CHICAGO — With one play Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Rams, the Chicago Bears offense mitigated several concerns about its start to this season.
That’s what happens when you score a touchdown running straight through the middle of an opposing defense on first-and-10 from the Rams’ 36 in the fourth quarter at Soldier Field.
Running back D’Andre Swift broke free behind blocks from tight end Cole Kmet and left guard Matt Pryor and then more from left tackle Braxton Jones, center Coleman Shelton and receiver Rome Odunze on the second level.
Everyone executed — and everything worked.
Touchdown, Bears.
“I think we’ve always been able to run the ball,” Pryor said after the Bears’ 24-18 win against the Rams. “It was just a matter of everybody being on the same page with calls and coaching allowing us to go out there and execute. I don’t think we’re surprised at how we ran the ball.”
Swift’s 36-yard touchdown punctuated a day of progress and positives for the Bears offense under coordinator Shane Waldron, whose game plans and play calling were deservedly criticized after an unproductive first three games of the season.
“It’s a one-week league,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “You win a couple of games and you’re all that and a bag of chips. And then you lose a couple and you’re in the other thing. So it’s water off a duck’s back. You have to make sure that you’re focusing on your job, focusing on what you do and making corrections.”
Free, daily NFL updates direct to your inbox.
Free, daily NFL updates direct to your inbox.
Sign Up
The Bears wouldn’t have beaten the Rams without the two takeaways forced by Eberflus’ defense and the impressive punting of rookie Tory Taylor. But the most encouraging storyline from Week 4 was that Waldron got his offense into the end zone.
A week spent talking about accountability and better communication turned into three touchdowns, 264 total yards — including 131 on the ground — and a victory against a Rams team dealing with notable injuries but coming off an impressive win against the San Francisco 49ers.
“Just hard work,” Eberflus said. “It comes down to the fundamentals: alignment, assignment, do your thing the right way. Basic football. You’ve got to move people. The offensive line did a really good job on that today. I thought the runners did a really good job with their demeanor, in terms of their pad level. Knocking the pile forward — I saw that a lot today, which was good, to get those extra bonus yards. It just comes down to hard work and being determined and being detailed.”
The Bears unveiled a new goal-line package on first-and-goal from the Rams’ 1 in the second quarter after defensive end Montez Sweat’s strip-sack of quarterback Matthew Stafford and a pass-interference penalty on cornerback Tre’Davious White.
Instead of receiver DeAndre Carter, who is 5-foot-8 and 190 pounds, the Bears brought in center Doug Kramer at fullback. Roschon Johnson, the Bears’ biggest back, was on the field in place of Khalil Herbert. And instead of being in shotgun, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams was under center.
It sounds so simple.
But it worked.
RoJo punches it in 👊
📺: #LARvsCHI on FOX pic.twitter.com/fo2Rf10YRA
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) September 29, 2024
“We’ve been working on that play all week,” Johnson said. “We kind of knew what the plan was going into it. So I already knew what the result would be.”
Touchdown, Bears.
Last week, the Indianapolis Colts prevented the Bears from scoring inside the 4-yard line. It included blowing up Waldron’s speed option call for Williams and Swift on fourth down.
With Johnson and Kramer, the Bears needed only one play to score from the Rams’ 1. Using Kramer, a sixth-round pick from Illinois in 2022, at fullback was a wrinkle that went in last week after the loss to the Colts.
“It was really just something we did game-planning-wise,” said Kramer, who played at Hinsdale Central High School in the Chicago suburbs. “I think you see a lot of teams around the league do it, putting in an extra (offensive) lineman on the goal line. I think it’s just a good way to go bigger and get the ball in the end zone.”
Kramer said it was his first snap in a regular-season game that didn’t involve the offense taking a knee.
“It’s a way for me to help the team in a different way,” Kramer said.
The Bears turned to Johnson and Kramer again in the fourth quarter as they worked the clock against the Rams. Together, they helped the Bears convert a third-and-1 on the Bears’ 47 in the final three minutes. Defensive end Jared Verse broke through from the back side to reach Johnson, but he ran through Verse’s tackle attempt and gained the first down. He was already running downhill behind Kramer.
“Doug, we know he’s an Illinois kid, grew up right down the road,” Johnson said. “Anytime, we can get a big guy in there and spring that thing forward, I think it’s a win for us all.”
Swift’s 36-yard touchdown started with Kmet. Going right to left, Kmet prevented outside linebacker Michael Hoecht from chasing down Swift from behind with a hard, physical block in space. Hoecht went down right in front of Swift.
“I saw somebody on the ground,” Swift said. “After that, it was just run.”
Going left to right, Pryor turned defensive end Tyler Davis away from Swift.
“I thought they were going to get his legs and he kept going,” Pryor said.
Shelton then got to linebacker Christian Rozeboom, while Jones handled linebacker Troy Reeder. Rookie receiver Rome Odunze added the final block on cornerback Cobie Durant.
Just like that, Swift was gone. Pryor took off after him in celebration.
“Yeah, I almost pulled my hammy,” Pryor said. “(I’m) ecstatic to see him be able to get out there and put what he does best on the field. Great, great player. Great runner. And I’m just happy he was able to put that out on the field.”
.@DAndreSwift breaks free for a 36 yd TD!
📺: #LARvsCHI on FOX pic.twitter.com/GneMI2LP2i
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) September 29, 2024
Swift finished with 93 yards and his 36-yard touchdown on 16 carries. He also led the Bears with seven receptions for 72 yards, including a 27-yard gain on a screen. It was the type of game the Bears expected from him when they signed him in free agency. It just took four games, some adjustments from Waldron and better blocking to get it.
“I feel like I’m just getting started,” Swift said.
Was he frustrated after his first three weeks?
“Yeah, but I’m going to go put my head down and go to work,” he said. “That’s all I know.”
It’s too early to say whether the Bears fixed everything that failed them offensively over the first three weeks. There were still bad plays and bad penalties on Sunday. Two sacks on Williams were negated by defensive holding penalties in the second quarter.
Swift’s uptick in production looked like progress, though.
So did the Bears’ eight-play, 45-yard drive in the final minute of the first half that ended with kicker Cairo Santos’ 40-yard field goal.
So did the Bears’ 12-play, 74-yard scoring drive in the second half that Williams (17-for-23, 157 yards) ended by throwing a perfect pass to receiver DJ Moore in the back of the end zone.
And so did the Bears’ next possession, which ended with Swift’s 36-yard touchdown run.
“I feel like we just did a better job of executing,” Swift said. “It takes 11 people to do so. And I feel like we were clicking today.”
(Photo of D’Andre Swift: Matt Marton / Imagn Images)
