3 Keys to a Bears victory over the Patriots in Week 10

The Chicago Bears’ season has hit a fork in the road at Week 10. Sitting at 4-4 with a home matchup against a bad New England Patriots team, the Bears face two outcomes: they win and keep their playoff hopes alive for at least one more week, or they lose, and any credibility they built up this far is out the window.

While some Bears fans may relish the idea of losing in hopes of seeing Matt Eberflus fired, this is not ideal for the team. The best thing for the Bears would be that Matt Eberflus is the right coach for this team now and in the future and that they go on a winning streak to prove that. Their next three games after this one are all against NFC North rivals, all of whom are considered title contenders. If they beat the Patriots and win two of those next three games, I think the narrative around this team changes drastically.

But that’s for the future. Right now, they still have to beat the Patriots, and they can’t get caught looking past an inferior opponent. Rookie quarterback Drake Maye has been playing some good football, and I’m sure he’d love to join Jayden Daniels in beating the quarterback, Caleb Williams, who was drafted before them.

The Bears can and should win this one convincingly, but they’ll need to hit these three particulars to do it.

Feed Cole Kmet.

Can anyone check to see if stud tight end Cole Kmet is still on this team? In the last two games before the bye, Kmet had eight catches for 127 yards and two touchdowns. In the two games since, he’s been targeted just once. That is coaching malpractice of the highest order. I don’t care what it takes or who has to be phased out of the game plan. Shane Waldron must make Kmet the cornerstone of his game plan this week, and Caleb Williams (who is not blameless) must target him.

Kmet is one of the best tight ends in the league right now, and he’s not being utilized at all. It makes no sense and is a big reason why the Bears are riding a two-game losing streak.

Next man up on defense.

The defense has seen some critical losses lately. Jaquan Brisker is still not through the concussion protocol and will miss his fourth game. Andrew Billings tore his pec last week and will miss the rest of the season, which is a tremendous blow to the defensive line, especially considering how bad they already were against the run.

But the NFL is a next-man-up league. Some backups are going to get some more snaps than they expected this week and they have to make the most of them. Will Eberflus and defensive coordinator Eric Washington have them ready to go on Sunday? We’ll see.

Caleb must be better.

There’s plenty of blame to go around for the Bears’ last two losses. Coaching, first and foremost, is followed by offensive line woes and defensive failures. But Caleb Williams, the man a city hopes is their long-awaited Messiah, is not blameless. While he’s not turning the ball over, he’s also not scoring much. After throwing seven touchdowns in 3 games, he’s gone two weeks without a single touchdown pass. His total yardage during this time is less than what he put up against the Panthers in Week 5.

This is not a eulogy for Caleb’s career, by the way. Rookie quarterbacks rarely develop at a linear pace. There are ups and downs, and right now, Caleb is in one of those downs. That’s how rookies usually develop. But the Bears entered this season with a mandate to win now, which means Caleb needs to get back on the upswing sooner rather than later.

Final Prediction: Bears win 31-20

The Bears players and coaches should not look past the Patriots, but I will. I know the Bears are struggling. They’re banged up and playing like a bad team, but they are not a bad team. Finally returning to Soldier Field, where they have not lost all season, to face a truly bad Patriots team is just what the doctor ordered to get them right, and they’re going to get right in a big way.

I predict an opening drive touchdown, something they’ve not done all year, and a blowout by halftime. Maye and the Patriots will whittle away at the deficit in garbage time but never truly threaten a comeback win. By Sunday evening, all will be right in Bears-land again and the fans can look forward to next week’s rivalry matchup against the Green Bay Packers.