Bears and Commanders Game-Day Preview

Washington Commanders (1-4) at Chicago Bears (2-3)

Kickoff: 7:15 p.m., Thursday, Soldier Field, Chicago

TV: Amazon Prime Video, locally on Fox (Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit, Kaylee Hartung)

Radio: WBBM AM-780, FM-105.9 (Jeff Joniak, Tom Thayer, Mark Grote)

Westwood One (Ian Eagle, Tony Boselli)

Spanish Radio TUDN AM-1200, Latino Mix FM-93.5 (Omar Ramos, Miguel Esparza)

Streaming: fubo TV

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Latest Betting Line: Commanders by 1 1/2 (Over/under 37 1/2). Money Line, Commanders bet $110 to win $100. Bears, bet $100 to win $118. Most up to date betting info at SI.com sportsbook.

The Series: The 45th game between these teams with Washington leading the series 22-21-1. Washington had won seven straight before the Bears won the last game in 2019.

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The Coaches: Commanders coach Ron Rivera is 91-86 in 12 seasons as an NFL head coach and 15-23 in his third year as Washington coach. Rivera was drafted by the Bears in 1984 and played linebacker in Chicago through 1992, then began his coaching career as an assistant on Dave Wannstedt's staff. He later was defensive coordinator for the Bears under Lovie Smith from 2004-2006.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus is in his first year, is 2-3, and prior to coming to the Bears the teams he was an assistant or coordinator on teams that had an 11-4 record against Washington (Cleveland, Dallas, Indianapolis).

Last Week: Washington lost to the Tennessee Titans 21-17 despite 25 of 38 passing for 359 yards with two touchdowns and an interception by QB Carson Wentz, who threw a game-ending interception at the 1-yard line on the Commanders' final drive.

The Bears lost 29-22 after rallying from a 21-3 deficit behind Justin Fields' passing and running to lead 22-21 in the fourth quarter. Minnesota's Kirk Cousins led a 17-play drive to the go-ahead points and then Ihmir Smith-Marsette had the ball stolen by Cameron Dantzler with the Bears trying to win at the Vikings 39 in the last two minutes. Fields had a career-best 118.8 passer rating in the game, going 15-of-21 for 208 yards with a TD.

This Season: Washington's season started out fine, beating Jacksonville 28-22 behind 313 yards passing and four touchdowns with two interceptions by Wentz, but then the Commanders lost the next four games and in the last three have scored 35 total points. Washington's defense has produced only one takeaway all season while the offensiv line has allowed 20 sacks. Wide receiver Jahan Dotson leads Washington in TD catches with four but is out for this game, while Curtis Samuel leads the Commanders with 32 receptions. ... The Bears have lost two straight on late turnovers after falling behind in the first half, the first against the Giants and the second last week at Minnesota. QB Justin Fields is coming off his best two games of the year, in which he has recorded a 97.2 passer rating, completed 26 of 43 (60.5%) and averaged 8.9 yards per attempt. The Bears defense gets starting cornerback Jaylon Johnson back this week after three weeks away with a quad injury.

Matching Up:

The Commanders are 19th on offense, 10th in passing and 28th rushing. Washington is 17th on defense, 10th against the pass and 14th against the run. 31st on offense, 32nd (last) in passing and third in rushing.

The Bears are 31st on offense, 32nd (last) passing and fifth in rushing. They are 22nd on defense, ninth against the pass and 31st against the run.

Injury Report:

Commanders: CB William Jackson (back, illness), S Percy Butler (quad), T Sam Cosmi (finger), WR Jahan Dotson (hamstring), RB Jonathan Williams (knee) and TE Logan Thomas (calf) are out. WR Dyami Brown (groin) is questionable.
Bears: S Dane Cruikshank is questionable (hamstring). WR N'Keal Harry has been activated for this game after an ankle injury kept him on IR until Week 5.

Of Note: RB Brian Robinson plays his second game since coming back from a gunshot for Washington. ... Although the Commanders had 359 yards passing from Carson Wentz, they were 1 of 11 on third downs last week. ... Washington running backs got just 12 carries last week. ... The five sacks Washington had against Tennessee were the most its had since Nov. 8, 2020. ... Not having Jahan Dotson for this game will be nothing new for Washington as he also missed last week. ... The Bears have run for 787 yards, their most through five games since they had 835 in 1990. ... WR Darnell Mooney has caught six passes for 146 yards the last two games after four for 27 yards the first three.

Next Week: The Commanders host Green Bay Oct. 23 at noon. The Bears play on Monday Night Football in New England against the Patriots Oct. 24.

Key Individual Matchups

ther teams in the division were farther ahead of Washington, Rivera was his typical honest self: "Quarterback," was his answer.

When the coach and quarterback are not on the same page, it usually doesn't lead to a good connection between ownership and the coach, either.

