Why the Bears ran the ball better against the Rams

Bears defensive end Montez Sweat sacks Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and makes a fumble during Sunday's game at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Mark Busch/Shaw Local News Network

The Bears needed a win and got one against the Rams.

However, this wasn't exactly a dominating performance that cemented the Bears as true contenders in the NFC North. At the end of the three quarters, the Rams led 274-171 total yards. They were missing top receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua.

The Rams are also missing the dominant edge rushers that played alongside the Bears' offensive tackles earlier this season. Before last Sunday, the Aaron Donald defense had four sacks in three games and then added three at Soldier Field. The problem of pass blocking is far from solved.

What the Bears did well was make some game-changing plays on both sides of the ball. Without Montez Sweat's strip sack and forced fumble in the second quarter, they likely fall to 1-3 on the season.

At the end of the day, this was by far the best performance from the Bears offense this season. So let's start the film study and look at what they did differently.

At first they walked outside a little more. D'Andre Swift's first two carries were at right end. The Bears appeared to make their intentions clear by lining up two tight ends on that side, but Rams flank Byron Young still crashed inside on both plays. The tendency to break is always good.

Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron threw in some runs designed by Caleb Williams, another nice change of pace. On the first two balls, Williams caught first downs and ended up on the turf before being touched. The third time around, the Rams were waiting for him. Still, the threat of a QB run generally opens up more space for the running backs when the defense has their eyes on the QB.

There was a nice twist in the first half when DJ Moore got the ball backwards and sent it 11 yards up the middle. Well-thought-out move, but it was counteracted by a puzzling penalty for illegal formation.

After the sweat-forced fumble, the Bears used 2 yards of offense and a pass interference penalty to reach the end zone. It was great to see Hinsdale native Doug Kramer take the field at fullback at the 1-yard line. With Khari Blasingame sidelined for the third straight game, moving Kramer from center to blocker was exactly what the offense needed.

The offense sputtered for almost three quarters. Waldron called for quick passing plays, but Williams often held the ball a few shots too long, which resulted in Moore taking two hard hits early in the game. The Bears also relied on maximum pass protection, which usually meant no one was open because there weren't enough receivers in the pattern.

But Williams and Waldron are credited with the 9-yard touchdown pass to Moore that gave the Bears a 17-9 lead. It was a nice game plan with five receivers, but Moore was on the inside, next to Cole Kmet and Swift. This put him against a linebacker. Williams made a perfect throw and Rams linebacker Christian Rozeboom never expected it.

Then Swift's 36-yard touchdown sprint was the most perfect running play the Bears haven't made in a long time. Guard Matt Pryor pushed the nose tackle halfway down the field. Kmet grabbed the outside line, center Coleman Shelton made a nice block on a linebacker, and Rome Odunze even held off corner Cobie Durant to pave the way.

Look, this offensive line can still block.

Best game

As mentioned above, the sweat strip sack was game-changing, but another defensive gem helped seal the outcome.

This was third-and-goal at the 7-yard line with the Rams trailing 10-6 in the third quarter. Sweat formed on the left side, isolated against tackle Rob Havenstein. I'm not sure if this was planned or improvised, but just before the snap, Kyler Gordon flew in and basically shot straight at Havenstein's chest.

The Rams had no time to adjust and now no one to block Sweat. The Rams had the right play, a likely touchdown, but Sweat deflected Matthew Stafford's pass toward Tutu Atwell and they settled for a field goal.

Two minute exercise

One issue to consider is the depth of the defensive line. Nose guard Andrew Billings was on the field for 68% of the snaps. Last year it was 47%. Gervon Dexter was even busier, recording 72.4% of defensive snaps after playing 40% as a rookie. One problem is that second-year defensive tackle Zacch Pickens hasn't played since the start of Week 1. The Bears relied on Byron Cowart to play just 11 snaps against the Rams. …

On the strip sack, the Rams used tight end Colby Parkinson to block Sweat. Bad idea. … This week's opponent, Carolina, has a total of 5 sacks in four games, which could be good news for Williams and the offense.