HOUSTON -- For a second straight week, the Chicago Bears fell behind by double digits and were carried by their defense in a game that played out much like their season opener. When the Bears needed Caleb Williams and the offense to come through on the final drive of "Sunday Night Football," the unit could not move the ball past midfield, and the result was a 19-13 loss to the Houston Texans.
After throwing for 93 yards in the Bears' win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 1, Williams was better in moments against the Texans but struggled on a night when the spotlight exposed Chicago's pass protection and rushing woes. The quarterback was pressured on 35% of his dropbacks in Houston, while Chicago's run game netted 71 yards on 22 attempts, including five scrambles from Williams for 44 yards.
"When it finally connects and we're all in the same cylinder, it's going to be good," wide receiver DJ Moore said. "Right now, we're still building -- what can I say? -- we're building a puzzle together. Until we get that puzzle fully complete, it's going to be an up-and-down road."
Williams completed 23 of 37 passes for 174 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and was sacked seven times. The Bears' lone touchdown drive came before halftime, when Williams moved Chicago into the red zone -- its second trip inside the 20-yard line in two games -- and capped off an eight-play, 49-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run from Khalil Herbert.
For an offense that entered the 2024 season with high expectations, generating just 353 total yards in two weeks seems similar to struggles of the past.
"It's frustrating," tight end Cole Kmet said. "It feels like I've had this talk for a few years now. We understood that this would be a process a little bit, so we've got a lot of work [to do]. Reality in the NFL is kind of setting in a little bit for us offensively. We've got to regroup here and look at the mistakes we had this past week, this past game, and make those corrections and move on forward with it."
The Texans accounted for Williams with a heavy blitz package (41.7% of his dropbacks). According to Next Gen Stats, the Texans generated 12 pressures and five sacks when blitzing, with nine defenders finishing with multiple pressures. The quarterback reported no significant injury following the game..
"I'm a little bruised up," Williams said. "I took a couple hits today. I'm going to get in ice tubs and do all the things I need to do to make sure my body is ready for tomorrow and practice and obviously next game."
In two games, Williams has completed 14% of his passes while under duress. The Bears have struggled to generate a downfield passing attack as Williams went 0-for-11 on throws traveling at least 15 yards downfield against the Titans and Texans, with all of those throws having been off target.
Chicago's receiving corps got a boost of good news pregame when rookie Rome Odunze, who has an MCL sprain, was cleared to play. Veteran wideout Keenan Allen, who is dealing with an injury to his heel, was sidelined in Week 2.
"We thought he could make it to the game and potentially work out," coach Matt Eberflus said of Allen. "That didn't happen. We'll see where it is coming here in the next couple days."
Williams committed his first turnover of the season when Houston cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. picked off a pass intended for Moore in the third quarter. The Texans then extended their lead to nine when Ka'imi Fairbairn connected on a 53-yard field goal.
The rookie threw another interception early in the fourth quarter while escaping a sack attempt by defensive end Danielle Hunter, who tore Williams' jersey in the process. Williams lobbed a deep ball into triple coverage while looking for Kmet and was intercepted by Kamari Lassiter.
"There were certain points where I think he did a really good job riding up in the pocket and making some good throws, so some really good positives there to look at," Eberflus said. "Then also he was able to evade the rush a couple times and get on the perimeter a couple times. Then he has to be careful with the football after he get out there when he throws the ball in a scramble drill. So great learning moments there for him in terms of the pressure that you're talking about, of what to do and when to do it."