Bear Digest

Jayden Daniels Has Company Among Commanders Who Can Hurt Bears

The speedy Commanders QB isn't the only Washington player capable of delivering a jolt to Bears hopes of winning for the fourth straight time.
Gene Chamberlain|
Andrew Billings tries to bring down Washington running back Brian Robinson Jr. last season in a 40-20 Bears win.
Andrew Billings tries to bring down Washington running back Brian Robinson Jr. last season in a 40-20 Bears win. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

There have been two stars to the 5-2 Washington Commanders start on offense.

One is obviously rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and the Bears can't be certain whether they'll face him Sunday in Landover, Md. as they try to win a fourth straight game.

The other star is a person they could have had as their offensive coordinator, and that's Kliff Kingsbury.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus interviewed Kingsbury and called it every bit about trying to hire an offensive coordinator and only partly to find out more about Caleb Williams, since Kingsbury worked with the Bears QB at USC and Williams was running a college version of what essentially was Kingsbury's offense.

"I've always respected him, going against him over the years," Eberflus said of Kingsbury. "Respect his offense and the way he finds space on the field, the way he's committed to the run game.

"It was a pleasure to meet him, personally. Had a great visit for a good amount of time during that interview. I was very informative to both parties. It was good. Good takeaway."

And what did he learn about Williams?

"We didn't ask too many questions about it," Eberflus said. "He just gave positive reviews for Caleb, like all the people did when we talked to them. It was much of the same, but it was more about ball."

That doesn't seem likely, but either way with so many people they talked to about Williams, more input from Kingsbury probably meant little and he wasn't the offensive coordinator or even the quarterbacks coach at USC, anyway.

There is no doubt Kingsbury has been in charge of what's going on with Washington's offense, though.

They lead the league in scoring, are fourth in yardage, third in rushing largely because of Jayden Daniels, and 13th in passing yards. That's quite a bit different than finishing 25th in scoring, 24th in yardage, 18th in passing and 27th in rushing last year.

There are only four starters in place from last year's Wsahington offense that the Bears faced and beat 40-20, only two on defense. The players they've brought in have made a big difference but the coaching has, as well.

There's little doubt the main factor in a 5-2 start for Washington has been Daniels

Here are the Commanders who can give the Bears the most problems.

QB Jayden Daniels

He might play. He might not. If he does play, it's difficult to see how his running would not be influenced by a rib injury. His raw speed and elusiveness as a runner is a huge factor in his effectiveness.

Daniels has run for 372 yards, four touchdowns and 24 of their 63 rushing first downs. Daniels' ability to throw from outside the pocket has been deadly accurate and he throws well from inside of it. The 75.6% completions, six touchdowns, a passer rating of 107.0 and 1,410 yards says he's more than an athlete playing QB.

"No question. He is a talent, a big talent," Eberflus said. "As you can see that in the first part of his game, he's got a real good future ahead of him.

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"You could certainly see how he reads the field, how he sees, his vision, his anticipation, his accuracy, his ability to escape when he needs to, his ability to do the QB runs if they ask him to do that. Athleticism, yeah, he's a big talent."

WR Terry McLaurin

McLaurin's career has been much like DJ Moore's, as he's been buried with a losing team. However, Daniels has brought him into the spotlight and he has 35 catches for 454 yards and four TDs already. Both a route runner and deep threat, McLaurin does it all. Scary Terry has been targeted on 49 passes and has had at least six catches in every game since the opener, while going over 100 yards twice. A definite candidate to be covered by Jaylon Johnson, McLaurin had four catches for 49 yards last year against the Bears, and was held to three for 41 by them in Chicago in 2022. He's ahead of his 85.2% catch rate of his third season, in 2019, and

TE Zach Ertz

There's plenty of life left in a 12-year, 33-year-old tight end. He has 25 catches for 268 yards and has been targeted more (34 times) than anyone by Daniels except McLaurin. Ertz doesn't have the young speed to beat teams on seam routes downfield but can still do it with smart route running. His 10.7 yards a catch says as much and he'll challenge linebackers and safeties alike.

RB Austin Ekeler

The premier pass-catching running back in the AFC for years, Ekeler has benefited from the change of scenery to make 17 catches in 18 targets for 201 yards. He has only faced the Bears twice and has two TD catches, but the last game in 2023 will be remembered for the way he burned T.J. Edwards on a pass and took it all the way for a 39-yard TD.

RB Brian Robinson Jr.

A good complement to all their passing, the 6-foot-1, 228-pound Robinson can run with power and speed. He has six rushing TDs already and is a threat when he does catch a pass, as he averages 9.4 yards a catch for his three-year career, although they usually leave this for Ekeler. He averaged 10.2 yards for 36 catches last year, which is a high average. However, he's at his best powering through a tackle or making someone miss on a carry between tackles, then getting upfield quickly.

G Nick Allegretti

They brought over the former Chiefs guard from Illinois, a native of Frankfort, IL, and he has been a key part in an interior of the line as a pass blocker for Daniels. He has teamed with holdover Sam Cosmi and center Tyler Biadasz in what has been an unlikely group on the offensive line that has given Daniels plenty of time to throw or make a choice to run. He has allowed one sack, committed two penalties and is graded the fifth-best pass blocker among guards in the league by Pro Football Focus. Cosmi is right behind at eighth. The interior three on this line has been a major factor in their rise to being graded 11th overall as a unit by PFF, six better than the Bears' offensive line.

LB Bobby Wagner

They needed someone with experience and a proven track record to run the defense and the former Seahawks and Rams linebacker is showing he's not quite done at 34 years old. They even turned the 10-time All-Pro loose in the pass rush for two sacks on blitzes. Wagner is averaging almost nine tackles a game and is at his best shutting down running attacks coming downhill. He was the leader of Dan Quinn's Super Bowl-winning defense with Seattle.

DE Dorance Armstrong

The former Cowboys edge rusher began asserting himself in 2022-23, his final two years in Dallas, when he had 16 total sacks for those seasons in Quinn's defense. Now he's with Quinn again and has three official sacks. PFF is giving him four. But Armstrong has been applying pressure at a good rate and is graded their top pass rusher by PFF, ahead of Dante Fowler, another former Quinn defender from Dallas who has five sacks. The Commanders pass rush has made up, in part, for a lackluster secondary .

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.