Bears-Eagles prediction: And the winner is ...
Bears, 24-23
Veteran Case Keenum (or Tyson Bagent) figures to be a capable replacement for Caleb Williams in Ben Johnson's offense — perhaps with pre-snap and post-snap decision-making that make extended-play heroics unnecessary — and should be backed by an improved run game and sharper overall execution after Johnson likely was embarrassed by last week's performance.
Ben Johnson's gamesmanship
Keenum figures to start, but it could be Tyson Bagent — and who knows maybe Miller Moss will get a shot. I'm surprised Johnson didn't float that possibility — did you know the last time Moss replaced Williams as the starting quarter, he threw six touchdown passes for USC against Louisville in the Holiday Bowl? It's true.
Whatever. The starter won't be Williams, who is out 3-4 weeks with a Grade II hamstring injury. The change will be a factor, but the suspense won't be. I have to admit, Pat Tomasulo caught me off-guard when he opened our interview on WGN Morning News on Monday with a question about Johnson's gamesmanship on the Bears' starting quarterback. I had never really considered it a factor in the game. It was pretty clear that there was no way Williams was going to play Monday after he suffered the injury last week against the Vikings. Can you imagine the reaction if Williams played against the Eagles after going down like that against the Vikings eight days earlier, and aggravated the injury? There is no way Johnson was going to take that chance.
Anyone could see that, including Fangio. Williams' injury mysteriously went from a Grade I to a Grade II on Saturday — an apparent sign that Johnson just couldn't resist the gamesmanship ploy. It's actually a factor when you have quarterbacks with different styles — as the Bears have with Williams and Bagent/Keenum. But there has to be a more realistic chance of Williams starting. You can pull that off with an ankle, but not a hamstring that drops your quarterback like he was shot.
You might think a sharp guy like Johnson would not play that game. Then again, this is a coach who concocted a rivalry with Packers coach Matt LaFleur with zero known provocation — apparently just to pander to Bears fans. So anything's possible.
Regardless of the quarterback scenario, the pressure is on Johnson to prove that last week's belly-flop against the Vikings was a fluke and not a red flag. The Bears didn't just lose last week, they played like a poorly coached team — with focus and discipline issues that led to drops, penalties and subpar execution in blocking and protection. The performance of the other 10 players on offense might be even more important than the quarterback in this one. Caleb Williams eventually will return, so Keenum's (or Bagent's) performance is not a long-term consideration (at this point, anyway). But the rest of the offense needs to play like they are coached by Ben Johnson, and that starts with the running game and includes pass protection and getting receivers open — all hallmarks of the Johnson offense that disappeared against the Vikings.
The x-factor
The spotlight is on Johnson more than the quarterback. As successful as his offense has been in three seasons with the Lions and 20 games with the Bears, he's never had to start a back-up. In fact, he's never had a starting quarterback who wasn't a No. 1 overall pick in his offense.
So Keenum (or Bagent) is an x-factor in this one. Kyle Shanahan's offense has gone to the Super Bowl with Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy. Sean McVay is 4-9 without Goff or Matthew Stafford (both No. 1 overall picks) starting. Ben Johnson finally has a chance to prove that the offense is the star of his offense.
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