Who Deserves The Blame For Bears' Offense?

The Chicago Bears were embarrassed on Sunday, losing to the rebuilding New England Patriots 19-3. Chicago's offense was truly abysmal in a must-win game over a weak opponent. Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron deserves blame for the recent string of lackluster performances and should be held accountable.

The Bears managed 142 total yards of offense, three points, and 11 first downs. Waldron's offense did not surpass 100 net passing or rushing yards. They were completely ineffective, going 1-of-14 on third-down attempts, and punted on eight occasions.

Waldron's offense began slow and never found its footing. Chicago had totaled just 32 passing yards by halftime and was zero-for-six on third down. The Patriots, led by rookie quarterback Drake Maye, had out-gained them 193-87.

Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams had been flashing legitimate progress before Chicago's Week 7 bye. In a blowout Week 6 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Williams completed a career-high 79.3% of his passing attempts en route to a season-best four touchdown passes. It was Chicago's third consecutive victory. It's been all downhill ever since.

Following Sunday's defeat to the Patriots, the Bears have suffered three consecutive losses since exiting their bye. The Bears are averaging an unheard-of nine points per contest throughout this disappointing and ongoing stretch, their fourth-worst scoring drought since 2004. Williams hasn't thrown a single touchdown pass in nearly one calendar month.

Williams has now endured a touchdown-less performance in more than 50% of his appearances this season (five). Most coordinators effectively utilize the bye week to make appropriate in-season adjustments. Waldron's offense has somehow regressed in a major way.

Entering Monday Night Football, the Bears rank 30th in total offense (277.7), 30th in passing (169.6), and 24th in scoring (19.4) outputs per game. They're a hapless 4-5, trailing everyone in an otherwise excellent NFC North division by a minimum of two contests. It's becoming increasingly difficult to see the vision of the Matt Eberflus and Waldron-led Bears.

The other area of Chicago's offense that deserves scrutiny for their latest historically poor performances is the offensive line, and that falls at the feet of both Waldron and general manager Ryan Poles. Williams was sacked nine times by the Patriots on Sunday. In the previous two defeats, Williams was sacked a combined eight times, including suffering six takedowns at the hands of an Arizona Cardinals pass rush that amassed just 18 quarterback takedowns in their other nine contests.

It's worth noting that Eberflus has various in-house options on staff if he were to relieve Waldron of his duties. Offensive passing game coordinator Thomas Brown would be a strong candidate to assume play-calling duties. Brown possesses the required experience after coordinating the Carolina Panthers offense during the 2023 campaign. Brown previously worked with Sean McVay for three seasons (2020-22).

Chicago's offense is completely broken. Waldron is not the correct play-caller and coordinator to continue overseeing Williams' development. Eberflus must consider acting immediately before his job becomes in jeopardy, too.