Against the San Francisco 49ers, Caleb Williams threw for a season high 330 yards, led five scoring drives, and went toe to toe with Brock Purdy in a game that produced 936 total yards and 11 touchdowns.
And yet, the Chicago Bears lost 42-38 anyway. That disconnect is what made safety Jaquan Brisker’s postgame comments resonate so sharply.
“We let the offense down,” Brisker said. “I’m going to say it. We let the offense down, period. I feel like Caleb and them, they gave us enough points to do what we had to do to win. The defense didn’t.”
A Shootout the Bears Couldn’t Survive
GettyChicago Bears v San Francisco 49ers
From the opening snap (a Purdy interception returned for a touchdown) it looked like the Chicago Bears’ defense might be up for the moment. Instead, that play became the outlier.
After that early mistake, Purdy systematically picked apart Chicago’s coverage. The 49ers finished with 32 first downs, went a perfect 5 for 5 in the red zone, and averaged 7.3 yards per play. Purdy threw for 303 yards and accounted for five total touchdowns.
And the thing is, Purdy never looked uncomfortable in the pocket. I mean why would he against a Bears pass rush that managed just one sack? When Purdy wasn’t under pressure, he completed 21 of 28 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns. Bears head coach Ben Johnson acknowledged as much afterward.
“He’s a dangerous player, particularly when he can see down the field and had that much time,” Johnson said. “We certainly didn’t affect him enough.”
The Defining Breakdown
GettyChicago Bears v San Francisco 49ers
Despite the defense not helping whatsoever, the Bears somehow still found themselves in a position to win. After trading scores throughout the night, Chicago took a 38-35 lead with 5:36 remaining in the fourth quarter.
But then Purdy delivered the knockout blow, connecting with Jauan Jennings on a 38 yard touchdown that flipped the game back in San Francisco’s favor.
Caleb Williams nearly authored another late game comeback (something the Bears have done better than any team in football this season) but the final sequence unraveled at the 2 yard line as time expired.
Even so, the lasting image wasn’t the final incompletion. It was the inability to get one final stop when it mattered most.
The Bears offense scored on five of its final seven drives against one of the NFC’s best teams, on the road, in prime time. That matters (especially with the playoffs looming). Which is why Brisker’s comments weren’t finger-pointing as much as they were a reality check.
This Bears team has proven it belongs. But Sunday night also showed what happens when one side of the ball doesn’t meet the standard set by the other.
If the Chicago Bears are going to make noise in the playoffs, it won’t be because of questions at quarterback anymore. It will hinge on whether the defense can respond to the kind of blunt accountability Brisker delivered, and make sure a performance like this remains an exception, not a warning sign.
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