Caleb Williams and the Chicago
Bears encounter dead ends within the red zone
[October 28, 2025]
By GENE CHAMBERLAIN
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — The red zone is taking a heavy toll on the
Chicago Bears' offense and quarterback Caleb Williams in Ben
Johnson’s first season as coach.
It’s not the only issue facing the Bears, but it has Johnson
searching for answers after watching his team fail to score
touchdowns on two of three trips inside the 20-yard line in a 30-16
loss Sunday at Baltimore.
“We’re moving the ball. We’re not scoring points as often as we’d
like to,” Johnson said Monday.
The Bears (4-3) are settling for three points too often. They’ve
kicked 15 field goals in the last four games.
“Our red-zone percentage is down,” Johnson said. “We need to score
more touchdowns when we get down there and we had two more
three-and-outs here this week that ... if we get the first first
down we’re in good shape.”
The Bears have converted only five of 16 red-zone trips into
touchdowns through the last four games. They managed to win the
first three in that stretch, but Sunday’s two missed chances proved
to be a problem later in a game that was close until the middle of
the fourth quarter.
Through Sunday’s games, the Bears ranked 26th in the league in
touchdown percentage within the red zone at 47.8%.
“I think we go in each week with the plan to attack the defenses
that we’re anticipating, that we’re seeing on tape there,” Johnson
said. “You know, we put a lot of onus on being able to run the ball
down there. I thought we could have done a little bit better inside
the 10.
“This week we had some negative plays that certainly didn’t help the
cause. But I felt good about the plan that we put into place. We’ve
just got to focus on our execution and our details.”
After they settled for field goals on their first two drives, the
Bears went scoreless on the next three possessions, thanks to
penalties and inconsistent passing.
“When you play ugly football like that, it’s a lot more difficult to
win the ballgame,” Johnson said. “We’re on a mission here to get
this all cleaned up.”
What’s working
Pass blocking. The Bears gave up one sack Sunday and the team has
allowed 12 on the year. Only eight teams had allowed fewer going
into Monday night. It’s quite a drop from last year, when Williams
was sacked a league-high 68 times.
The Bears allowed at least 50 sacks each season from 2021-24.
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What needs help
Sloppy play. The Bears had 11 more penalties Sunday, their third
game with a double-digit total and the seventh time in seven games
they had more penalties for more yards than their opponent.
Stock up
Wide receiver Rome Odunze matched his career high with seven
receptions Sunday while gaining 114 yards. It was his fourth
100-yard game.
The Bears have lost all four of those games.
Stock down
Williams continues to struggle, even though his accuracy improved a
bit over the previous few games. He threw a key interception that
sealed the Bears' fate in the fourth quarter at his own 18-yard line
on a ball intended for Odunze. It appeared running back Kyle
Monangai was wide open a short distance from the first-down marker
on the play, and Johnson said Williams should have thrown the
checkdown.
Injuries
Second-round draft pick Shemar Turner suffered a torn ACL against
the Ravens, and the defensive end/tackle will go on season-ending
injured reserve.
Defensive end Dominic Robinson will be out a few weeks with an ankle
injury, and Johnson said defensive end Austin Booker will be
activated from injured reserve to the 53-man roster. Booker suffered
a knee injury during the preseason.
Wide receiver Luther Burden III is in the concussion protocol.
Key number
0 — The Bears failed to record a takeaway Sunday after forcing at
least three turnovers in four straight games. It was only their
second game without a takeaway this season.
Next steps
The Bears visit Cincinnati (3-5) on Sunday.
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