The Morning After...the Bears' blowout win vs. Jaguars in Week 6

The Chicago Bears (4-2) defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5), 24-18, in Week 6, which marked their third straight win and where Chicago extended their "home" winning streak to nine games.

After a rough first quarter start, the Bears dominated the Jaguars from the second quarter to finish, including scoring 21 unanswered points before the game was well out of reach. Quarterback Caleb Williams threw four touchdowns and continued to show progress just six weeks into his rookie season, tight end Cole Kmet led Chicago with 70 receiving yards and two scores (while also stepping in as emergency long snapper) while receiver Keenan Allen finally joined the party with a pair of touchdowns. Meanwhile, the defense once again held an opponent to 21 points or fewer for a 12th straight game -- only this time, they were down three key starters in the secondary.

There was plenty to break down following Chicago's win against Jacksonville, including Williams' sensational outing, Kmet stepping up on offense and special teams and the defense's dominance amid a slew of injuries. Our Bears Wire staff is sharing their thoughts following the Week 6 win:

The Morning After...the Bears' win vs. Jaguars

Alyssa Barbieri

As a Bears fan, we've tried to convince ourselves that [insert quarterback here] is the franchise quarterback that will deliver this team to another championship. Justin Fields. Mitchell Trubisky. But Caleb Williams feels like the real deal through just six games of his rookie season, where he continues to progress and make history on a weekly basis. Williams had just six incompletions compared to four touchdowns against the Jaguars. And while there are some throws he might want back, including the interception on what could've been a DJ Moore touchdown, Williams showcased his accuracy and ability to execute this offense to perfection.

Williams was the player of the game, but just narrowly with tight end Cole Kmet stepping up in a huge way. Not only did the veteran tight end account for two of Williams' touchdowns, but he stepped up when long snapper Scott Daly exited the game with a knee injury. Kmet led the Bears with 70 yards on five catches with two scores, as well as six perfect snaps that led to five points. Receiver Keenan Allen also joined the party. If Kmet was the second-quarter star, Allen was the second-half stud. Allen had five catches for 41 yards and two touchdowns, where he's proving to be a security blanket for Williams on third and fourth downs.

The Bears defense has been dominant through the first six weeks of the 2024 season, and it was all the more impressive with them missing three key starters in the secondary with Jaquan Brisker, Tyrique Stevenson and later Kyler Gordon sidelined with injury. Still, Chicago continued to inflict their hard-hitting style of play to the tune of three sacks, two takeaways and once again an opponent to 21 points or fewer for the 12th straight game.

On the one hand, it's disappointing that we've already arrived at the bye week just when it feels like the Bears are hitting their stride and playing complementary football. But, at the same time, it's coming at the perfect time with a number of key contributors banged up. Right now, Chicago is rolling and sitting pretty at 4-2 in a loaded NFC North. And while the next stretch presents some favorable matchups, the key will be maintaining that complementary style of football that's led them to an early winning record ahead of their tough division slate later in the season.

Brendan Sugrue

The Bears were hot coming into this week’s game against the Jaguars; there is no doubt about it. But did anyone see an absolute blowout coming overseas in London? I sure as heck didn’t. Chicago executed nearly everything to perfection, from the early arrival to the United Kingdom to the balanced offensive attack that put Jacksonville on its heels. For the most part, everything was solid, and it all begins with the quarterback.

This four-touchdown performance from Caleb Williams would be great stateside. It’s even better in London, where quarterbacks historically struggle. He keeps raising the bar and smashing Bears and NFL records alike with ease while winning games because of the offense. Aside from a couple of throws, Williams was deadly accurate and continues to work in tight windows, something previous Bears quarterbacks wouldn’t do. I feel comfortable saying he has officially arrived and that he’s here to stay.

