Dominating Philadelphia with a third-string quarterback cemented Ben Johnson’s status as an elite strategist, proving Chicago’s roster can dismantle Super Bowl contenders regardless of who starts under center.
The Chicago Bears beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-7 on Monday Night Football.
The odds were stacked against them with Caleb Williams out dealing with a hamstring injury. Williams is expected to be out for the next 3-4 weeks.
Tyson Bagent was supposed to be the next man up, but he had to clear concussion protocol in time for the game. He eventually cleared concussion protocol, but the Bears went with third-string quarterback Case Keenum instead.
The last time Keenum started an NFL game was about three years ago, when he was still with the Houston Texans. Keenum joined the Bears last year and was used as the emergency quarterback.
He would still give advice to Williams or the other quarterbacks on the roster when needed.
At 38, Keenum played a great game on Monday. He threw for 247 passing yards with three total touchdowns. One of his touchdowns was a quarterback sneak, which must have felt good considering the Eagles have had plenty of success with their infamous "tush push" play.
If that game proved anything, it's that the Bears are well equipped to win with Williams out due to an injury. It's a testament to how good the Bears truly are.
"First Things First's" Danny Parkins took it one step further on a recent episode. He said the game proved that Ben Johnson is one of the best coaches in the NFL.
"Quite simply that Ben Johnson is one of the best coaches in football already, and he's not here to make friends," Parkins said.
It would be one thing if the Eagles were struggling. Philadelphia came into the game at 2-0. The Eagles were Super Bowl Champions two seasons ago, beating the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22.
The Bears were able to beat the Eagles handily with a third-string quarterback. The Bears set the tone early by recovering a fumble on the Eagles' second offensive drive.
Jalen Hurts went 16-of-25 for 163 passing yards and one interception.
Past Bears teams wouldn't have been able to pull this kind of thing off. Johnson did it after just one year as an NFL head coach.
This speaks to the Bears' vision of building sustained success. Chicago finally got over the hump and made the playoffs after years and years of failure and rebuilding.
The Bears made the playoffs in one year with Johnson, and they aren't planning to stop there. This team has much higher goals than that.
This team is built to win, no matter who is at quarterback.
Williams will obviously be welcomed back with open arms, but the fact that the Bears can win with Keenum says a lot about the franchise's trajectory.
