Bears vs. Panthers: Good, bad and impressive from Chicago’s Week 5 win

For the first time this season, the Chicago Bears (3-2) have won back-to-back games. The Bears beat the Carolina Panthers (1-4) in dominating fashion, 36-10, their largest margin of victory this season.

After last week's win, it was nice to see Chicago win comfortably. The Bears played well against the Los Angeles Rams, and Caleb Williams was efficient, but this was what fans have been waiting to see from Williams. The No. 1 overall pick finished with 304 yards — his second game over 300 passing yards — and two touchdowns, both to DJ Moore.

Chicago will have to ride this win streak into London next Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-4). It’s important they don’t let that disrupt the brand of football they’re playing. But first, let’s talk about the good, bad and impressive from the Bears’ Week 5 win.

The Good

Offensive line: It only took five weeks for football, but the Bears’ offensive line has finally finished in the “good” category. Going into Week 5, Chicago's line had allowed Williams to be sacked 16 times, which was the second most across the league. Williams was sacked just one time and pressured only eight against Carolina. Yes, it’s the Panthers and their front-seven has been affected by injuries, but any progress is good progress with this offensive line.

Playcalling: Bears fans saw glimpses of what could be in the Week 4 win over the Rams. Shane Waldron was told by players leading up that game that he needed to coach more aggressively. It led to an efficient game from Williams and the run game completely opening up. This week, we saw Williams' deep ball start to click, especially to Moore. Waldron opened up the playbook and Williams ran with it. No reason to hold back now.

Run game: The Bears’ run game was established again after finally breaking the barrier last week. D’Andre Swift might’ve only averaged 3.5 yards per carry but he still had 73 yards and a touchdown. Roschon Johnson also showed his 6-foot 225-pound frame is elite on the goal line, as he had two 1-yard touchdown runs. The production of the run game has been a major piece of Williams’ success, and will continue to be a key in his development.

Secondary: The Bears secondary is once again a top group in the NFL — dare I say the best? Quarterbacks don’t even look towards Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson is the perfect compliment on the opposite side of the field. Not to mention, the safeties are also very good and Kevin Byard III had an interception. The Bears’ secondary had six passes defensed and held Andy Dalton to 136 yards and a 32.7 QBR.

The Bad

Run defense: Not much went wrong for Chicago on either side of the ball. Even their biggest offensive weakness — pass protection — was good. But, the Bear’s biggest issue on defense this season has been stopping the run, and they continue to struggle against it. Chuba Hubbard ran for 97 yards and one touchdown while averaging 7.5 yards per carry. Even if you take away Hubbard’s longest run — a 38 yard touchdown — he still would’ve averaged 4.9 yard per carry against the Bears. Chicago has to do a better job at closing gaps on the first level. Their defense is too good to put games on the line because they can’t stop the run.

The Impressive

Caleb Williams: Finally, finally, finally. Yes, last week was efficient, but this was pure gold from Williams. He’s the future of Chicago and hushed anyone who undermined him compared to Jayden Daniels. Williams looked confident pushing the ball down field and finally hit his receivers in stride. His pocket presence and awareness were just as good as his throwing ability as he evaded rushers and rain for positive yards multiple times. Williams threw for at least 300 yards for the second time in his short five game career. It doesn’t matter if it was just Carolina, this performance from Williams and his connections to Moore just proved that he is going to be great for this city.

Pass rush: According to Pro Football Focus, the Bears had the ninth best pass rush in the NFL coming into Week 5. Against the Panthers, the Bears sacked Dalton three times and pressured him 20 times. The most impressive part of their pass rush has been their duo on the interior defensive line — Andrew Billings and Gervon Dexter. Dexter got his fourth sack of the season and has only had one game without a sack. Billings had the third highest pass rush win rate of any defensive lineman coming into Week 5 at 20% even though he’s seen a lot of double-teams to start the season. Billings might’ve just gotten his first sack of the season, but he is consistently in the backfield causing havoc for opposing quarterbacks.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears vs. Panthers: Good, bad and impressive from Chicago’s Week 5 win