’s highly intelligent, creative, and laser-focused on every little detail. Allen Robinson knows the coach personally. The former Chicago Bears wide receiver played for him last season.

People don’t understand how insanely deep Johnson’s affinity for offensive football goes. Robinson did, and he warned people about it after the Bears thumped the Dallas Cowboys 31-14.

That is the scary part. Adam Hoge mentioned this as well. The Bears put up 30 points against an opponent despite only using around 20% of the actual playbook. There is still so much untapped potential Johnson hasn’t been able to utilize for various reasons. Quarterback Caleb Williams hasn’t mastered the verbiage and responsibilities yet. Or more likely, it’s because the Bears haven’t been running the ball well.

Allen Robinson saw that playbook in action with Detroit.

The Lions ran the ball well and had a veteran quarterback who knew the language inside and out. As a result, they scored 564 points, the most in franchise history. It is terrifying that Johnson is still managing to score 30 points despite having over three-quarters of his playbook inaccessible at the moment. Allen Robinson is correct. People haven’t seen what this offense is capable of. They already have the firepower through the air. The only missing element is a reliable running game. D’Andre Swift isn’t the bellcow the Bears are looking for. You can bet Johnson will go hunting for one next offseason. If he finds it, the implications are massive.

The Chicago Bears offense has looks much better from where it was last season. Nobody would dare call it an elite unit, but the progress made in the past two weeks alone is promising. Part of the reason for this is the ascent of young players. Rome Odunze is maturing into a star, leading the team with four touchdowns. Luther Burden had a breakout game against Dallas with 101 yards and a touchdown. Colston Loveland had a 31-yard reception. Amidst all this, it’s easy to forget the Bears still have a really good veteran who hasn’t had his moment yet. Is it coming for DJ Moore?

ESPN believes it is. Their analytics department believes the receiver has quietly had a strong start to the season, even if the numbers aren’t quite there yet. Sunday’s game in Las Vegas against the Raiders presents the perfect opportunity to get him going. The reason stems from his likely matchup.

ESPN’s receiver scores returned this week, and Moore was surprisingly the No. 1 player. It was a surprise considering Moore’s start to the season has been relatively pedestrian: 12 receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown. But the open score indicates Moore (and perhaps the scheme) has been doing its job, so there could be a whole lot more yards in his future.

The spike could start as soon as this week. Though Moore moves around in his alignment, he plays as an outside receiver on the left side more than anywhere else. That should match him up against Raiders cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly, who has allowed 1.5 yards per coverage snap, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. That is not only much higher than average for an outside corner, but it’s also the highest among Raiders defenders with at least 75 coverage snaps this season.

It isn’t an incorrect assessment.

Blu Kelly has been targeted 17 times this season. Quarterbacks are 12-of-17 for 218 yards and a touchdown. The cornerback is tough and physical, but seems prone to getting beat down the field. Moore’s underrated speed and ability to run routes make him one of the toughest matchups he’s faced yet.

DJ Moore has a strong history against Pete Carroll.

In two games between 2018 and 2019, the receiver had 16 catches for 204 yards. The last time he faced Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, he caught eight of the nine passes thrown his way. It was fortunate that DJ Moore was catching them from a rookie Tyson Bagent at the time. This is by far the best quarterback and head coach combination he’s had in years. If Ben Johnson uses him in the same ways he has over the past three weeks, it feels like the windows will be there. All Williams has to do is hit them when they appear. Much of that depends on the protection. Slowing down Maxx Crosby is undoubtedly central to the game plan. If it goes that way, the prediction could prove true.

It is worth remembering Moore is at his most dangerous in domes. In 30 indoor games, he has 2,087 yards and 13 touchdowns. That is an average of 69.56 yards. Eclipsing that number should be the minimum expectation.

There are multiple reasons why Caleb Williams is showing rapid improvement with the Chicago Bears. Head coach Ben Johnson said it starts with the footwork. The second-year quarterback has gotten much better at keeping his feet calm, using them to avoid pressure and direct his passes. It explains his improved accuracy and sack avoidance. There is also the growing mastery of pre-snap. Williams is getting better at identifying what defenses are showing and making adjustments at the line to counter them.

All of those things are essential to his current and future success. However, Williams is also doing something else people haven’t noticed yet. He is spreading the ball around. If you go back and look at most great quarterbacks in their early years, most of them tend to lean on a select few options in the passing game. Jayden Daniels focused consistently on Terry McLaurin and Zach Ertz last year. Patrick Mahomes was locked in on Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce in 2018. Williams was no different. The Bears’ target share from 2024 skewed heavily towards three options. In fact, only five players caught 5% or more of the passes that season.

2024

• DJ Moore: 26.56%
• Keenan Allen: 22.96%
• Rome Odunze: 19.16%
• Cole Kmet: 10.43%
• D’Andre Swift: 9.86%

Things have shifted dramatically through the first three games of this year. Williams has begun utilizing his entire arsenal. No fewer than eight players have caught at least 5% of the target share.

