Matchup to watch: Chicago Bears' offensive line vs. Houston Texans pass rush
LAKE FOREST, Ill. - For all the talk of the two quarterback prodigies – Caleb Williams and CJ Stroud – there's one facet of Sunday Night Football this weekend
The Chicago Bears will have their handful with the prodigy on the other end of the field.
Will Anderson, last year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, and four-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter are opposite the Bears' offensive line, looking for ways to disrupt the Bears' offense.
Here's our matchup to watch on Sunday Night Football when the Chicago Bears take on the Houston Texans.
A regrouping Chicago Bears' offensive line
Sunday was not what the Bears were hoping for when their offensive line debuted the 2024 season.
The Titans had two sacks, four quarterback hits and eight tackles for loss against the Bears, and that doesn't account for all the plays the Bears struggled to contain. That equaled 148 total yards.
Still, the Bears won the game.
"We knew we got to get better," Bears offensive line coach Chris Morgan said. "It was good to get the win and we had a good starting point."
It's always better after a win, but the Bears have much to clean up. Left tackle Braxton Jones said improvement has to be an individual thing.
"We as a unit probably just need to be better from man to man," Jones said. "Starting with myself, just little, little mistakes."
One player the fanbase and others outside the team pointed to was center Coleman Shelton. He won the center competition this offseason, but struggled against the Titans. Morgan said it was just about the little things with Shelton, who didn't struggle consistently in camp.
"He played solid football, with the exception of a couple plays," Morgan said. "The one that sticks out, that I was asked about, was the one where he got knocked down. And it's a tough play if you look at it, he gets tricked and so how do we clean up the footwork? How do we clean up the footwork of everyone in the pocket? Things like that."
The Houston Texans' vibrant pass rush
The Bears need to be better considering what's coming.
Hunter and Anderson are a furious pass-rushing tandem who both can record double-digit sacks in a single season. Hunter is an All-Pro.
The two combined for three tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass deflection against the Colts in Week 1. But Houston still had two sacks and five tackles for loss on Sunday. The effect they have goes beyond their production, much like Montez Sweat with the Bears.
"We got a big challenge," Morgans said. "Just handle it day to day: how much better can we get today? Put ourself in a position to prepare."
Winning up front won't be easy. It'll be a necessity, however.
Without Ryan Bates this week, the Bears will be looking at a consistent offensive line group from the first snap to the last. Expect the starting offensive line to be:
LT: Braxton Jones
LG: Teven Jenkins
C: Coleman Shelton
RG: Nate Davis
RT: Darnell Wright
The X-factor: Winning upfront
Bears offensive coordinator Shane Waldron spoke on improving the quarterback play, and he pointed to multiple things he and Caleb Williams noted.
"Caleb had mentioned it, but the tempo of his feet, playing with that good clean tempo," Waldron said. "I mentioned it, clean eyes clean feet and sticking to that."
Being clean at quarterback – seeing everything and playing with tempo – comes with a clean pocket. That puts the onus on the Bears' offensive line to win on a regular basis.
It won't be on an every-down basis; Houston is too talented for that. But finding ways to chip Anderson and Hunter, while making sure no one else playing the interior one-on-one wins consistently, will be key.
Tight ends Cole Kmet and Marcedes Lewis will be big in this regard.
They need to do everything they can to make sure Williams doesn't rush is drop backs and that he can get into the rhythm that was missing against Tennessee.
"I think for him that starts with trust in himself and everyone around him," Waldron said. "Going in and having all the confidence in the world in Darnell (Wright) and in Braxton (Jones) there on the edge knowing that is a great starting point for us. Now you can play with those clean feet, play with a clean rhythm because now you have that great faith and trust in everyone around you."