Though Williams was the best player, he wasn’t the MVP. That would be Cole Kmet, who did a little bit of everything as a pass catcher, blocker, and long snapper after filling in for Scott Daly. He means so much to this team, and his play was needed in every area on Sunday. And shoutout to Keenan Allen for being deadly on third and fourth downs. They might as well be called “third and Allen” or “fourth and Allen” with his ability to find enough space in coverage.

Defensively, this was yet another “bend but don’t break” outing. This time, though, the Bears did it without a few key members of their secondary. It didn’t matter, as reserve players stepped up when they needed to the most. The defense won the turnover battle and didn’t allow a touchdown until the third quarter. By then, the game was already over.

With the Bears sitting at 4-2, they’re two games over .500 for the first time in nearly four years. They have also won three games in a row for the first time in nearly four years. This is a competitive team once again, and they’re putting themselves in position to compete for the postseason. It’s an exciting time to follow this team, and they have a chance to really make some noise over the next month. Enjoy the ride, Bears fans. It’s been a long time since you’ve had this much fun.

Lucas Hunt

The Bears rattled off their third straight win by handily defeating the Jaguars in London in Week 6, upgrading their record to an astounding 4-2 record heading into a much-deserved bye week. The passionate fans across the pond in the United Kingdom did their best making Tottenham Hotspur Stadium feel like the more familiar Soldier Field, as supporters clad in navy blue and orange filled the stands Sunday morning. Their favorite team rewarded their fandom by outclassing Jacksonville in every aspect, persistently putting the ball into the endzone on offense and leaving opposing QB Trevor Lawrence with little answers on defense.

Everything that could have went right, went right. Let’s start with the, at one time, polarizing offense, who spurred on several question marks due to worrying play early in the year. All discussion on the Bears’ offense has to begin with rookie QB Caleb Williams, and if these last few weeks have proven anything, it’s this: he’s pretty darn good. His four touchdown passes has already topped his previous career-best of two, but it’s not even the highlight throws that makes Williams so impressive. He has a characteristic that’s been exceedingly rare in Chicago signal-callers, and that’s his superb ability to see the field and go through reads. His admirable discipline in not abandoning a play because his first read isn’t there is what allowed offensive coordinator Shane Waldron’s scheme to flourish – Waldron being another victim of the fanbase’s rash judgment.

The defense deserves bountiful praise as well, not only for their performance on Sunday but for their heroic efforts to keep the Bears in games despite everything being thrown in disarray early on. They upheld their title as one of the NFL’s best defenses by weathering several key injuries: safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson were already designated as out before the game, but the unit suffered losses during the contest, including cornerback Kyler Gordon. The reserves were thrust into expanded roles and suitably filled those gaps – backup CB Josh Blackwell even managed to come away with an interception. It was clear the defense came into the season with relentless determination to be elite, and head coach Matt Eberflus should receive credit for molding the unit into the stingy group they’ve proven to be through six games.

The Bears have fully awoken from their lingering hibernation and they’re tearing through their schedule with ferociousness. The club will enjoy a bye next week before foraging into the easier throughs of the schedule and emerging into a stretch that features a gauntlet of NFC North showdowns. Chicago’s rivals have proven to formidable in their own right, so we’ll soon know how ready the Bears are to take the next step into a deserving playoff team.

Vincent Parise

With the Chicago Bears slowly but surely taking steps toward becoming a good team, there is a lot of cautious optimism surrounding them. That is fair based on how the last decade has gone for this team.

It was clear that coming to London to play the Jacksonville Jaguars was a huge opportunity to play a solid game against a weaker opponent as they did in Week Five against the Carolina Panthers. In the NFL, no win is easy no matter the opponent.

The Bears did everything they needed to do and more in the 35-16 victory over the Jaguars. Now they sit at 4-2 going into the bye week. This has been a great start to a year that began with a lot of promise. Now, they have time to rest up and prepare for a big matchup against the Washington Commanders. It is okay to be excited about this team and what they can accomplish.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: The Morning After...the Bears' blowout win vs. Jaguars in Week 6