Chicago Bears vs. Cincinnati Bengals: 4 storylines to watch in preseason game No. 3

LAKE FOREST – Caleb Williams returns to action Saturday. The No. 1 overall draft pick will make his Soldier Field debut when the Chicago Bears take on the Cincinnati Bengals in preseason action.

Williams threw for 95 yards on 4-of-7 passing during last week’s preseason debut in Buffalo. Head coach Matt Eberflus said Williams and the starters will play against the Bengals. He didn’t say how long the starters will play, but the coaches will decide when to pull the starters based on the “ebb and flow” of the game.

Cincinnati is not playing its starters, so quarterback Joe Burrow will remain on the sideline.

The game will be broadcast on Fox 32 locally and on the NFL Network. Here are four storylines to watch.

1. How does Williams look this time?

Williams played well in his preseason debut, but his offense didn’t find the end zone. Scoring touchdowns will be the next step. The results, of course, don’t really matter, but the Bears would love to see their rookie quarterback finish off drives with touchdowns.

Williams looked pretty good during Thursday’s joint practice against the Bengals. He threw a couple of touchdown passes in the red zone and led the offense to a field goal in a two-minute situation.

When it comes to the game Saturday, Eberflus said he wants to see Williams do exactly what he did last week.

“He’s going against a different structure [defense] here, so I think much of the same and improving and doing the basics of quarterbacking,” Eberflus said. “I think he did that last week at a solid rate. There were a couple things with the footwork under center and those types of things where he’s got to improve. He’s worked on those this week.”

2. The offensive line with Nate Davis back

Bears right guard Nate Davis has been back at practice for the first time in two weeks. The Bears offensive line looked good against Buffalo. Now, Davis is likely to be back in his usual spot at right guard.

Assuming Davis plays, the Bears will have four of their five regular starters for Saturday’s game. Only interior lineman Ryan Bates remains sidelined by injury. Eberflus previously said the right guard spot was up for grabs if Davis remained sidelined by injury. Davis said Eberflus’ message didn’t change his attitude.

“My mentality is to take the reps as they come and take it day by day,” Davis said this week at Halas Hall.

“My mentality is to take the reps as they come and take it day by day.”

—  Nate Davis, Bears offensive lineman

Matt Pryor played right guard last week in Buffalo. He likely will work with the second-team offense this week. The O-line looked good a week ago. Can it replicate that success this week?

3. Can the D-line keep sacking QBs?

The Bears recorded eight sacks as a team in Buffalo. Rookie Austin Booker and third-year pro Daniel Hardy both had 2.5 sacks. Defensive end Montez Sweat was back at practice this week and could be gearing up to see a few preseason snaps Saturday.

With the Bengals sitting their starters for this game, the Bears’ defensive line should be eager to see what it can do against the second-team Bengals offense. Bengals backup QB Jake Browning also is likely to miss the game as he nurses a rib injury. The Bears likely will see quarterbacks Logan Woodside and Northern Illinois product Rocky Lombardi.

The Bears’ defensive line – with starters Sweat, DeMarcus Walker, Gervon Dexter and Andrew Billings – should have another chance to star in this contest. It starts with Dexter and Billings at defensive tackle.

“It’s good to have Dex in there, and Big Bill’s in there,” Eberflus said. “So those guys have done a really good job of solidifying the middle. You can play good run defense when your tackles are playing well. They have to really own that inside, because if they don’t own the inside then there are gaps that are exposed in the running game.”

4. Which backups step up?

The preseason is all about the backups making a name for themselves. Last week, it was Velus Jones Jr. and Ian Wheeler scoring touchdowns from the running back position. Booker, the rookie defensive end, starred for the defensive side. Backup linebacker Micah Baskerville had a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown.

So who is it going to be this week?

Booker certainly is a name to keep an eye on. Fellow defensive end Dominique Robinson is in a pivotal year and needs to have a big preseason. Jones appears likely to keep getting looks at running back after moving from wide receiver. Brett Rypien and Austin Reed will continue battling it out for the third quarterback spot.

The Bears’ secondary still is banged up a bit. Look for cornerbacks Jaylon Jones and Greg Stroman to see big minutes, as well as backup safety Elijah Hicks.