3 keys to a Bears victory over the Texans in Week 2

The Chicago Bears will make their first of four primetime appearances this season on Sunday, traveling to Houston to take on the Texans in Sunday Night Football. This particular time slot has not been kind to Chicago, having lost their last seven Sunday Night Football games, but the Bears will be hoping to snap that streak and move to 2-0 on the season.

Ironically, the Texans are precisely the team that the Bears are hoping to be in 2024: an underrated squad that added the right rookie quarterback and immediately won their division and even a playoff game. The Bears are riding high after a dramatic comeback victory last week, but a win over the heavily favored Texans under the brightest of lights would kickstart the playoff hype for this team.

To get there, there are three things Chicago must do.

Will the real Caleb Williams please stand up?

The Bears won last Sunday but with very little contribution from rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. Some folks might already be inching closer to the panic button, but there’s no need for that. That was not the real Caleb Williams out there, and that is not who he will be in the NFL. Argue all you want, I refuse to believe he suddenly lost all his talent.

Fortunately for Chicago, they were able to capitalize on Will Levis’ mistakes and still snatch a victory. That won’t work against a hot quarterback like CJ Stroud. The Bears need Wiliams to lead at least two touchdown drives, and probably more than that, if they want to win this week.

Slow down Houston’s pass rushers.

Chicago’s best offensive linemen are their left and right tackles, Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright. This is good because Houston’s best pass rushers, Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr, will be coming off the edges. The interior of the offensive line should be able to handle their assignments better this time around since there won’t be a Jeffrey Simmons or T’Vondre Sweat to wreck the Bears’ offense.

That means that whether Williams will have time to throw or not will largely fall on the shoulders of Jones and Wright. I believe they’re up to the challenge (indeed, Anderson has even gone on record saying Wright was the toughest blocker he ever faced in college).

Keep Joe Mixon in check.

Running back Joe Mixon had an absolute field day against Indy last week, gashing their defense for 159 yards and one touchdown on 30 carries. Obviously, the Bears can’t allow him to repeat that performance. When you let the run game run all over you, it makes Stroud’s job even easier.

Chicago ended last season as the best in the league against the run and, after a brief scare in the first half last week, continued that dominance in the second half. They’ll need to do the same this week in Houston and force Stroud into more obvious passing situations. In that way, the secondary should have ample opportunities to keep taking the ball away.

Final Prediction: Bears lose 24-20

It’s looking like the Bears’ losing streak on Sunday Night Football will continue. Williams should be much better, but the Bears are still a young team learning how to win. In the best-case scenario, where they are the 2024 version of the 2023 Texans, this still probably ends up as a loss. The good news for Chicago is that no one expects them to win, they’re playing with house money. They can lose and still have favor around the league so long as they look competent, but a win will be a significant upset and send them shooting up the power rankings.