Chicago Bears offense had its most-productive game of season. Here’s how they did it

CHICAGO – The Bears and rookie quarterback Caleb Williams had their best showing of the season while the defense made the key stop to beat the Los Angeles Rams 24-18 on Sunday at Soldier Field. Here’s what you need to know.

Three moments that mattered

1. Finishing pick: Bears safety Jaquan Brisker sealed the win for his team with the defense’s second turnover of the game. Brisker picked off a pass from Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford with 1:03 left in the game from the Rams 9-yard line. The Bears ran out the clock and earned the win after the Rams had no timeouts left.

2. Go D.J.: Williams and wide receiver D.J. Moore connected on their first touchdown of the season in one of the Bears’ best drives of the year. Williams found Moore in the back of the end zone for a 9-yard completion to give the Bears a 17-9 lead with 2:37 left in the third quarter. The Bears used 12 plays and went 74 yards down the field.

3. Making him Sweat: The Bears got on the board midway through the second quarter after turning a defensive turnover into a touchdown. Defensive end Montez Sweat forced a strip sack and then cornerback Kyler Gordon recovered the ball on the Rams 16-yard line. The offense scored when Roschon Johnson scored on a 1-yard run to give the Bears a 7-6 lead with 5:42 left in the quarter.

Three things that worked

1. Swift action: Bears running back D’Andre Swift had his most productive game of the season after a slow first three games to his Bears career. Swift rushed for 93 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown and added 72 receiving yards off seven catches. He gave the Bears a 24-15 lead with 12:26 left in the game when he broke free for a 36-yard touchdown.

2. Another game, another takeaway: The Bears defense continued its hot start to the season by forcing at least one turnover in all four of its games so far. The defense added its third forced fumble when Sweat created the turnover and recovered its fourth. The unit also has five interceptions so far this season after Brisker made the game-sealing pick at the end.

3. Limiting the damage: Although Stafford and the Rams didn’t struggle to move the ball down the field, the Bears defense made key stops to keep limit them in the end zone. The defense held the Rams to four field goals after reaching at leas the Bears 34. The Bears defense did stop a Rams 2-point conversion early in the fourth quarter after allowing the Rams to get into the end zone.

Three things that didn’t

1. Stopping the pass: Stafford made it look easy going against the Bears secondary Sunday, leading multiple drives up the field. He threw for 224 yards, the second-most the Bears have allowed for far this season. Stafford completed 20 of his 29 pass attempts while Tutu Atwell was the lead receiver for the Rams, finishing the game with 82 yards off four catches.

2. Undisciplined play: In a game that felt like the Bears needed to be at their best in order to get back in the win column, they instead committed penalties that derailed drives or gave the Rams a fresh set of downs. The Bears committed 10 penalties for 84 yards. The offense committed eight of the team’s penalties.

3. Still looking for consistency: While Williams completed 17 of his 23 passes for 157 yards, there were still moments where he seemed out of rhythm with his receivers. The Bears final drive of the first half was a good example. Williams had a chance to hit Rome Odunze in the corner of the end zone but overthrew the pass. A couple plays later, Williams overthrew an open Moore in the end zone and the Bears settled for a field goal.

What’s next?

The Bears will play their second straight game home at Soldier Field on Sunday when they host the Carolina Panthers.