Cincy Jungle
The Cincinnati Bengals are desperate for a win against the Chicago Bears in Week 9, but it won’t come easily. Before the loss to the Ravens last week, Chicago was on a four-game win streak, while the Bengals have a 1-3 record in that span.
Joe Flacco has been playing well, but Cincinnati’s defense has continued its struggles from 2024, with the exclamation point coming last Sunday against the Jets. The team had a two-touchdown lead midway through the fourth quarter, but somehow lost by a point at home.
Cincinnati’s bye week looms, making this inter-conference clash a surprisingly critical one, but the Bears are coming in hungry. To get the lay of the land heading into this matchup, we tapped the knowledge of Bill Zimmerman over at SB Nation’s Windy City Gridiron.
Here are the five burning questions we asked ahead of this week’s Week 9 matchup at Paycor Stadium.
1.) AC: What has been the biggest difference in the quality of play from Caleb Williams as a rookie to Year Two?
BZ: “100% the biggest issue is that he’s playing far more on time. That has caused his sack rate to plummet, and it has greatly improved the Bears’ offense. His sack rate last year was 10.8%; this year it’s down to 5.1%. That puts him 11th in the NFL, right behind Patrick Mahomes.
“Now his time to throw is still higher than most, but that’s also because Caleb has multiple plays per game where he does scramble and try to make a big play down the field, and that makes his time much higher, but in plays where he is playing in structure, the ball is consistently out in less than 3 seconds.
“There is still plenty to clean up; his accuracy needs to improve, and he’s still a little frantic in the pocket. However, it does look improved under Ben Johnson in year two.“
2.) AC: Can you give us a rundown and update on the health of the Bears’ wideouts? It appears that the top guys in that position’s depth chart are dealing with varying injuries.
BZ: “I’m not too concerned overall about the wide receivers. DJ Moore was listed with those same injuries since the Washington game and has played through them each of the last two weeks. Rome Odunze didn’t practice but had his helmet and was dressed and working. I think that’s just a precaution, and I would expect to see him this week as well.
“The other two are more of a question. Olamide Zaccheaus just popped on the report, and Ben Johnson has called him day-to-day, so I think there’s a decent chance he plays. I would expect to at least see him limited in practice moving forward this week.“
3.) AC: A big point of emphasis this offseason for the Bears was bolstering their offensive line. How much have they improved, and what can a reeling Bengals defense expect from the big uglies up front for Chicago?
BZ: “The...