However, the Bears could be exactly what Washington needs to reverse its downward spiral. Chicago has had some very well pronounced weaknesses, mainly starting slow on defense and then failing to finish games across the board. It's not a good success formula.

With three wins between these two teams in 10 games, and the Bears' status as a rebuilding team, the game figures to be one of the more ugly affairs on a night for football rapidly becoming known for ugly games even when it features good teams.

Here are the key matchups in Thursday night's Bears-Commanders game at Soldier Field.

Bears CB Jaylon Johnson vs. Commanders WR Terry McLaurin

Johnson returns from three weeks away due to a quad injury and the Bears managed to play sufficient pass defense without him until last week, when it all fell to pieces. Whether he is 100% healthy is a concern but Johnson hasn't even been tested much this year because teams saw more inviting targets elsewhere. McLaurin doesn't always line up on this side but when he does he has excellent hands and athletic ability but isn't necessarily a burner. It's a fairly even matchup. McLaurin hasn't been the main target for Carson Wentz this year, but in the past has carried the team and as a result had a big off-season contract. When he does make catches they have been more impactful as he averages 17.2 yards for his 19 catches. Johnson played the first two games, he'd only been targeted four times, allowing two catches for 14 yards.

Bears CB Kyler Gordon vs. Commanders WR Curtis Samuel

Samuel never seemed to get enough production with Carolina until his final year in 2020 but is delivering in his second Washington season with a 71.1% receptions/targets ratio and 32 receptions in five games. He's averaging just 8.8 yards a catch but has been the go-to guy over the middle, a comfort target for Wentz as he gets open against opposing slot cornerbacks using his 4.31-second 40-yard speed. Samuel is versatile enough for Washington use him on either side or the slot. Gordon has had a rough time so far, allowing a passer rating when targeted of 111.5 and 75% completions. He's been excessively targeted as opponents see a potential weak spot, with 30 receptions allowed in 40 targets. Gordon showed some improvement last week in the open field as a tackler and was a bit more decisive.

Bears DE Robert Quinn vs. Commanders LT Charles Leno Jr.

The Bears run up against their longtime starting left tackle and he is still fooling the people at Pro Football Focus, who for years have loved his production even while Bears quarterbacks had to watch their backs. He is rated currently as the 10th best tackle in the league and the NFL's third-best pass blocker at tackle. Overall, PFF puts him two behind Washington right tackle Samuel Cosmi. Apparently Washington has the worst pass-blocking guards and center of all time because Wentz has been sacked 20 times, the third most in the NFL and two more than Justin Fields. It's probably not surprising Washington is 28th in rushing because Leno never was much of a run blocker as more of a finesse than physical guy. Quinn has been quiet this year in terms of sacks, although he has been applying consistent pressure and flushed out Kirk Cousins twice last week. He still only has one sack and Wentz will hold the ball, looking for big plays. This could be Quinn's week to update his sack total.

Bears DT Justin Jones vs. Commanders G Saahdiq Charles

Jones could be facing starter Trai Turner but he had a quad injury and did not play last week. Only four days later, it could be they leave Charles in place. Either way, the Commanders haven't had much blocking from either guard or center. And now center Chase Roullier is done for the year according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Charles has only a 25.8 PFF pass blocker grade and has struggled blocking the run, as well and is at 42.6 overall for the year. If Turner plays, he's been a bit better as a pass blocker but only at 45.2 as a run blocker. Jones is coming off one of his best games, as he picked up sack No. 2 for the year and was extremely active in the second half as the Bears defense rose up following a terrible start.

Bears WR Darnell Mooney vs. Commanders CB Benjamin St-Juste

William Jackson III last week was benched in the middle of the game by Rivera and St-Juste moved from slot to the outside and the 6-foot-3, 200-pounder will face Mooney. St-Juste struggled as a rookie with a 112.6 passer rating against when targeted but this year has been 180 degrees opposite while playing in the slot most of the time. He has allowed only 9-of-25 receptions when targeted with a passer rating against of 65.7, according to Sportradar. Mooney has become a vertical threat now for Justin Fields, first showing he could make jump ball catches and last week a jump ball with one hand falling backwards. The Bears need to get it to him more than twice in a game like last week, or he needs to win more battles against cornerbacks. Winning against St-Juste will need to be by running routes or with speed because St-Juste has a good 4-inch height advantage, rare for a cornerback.

Bears LB Roquan Smith vs. Commanders RB Antonio Gibson

A bigger (6-foot-2, 220), back who has good versatility, Gibson can be expected to give up more carries this week to rookie Brian Robinson, who had been coming back from a gunshot wound. The Washington running game hasn't flourished, largely due to the ineffective interior of the line. Gibson averages just 3.2 yards a carry with 179 yards on 56 rushes. He has 16 catches for 134 yards. Smith took a step back last week, as did many Bears on defense against Minnesota's multitude of weapons. He matched a season low for solo tackles with five and so far has only two pass defenses in a scheme where he was expected to make more of them than in the past.

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