Chicago Bears share seven significant factors in their victory over the Raiders

Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports

Bears starting quarterback Justin Fields is listed as doubtful to play in Sunday’s game after suffering a dislocated thumb in Week 6, with the duty of running a disjointed offense falling on the shoulders of undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent. Bagent will get his first NFL start against a Raiders defense that has been gashed through the air and on the ground; a general weakness that should help Bagent get comfortable throwing the ball.

The offense should make an effort to run the ball often and early to get the defenders out of position in coverage, which should give the rookie much wider windows to throw into. The two turnovers he committed last week shouldn’t discourage Bagent from playing with that same aggressive mentality that made him a preseason darling. He’ll need to play with some swagger and fit some balls into tight windows to keep the offense moving. That willingness to zip the ball down the field has to be paired an understanding of how devastating turning the ball over will be.

Chicago will not be able to dig itself out of a self-inflicted hole if an interception or fumble occurs. Trusting what a quarterback sees is an important part of playing the position, but that also means moving off of a read if what he sees indicates danger.

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One of the lone benefits of having a rookie quarterback in the starting lineup is they don’t have a favorite target that they’ve built a rapport with. They tend to spread the ball out a little bit more since they are simply executing a play and don’t have any inclinations to throw to any specific player. In contrast, getting it to your best player is always a surefire way to jump start an offense, so Bagent will need to continue to look to star receiver DJ Moore, but also get Darnell Mooney much more involved that he has all year.

Minnesota made a smart adjustment last week and had the defense hyper-fixate on Moore, only allowing him five catches for 51 yards. The Raiders will certainly look to replicate the Vikings’ success and attempt to eliminate Moore from any given play. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy should already be expecting the extra attention on his star pass-catcher and already have a plan in place to get the ball to Mooney. Mooney has had past success in receiving a large volume of targets, and he should be coming open more often than not.

If Bagent continues to find Moore and gives Mooney a chance to make a big impact, the Bears can pull off an unlikely win.

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The offensive line had a very poor showing in Week 6 after a dominant performance against the Commanders in Week 5. The line consistently missed assignments, was routinely beat by their defensive counterparts, and even had a change at center after Cody Whitehair threw off the rhythm of a few plays with bad snaps.

The guys in the trenches will be looking to make a return to form against the premier pass-rusher Maxx Crosby and the Raiders. Of all the impressive things Crosby is able to do while getting the quarterback, his hustle is maybe the most awe-inspiring. The guy just doesn’t know when to quit, and that may catch the Bears line off guard. Bears stud rookie tackle Darnell Wright will be the one dealing with Crosby most of the game, and he’ll need to do everything he can to keep him away from his rookie signal-caller.

The goal for the rest of offensive line is carry out the fundamentals: know their assignment, play with maximum effort, and be ready to adjust on the fly. Crosby is the boogeyman that can give Chicago nightmares in Week 7. If Wright and the rest of the line does their job, the offense has a much better chance of scoring points without their start quarterback.

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The defense has done an admirable job of plugging holes in the run game in recent weeks, with last week’s loss to the Vikings maybe their best performance yet. Chicago managed to bottle up a good running back in the Vikings’ Alexander Mattison, and they’ll have the even bigger challenge of stopping All-Pro running back Josh Jacobs this Sunday.

Jacobs is tough, athletic, and durable runner who has the same sort of effect the Titans’ Derrick Henry has, in which he wears the defense out as he only runs harder. The key to keeping Jacobs in check is patience; he’ll only get more carries as the game goes on. In the late fourth quarter minutes of the game, the Chicago defenders will need to be vigilant and continue to play with discipline as Jacobs continues to run right at them.

As exhausted as the defense might by that point of the contest, they cannot relent in their effort, or else Jacobs will rip off big runs to put the game away for Las Vegas. This task will be assigned to the linebackers, who easily had their best game of the season last week. If the combination of Tremaine Edmunds, TJ Edwards, and Jack Sanborn can suffocate Jacobs in their run defense, Chicago could walk away from Week 7 with a win.

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Chicago once again comes face to face with an old enemy: All-Pro receiver Davante Adams, who is largely responsible for some of the worst losses the Bears have suffered at the hands of the Packers. You know the goal, I know the goal, the entire stadium of Soldier Field knows the goal: stop Adams from doing what he’s done so many times.

Easier said than done, so how do they actually accomplish what they couldn’t before? The first step is to have Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson shadow Adams. Wherever Adams goes, so does Johnson. Johnson has had success in contesting the star receiver at times in the past, so he’s the clear candidate to take on the workload. The next step will be to send help whenever the Bears can. The Raiders will be rolling over coverage to stop DJ Moore, and the Bears should be doing the same with Adams. Safety Eddie Jackson should be the one bracketing him as he goes vertical.

Finally, Chicago will need to swarm Adams whenever the ball is in his hands. He is a do-it-all sort of pass-catcher, so there will be many instances where he catches a tough ball in traffic. Chicago needs to embody head coach Matt Eberflus’s much-beloved HITS principle and flock to the ball carrier and bring him down, if not cause a fumble. Adams is very good at gaining yardage after the catch, so it will be important to bring him down at the catch point. Adams is a star player who has torched NFL defenses for the better part of nine years, so he’ll undoubtedly make a play or two. If that’s all the Bears allow him to do, then a win will be within reach.