The Caleb Williams era in Illinois got off to a winning start. The Chicago Bears came back from a 0-17 deficit to beat the Tennessee Titans 24-17 in their season-opener at Soldier Field on Sunday.
The rookie became the first quarterback in 22 years to be selected first overall in the draft and win in Week 1 of their debut season. The last player to accomplish this feat was former Houston Texans star David Carr.
The Bears will be ecstatic about their resiliency and the win. However, their offensive performance was disappointing as they finished the game with only 149 yards of offense against a team that gave up 335.1 yards on average last year.
Williams had an underwhelming game as he completed only 14 of his 29 passes for 93 yards with no touchdowns. Fans on social media did not mince words when critiquing his performance.
“Oh please. He was terrible,” a fan said.
“Dude was mid, carried by the defense,” a fan said.
Fans lauded the Bears defense and special teams unit and attributed the team’s comeback win to their exceptional performance:
“Defense won the game today,” @713Capital wrote.
“Give Jamarcus Russell that defense and he would win too,” @The_BroDad quipped.
“Defense and special teams won that game not him,” @yeee1610 claimed.
The Bears’ victory over the Titans marked only the second time in the last 53 years that they have won a game with their offense gaining fewer than 150 yards. It wouldn’t have been possible without a magnificent performance from their defense and special teams.
Caleb Williams gets rescued on Bears debut
The Bears had a horrendous first half on all fronts, as the defense couldn’t contain the Titans and Williams, and the offense struggled to move the ball upfield. They trailed 17-3 at the half and needed a shot in the arm to ignite their hopes of a comeback.
The special teams stepped up in the Bears’ hour of need, as defensive end Daniel Hardy blocked a punt deep into Titans territory before safety Jonathan Owens scooped up the loose ball and walked into the endzone on his Bears debut.
A few minutes later, it was the defense’s turn to make a huge play. Defensive end Darrell Taylor showed incredible commitment and strip-sacked Titans quarterback Will Levis to set the Bears up in field goal range.
On the next possession, Levis tried to avoid a huge sack and threw an errant underhanded pass toward the sideline, but Tyrique Stevenson was on hand to intercept it and return it for a pick-six.
In the game’s penultimate possession, cornerback Jaylon Johnson picked off the Titans quarterback and sealed his team’s victory. Caleb Williams’ performance left a lot to be desired, but the Bears will be buoyed by their defense and special teams’ magnificent outings.
