Shane Waldron ‘called out’ some players this week, and sparked the Bears offense in win over Rams

CHICAGO – The Chicago Bears coaches weren’t afraid to name names this week.

The offensive side of the ball had some frank meetings ahead of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams. Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron said during the week that he had productive meetings with the veteran players. Team captain Marcedes Lewis said his message to Waldron was to hold guys accountable.

“Nobody’s sensitive in here,” Lewis told Waldron.

Waldron and the offensive staff apparently took that to heart.

“We had people get called out if you wasn’t doing your stuff,” star receiver DJ Moore said after Sunday’s win over the Rams. “That goes a long way, because you don’t want to be on that list.”

“We had people get called out if you wasn’t doing your stuff. That goes a long way, because you don’t want to be on that list.”

—  DJ Moore, Bears wide receiver

The players loved it. The tough love sparked the Bears in a win over the Rams, 24-18, on Sunday at Soldier Field. The win moved the Bears to 2-2 on the season.

Obviously, the Bears had some serious offensive issues over the first three games. Last week in a loss to the Colts, the run game couldn’t do anything against one of the worst run defenses in the NFL.

During film sessions this week, the coaching staff was a little more blunt in its criticism.

“We’re all grown men,” Moore said. “We all don’t want to be on that tape just as much as if you were a little kid on that tape playing football. You don’t want to let your buddy down. So that’s all it was.”

A week later, the Bears looked like a different team in the run game. They racked up 131 rushing yards, and lead back D’Andre Swift totaled totaled 93 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. He also added 72 receiving yards on seven catches. The Bears did it for much of the game without top guard Teven Jenkins, who exited the game with a rib injury.

Nobody was tougher on himself these past couple weeks than Swift. If the coaches were giving honest feedback, it’s likely Swift was in the spotlight during those meetings.

Swift was OK with that.

“I feel like that’s a winning business,” Swift said. “So it has to be like that. We have a mentality every single day of not holding up our end of the bargain, you’ve got to look yourself in the mirror.”

Rookie No. 1 draft pick Caleb Williams played efficient quarterback for the Bears. He threw for 157 yards and a touchdown on 17-of-23 passing. He connected with Moore for a touchdown and led the Bears on three touchdown-scoring drives.

Sunday’s win was the most balanced that Waldron’s offense has looked all season through four games. During the week, Waldron put several plays on the board in front of the offense and noted where he could’ve been better. The self reflection was on everyone – coaches and players.

How did Waldron face any criticism coming his way?

“This is the NFL, right?” head coach Matt Eberflus said. “It’s a one-week league. You win a couple of games and you’re all that and a bag of chips. And then you lose a couple and you’re in the other thing. So it’s water off a duck’s back. You have to make sure that you’re focusing on your job, focusing on what you do and making corrections.”

Did it come against a Rams defense that ranked dead last in the NFL in allowing 425 total yards per game coming into Sunday? Yes. But part of winning in the NFL is taking care of business in winnable games.

The Bears did that on Sunday. Their defense mostly kept Matthew Stafford and the Rams out of the end zone, and the offense finally found a rhythm. It used some no-huddle action in the second half and took advantage of some matchups Waldron liked.

For the first time, it felt as if Waldron wasn’t overthinking it, just letting his guys go out there and make plays.

“We were just playing fast,” Moore said. “So it just looked and felt simple because we made the defense stay in one kind of coverage and we dictated what they were going to do by staying in the no huddle or getting the ball fast.”