2025:

• Odunze: 28.42%
• Moore: 16.84%
• Olamide Zaccheaus: 16.84%
• Swift: 12.63%
• Kmet: 7.36%
• Luther Burden: 6.31%
• Colston Loveland: 6.31%
• Kyle Monangai: 5.26%

Caleb Williams has already learned to spread the ball around.

Any respectable football expert will tell you the toughest quarterbacks to defend were the ones who had no pre-conceived notions about where the ball goes. They’re throwing to the open guy. Tom Brady was a master at this for two decades. The same was true of Aaron Rodgers. When defenses know the ball won’t go exclusively to three or four guys, it gets much harder to defend plays. Coaches always talk about making them defend every blade of grass. This is what they’re talking about. Caleb Williams has said multiple times that Rodgers was his favorite quarterback growing up. Brady is somebody he’s sought advice from a lot. It appears he’s been listening to what they have to say.

There is a long way to go before Williams earns the respect of people around the league. It starts with winning more football games. Hopefully, that happens in the coming weeks.

The Chicago Bears have been battling injury problems since the season began. Jaylon Johnson is on IR after only appearing in one game. Kiran Amegadjie joined him. If that weren’t enough, both Kyler Gordon and T.J. Edwards have yet to debut this season because of hamstring injuries. Grady Jarrett is dealing with a knee issue as well. It’s not ideal, especially since the defense was supposed to be the unit this team could lean on as the offense found its footing. Fans were left wondering what would happen on Sunday in Las Vegas.

Well, we already know Edwards and Garrett are out. The only uncertainty was Gordon. He and tight end Colston Loveland (hip) were declared questionable for the game. Pessimism has been consistent about their odds of playing. With the bye week around the corner, it might be wise to shut them down until Washington next month. However, some recent roster moves suggest that might not be the plan. At least not entirely. As expected, the Bears brought up linebacker, defensive line, and tight end help from the practice squad to fill in for the losses.

No cornerbacks, though.

The Chicago Bears might be willing to let Gordon play.

The cornerback himself strongly hinted it was his goal to do so. If this is the case, it is a major boon for the defense. Gordon is one of their most dependable and versatile players. They really missed him in the losses to Minnesota and Detroit. He could stiffen their coverage against Geno Smith and add some layers to their blitz packages. As for Loveland, there were at least suggestions that he could try to play on Sunday. However, the Bears don’t want to press their luck on that. Deactivating him makes sense since they have Kmet on standby. Hopefully, the Chicago Bears can weather these difficulties enough to win, escaping into the bye at 2-2. Nothing is ever easy with this team, so expect things to be tight most of the way.

The Chicago Bears have signed linebacker Carl Jones Jr. to the active roster and elevated tight end Stephen Carlson and defensive lineman Jonathan Ford from the practice squad for Sunday’s matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders. This move doesn’t look promising for rookie tight end Colston Loveland, who is already questionable for the game.

That said, this doesn’t change the bottom line: the Bears must win Sunday. Loveland is a talented young weapon, but he’s still early in his career and not the kind of player who should swing a game’s outcome. Chicago has enough talent to get through this.

The playoff picture highlights the stakes. Heading into Week 4, the Bears sit at just a 10.6% chance to make the postseason.

If they win Sunday: Playoff odds rise to 14.4%.

If they lose Sunday: Playoff odds drop to 7.2%.

This is why coming out of Las Vegas with a victory is critical. A 2-2 record heading into the bye would feel like real momentum—two straight wins, time to get healthy, and a chance to reset. But if they fall to 1-3, with two divisional losses already, the bye week will feel endless.

The good news? The Bears can absolutely beat the Raiders. With fan attendance expected to be nearly split, it might not even feel like a true road game.

This is a big week for the Chicago Bears. A team that should probably be sitting at 2-1 is instead 1-2 and badly needs a win to get back to .500. If they hadn’t fumbled away the opener against the Vikings, this matchup wouldn’t carry as much weight—but here we are. The Bears have to gut this one out, and here are the keys to making it happen.

Stop the run

Ashton Jeanty—the guy a lot of Bears fans had their eyes on pre-2025 NFL Draft. Chicago cannot let this be his breakout game that people remember from his rookie year. The defense has to stay disciplined and shut down the Raiders ground attack. On paper, Vegas is 27th in rushing according to PFF, but the Bears can’t afford to be the “get-right” game for them.

Limit big plays

Make Geno Smith and the Raiders playmakers earn everything. Chicago can’t give up chunk plays and expect to come out on top. Smith has 4 touchdown passes this season. All to one guy, Tre Tucker. Bears need to shut that down.

Make Geno Smith uncomfortable

This might be the most important key for Sunday. The Bears defense has to generate pressure. Whether Dennis Allen dials up exotic looks or simply sends five or six guys, they can’t let Geno sit back and pick them apart.

Keep the run game steady

Right now, PFF ranks the Bears run game 19th in the league, which includes ground production from WRs and Caleb Williams. That explains why they aren’t sitting lower, but Chicago needs to generate consistent positive runs however they can. Last week, Ben Johnson called 10 straight runs on the Bears 19-play touchdown drive. He needs to keep leaning on the ground game and not abandon it.

