Sitting most of their starters in Saturday's preseason opener against the Browns, the Bears rallied from a 10-0 deficit with 34 unanswered points en route to a 34-10 victory at Soldier Field.
Coach Ben Johnson was especially pleased with the Bears' discipline—they drew just two penalties for 10 yards—physicality and attention to detail.
"Proud of our guys and how they played," he said. "We talked about being disciplined in all three phases and we saw two penalties on the day. We haven't had a practice yet where we've had that few fouls, so that was really encouraging to see. They took that to heart. I don't know if I've been part of a preseason [opener] where that's been the case in my career, so credit to them.
"We talked about being physical, being fast, being detailed. I thought our guys were able to cut it loose. We simplified the game plans from what we've been doing in practice and just let them go out there and play, and I thought the fundamentals, the technique showed up. I thought our defense was tackling for the most part when they had opportunities. Offensively, we had some detail there in the passing game. Quarterbacks were fairly accurate with the football."
Trailing 10-0, the Bears played complementary football in the second quarter as a strip-sack by linebacker Jamree Kromah set up quarterback Tyson Bagent's 25-yard touchdown pass to receiver Maurice Alexander.
Kromah, who has spent each of the past two seasons on the Bears practice squad, slapped the ball away from Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson in the pocket and recovered the fumble at the Chicago 49.
After running back Roschon Johnson's 19-yard run around right end on third-and-3 sustained the drive, Bagent hit Alexander streaking across the middle. The first-year pro turned up field and raced into the end zone, cutting the deficit to 10-7 with 9:16 remaining in the first half.
The Bears tied the score 10-10 on Cairo Santos' 51-yard field goal as time expired in the first half. The kick was set up by a pair of Bagent to Kaden Davis 21-yard completions. Davis, who played one snap on offense with the Browns last season, caught four passes for 81 yards in the first half, highlighted by a 41-yarder down the seam.
Bagent exited in favor of Case Keenum after completing 13 of 22 passes for 169 yards with one TD, one interception and a 79.5 passer rating in the first half.
Watson connected on 11 of 15 passes for 126 yards and a 98.2 rating before being replaced by Shedeur Sanders to start the second half.
The Browns had taken a 10-0 lead on Andre Szmyt's 50-yard field goal midway through the first quarter and receiver Isaiah Bond's 14-yard TD run on a jet sweep on first play of second period.
The Bears took a 17-10 lead early in the second half thanks to an impressive effort by running back Salvon Ahmed, who caught a screen pass from Keenum to the left, broke two tackles and zigzagged back across the field for a 49-yard TD.
"We've been harping on those details," Johnson said of working on screens. "We've got specific landmarks. We drill them every single day. Our defense has done a really good job throughout the week of practice to make those hard for us. We've had a lot of very difficult looks. Some of our worst plays in practice over the last couple weeks have been our screens.
"So, it was just a really good job up front executing—the timing, the rhythm—and then we always talk about those screen runners. When they get the ball in their hands, we're trying to get vertical for a few steps and then it turns into a punt return after that and that's certainly what that one looked like as he was taking it across the field. Good to see those guys blocking down the field. A guy like Kaden Davis, who really is trying to run coverage away from the screen, ends up making a key block and it's good to see things like that."
The Browns advanced to the Chicago 5, but on fourth-and-1, Kromah teamed with linebacker Jon Rhattigan to drop running back Ahmani Marshall for a one-yard loss, turning the ball over on downs. Kromah later recorded his second sack of the game, no doubt enhancing his chances of earning a roster spot.
The Bears extended their lead to 24-10 on Keenum's 6-yard TD pass to running back Brittain Brown in the left flat with :42 to play in the third quarter. The score was set up by Keenum's 28-yard pass to receiver Ray-Ray McCloud III to the 12.
Keenum was replaced by rookie Miller Moss after completing 9 of 10 passes for 151 yards with two TDs and a perfect 158.3 passer rating in the third quarter.
Both Keenum and Moss benefited from working with receivers coach/assistant head coach Antwaan Randle El, who called plays in the second half.
"I thought he did a phenomenal job with Case taking the reins and then transitioning on over to Miller, just to see how he was trying to stay in their wheelhouse," Johnson said. "He was part of the quarterback meeting last night. I think it was a phenomenal experience for him, and I know our guys really rallied around that as well."
The Bears closed with a flourish. Second-year cornerback Beanie Bishop Jr. registered two interceptions in the second half, picking off Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel. The second, which Bishop returned 21 yards to the Browns' 31, set up Santos' 49-yard field goal, making it 27-10.
The lead ballooned to 34-10 on Coleman Bennett's 3-yard TD run with 2:38 to play.
While the Bears offense topped 30 points, Johnson identified areas to improve.
"I felt like our quarterback got hit more than I would like," he said. "We'll look at why that was the case. And then running game-wise it was a little bit spotty as well. Different style of defense certainly contributes to that. Their front is coming off the ball. They make it very difficult for one-on-one blocks. You've got to be very specific with your angles and all that."
Early exits
Johnson told reporters that four players left the game with injuries: tight end Nikola Kalinic (knee), safety Xavier Woods (groin), and linebackers Nephi Sewell (concussion) and Ruben Hyppolite II (shoulder).
Personnel notes
The only individuals listed as starters on the Bears' unofficial depth chart who played Saturday were defensive lineman Dayo Odeyingbo, linebacker Devin Bush, nickel back Cam Lewis and safety Dillon Thieneman.
The starting offensive line consisted of left tackle Kiran Amegadjie, left guard Kyle Hergel, center Logan Jones, right guard Caden Barnett and right tackle Theo Benedet.
Throwing session
While Bears offensive starters did not play, they worked out on the field before the game.
"We had a phenomenal throwing session before we got going today, and that was by design," Johnson said. "We got 60 plays that we were able to simulate going in a huddle, calling the play, talking through the coaching points, the footwork, the timing, the rhythm. I thought all those guys that didn't play in the game, we needed that. That's how you get better in the passing game is you've got to have days like that, so it was a good time to do it."
"We'll assess whether we need to play them in the next couple games as we go through these joint practices here [in Cincinnati and Tennessee] and we'll see where we are as a team. But I'm happy with what the offense looks like right now and yet we're only halfway through this thing and we've got a long ways to go."
