After 18 emotion-filled weeks, it is finally time for the NFL Playoffs, and for the city of Chicago, its 15-year playoff-win drought may finally come to an end. For the past decade, the Bears have struggled to find the right leaders to bring them back to relevance. Their past issues of lacking a true QB1 or a head coach that they can rely on to win football games are finally over, as Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson seem to be the answer they’ve been looking for.
As they prepare to host the Packers on Saturday night, which will no doubt be a difficult game with the return of quarterback Jordan Love looming, the Bears will need to lean heavily on the run game, as it has been winning them games all year. Ever since the breakout of Kyle Monangai, it has felt as though the Bears have had the best running back duo in the entire league. Although the passing game has had some electrifying moments, it has been the running game that has kept most of these games close. Coming from the Detroit Lions offense that has a dynamic duo at running back, Ben Johnson has much experience in winning football games with the ground-attack.
In the Bears’ case, they survive with the running game and win with the passing game. What I mean by that is that if the running backs perform up to their standards, Caleb Williams won’t have to be great until the fourth quarter. We have seen this repeatedly all year as Williams usually looks mediocre until the final few drives, where he turns into “iceman”. Of course, this works to an extent, because if the running game isn’t performing up to par, the Bears will have to pull off another miracle comeback against Green Bay. Although the Bears have pulled off so many improbable wins this season, they should not rely on it happening again, as it will be very difficult, considering they have much less playoff experience than the Packers.
If Ben Johnson continues to coach how he has this season, and the O-Line can create holes for the running backs, I believe the Bears will survive to the fourth quarter. Additionally, the defense has proven every week that they will force turnovers and give the offense strong field position. If all that goes how I expect it to, it will be up to Caleb Williams to prove that he actually can perform like a top quarterback in the biggest moment of his career.
Third Down With Devin 