Stay disciplined

Last week, the Bears avoided costly penalties—no false starts, nothing that sabotaged drives. That has to continue. If Chicago stays disciplined on both sides of the ball, they’ve got a strong chance to beat the Raiders on the road. But they can’t slip back into the mistakes we saw in Weeks 1–3.

Chicago Bears vs Las Vegas Raiders Preview & Predictions

Team meetings are usually held for big-picture reasons. Maybe the head coach needs to address players on certain effort or disciplinary matters. Perhaps the goal is to keep guys focused after a tough loss or a long win streak. It feels unusual for such meetings to happen for specific reasons, like how one part of a unit is performing. Yet that is what the Chicago Bears did on Monday after their big win against the Dallas Cowboys. Head coach Ben Johnson got the entire offense together to finally discuss his biggest issue with them.

The running game.

Normally, in these situations, a coach just meets with a specific position group, be it the running backs or the offensive line. It would depend on who he sees as the bigger issue—not Johnson. Adam Jahns of CHGO discovered that the head coach feels the best solution to this problem is getting the entire offense on teh same page.

In an effort to fix the running game, the Bears gathered as a full offense on Monday. It was time to hear from every position about everything involved.

“Anytime you can hear their voices or the coaching points on what everybody else is doing, you can make great football decisions – when you have the information about how your teammate is approaching this or a certain block or who needs to be where,” offensive coordinator Declan Doyle told CHGO on Wednesday. “We’re always trying to teach the full group the big-picture knowledge of why this is important (or) this is how you know one job relates to the next.”

…The meeting was run by coach Ben Johnson. It was the first time that he’s held such a meeting this season specifically for his run game. Things needed to be addressed.

The reasoning behind this approach is simple.

Johnson and the coaches aren’t doing it to send a message. They are doing it out of necessity. Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle made it clear how vital the running game is to the Bears’ offensive identity. If they wish to unlock the full potential of this playbook, they must get more from the ground attack.

“It’s always been a point of emphasis for us,” Doyle said. “We want to create explosive plays. We can do that. We want to be able to do that through the pass game and the run game. But the run game is a huge part of what we do, building off of our runs into play (action) pass into screens. And so in order to get that going, you have to be able to force teams to play downhill, one-high (safety) and defend you in the run game.”

The Chicago Bears have a chance to find a spark on Sunday.

The Las Vegas Raiders are up next, and their run defense hasn’t been good this year. They just allowed 201 yards last week to the Washington Commanders. It became apparent they’re vulnerable to mobile quarterbacks, which Caleb Williams most definitely is. Their linebacker group isn’t the most reliable bunch. Much of this game will be about whether the Chicago Bears can generate a push up front. There have been signs that they can. It’s about making sure every defender is accounted for. Then it’s up to the running backs to do the rest.

D’Andre Swift hasn’t always taken full advantage of the holes he’s been given. Kyle Monangai has good vision but limited explosiveness. Getting this fixed will require a full effort from all 11 guys. The Bears don’t have an all-world back to clean up their mistakes, and the coaches understand that. Hence, the need for a meeting.

The Chicago Bears have a pass rush problem. Montez Sweat still isn’t quite playing like the guy he was in 2023. He was better this past week against Dallas, but it’s evident the Bears defensive front still can’t apply consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Part of the problem is how it’s constructed. Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo are both power rushers. They lack anything resembling speed. Not having Austin Booker is part of that. He still hasn’t returned from IR. Some have wondered why GM Ryan Poles hasn’t made any moves to find help, watching the last notable free agents sign elsewhere.

One reason is the desire to give Booker an opportunity to play once he returns. Another is that no option has looked appealing enough to this point. ESPN insiders Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler indicate that could change in the next few weeks. Their information suggests multiple pass rush options might be available depending on how the fortunes of certain struggling teams play out. Three names stand out as possible targets if the Bears decide they want to be aggressive.

Graziano: Another potentially available Dolphin I have my eye on is edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, a 2021 first-round pick who’s in the final year of his contract. If Miami decides to start moving players, Phillips is probably one of their more popular potential trade options.

Fowler: Good call. Phillips has massive upside despite his injury history. He would fit in seamlessly somewhere, and pass rusher is always a focus for teams. To that end, could a team pry Trey Hendrickson out of Cincinnati? On a smaller scale, Azeez Ojulari is a healthy scratch right now in Philly.

The Chicago Bears’ plans will be dictated by what happens Sunday.

If they win, they will enter the bye week at 2-2, with a chance to catch their breath and prepare for a push out of the break. It might also convince them a calculated gamble on a trade acquisition might be worth it. The same likely wouldn’t be true if they are 1-3. There would be little point. Of the three options mentioned, Phillips is the most appealing. He’s 26 years old and showed tremendous ability in his first two years in the league. Unfortunately, his last two were marred by injuries.

Hendrickson led the league in sacks last season. He’s a proven commodity whom Dennis Allen developed in New Orleans. The two know each other well. Ojulari had six sacks last year. He has speed in his game. The problem is he’s on the smaller side, which may not appeal to Allen. Everything depends on the results this Sunday, both for the Bears and the teams those names play for