3 bold predictions for a showdown between Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels

We all understand that the bye week is an important part of the NFL schedule. Professional football is a rough sport, and with injuries seemingly on the rise, taking a week off mid-season is essential.

However, if your team is hot, you want to keep the momentum going, and the Chicago bears have been one of the most popular teams in the league. The Bears have blown away their last three opponents by a combined 51 points to move to 4-2 on the season, and with a bye last week they have had extra time to prepare for the 5-2 Commanders.

The Bears have a number of injured players who needed an extra week to get back into shape, but the Commanders could have used the bye more. That’s because Jayden Daniels, the ultra-talented rookie whose strong play has lifted the Commanders to the top of the NFC East, suffered a rib injury that forced him to miss most of last week’s game against the Panthers.

Daniels trained for the first time this week on Friday, with head coach Dan Quinn saying afterwards: “We’ll judge how he responds to the work we put in over the next 48 hours. But we really put the pressure on it today.” Daniels said the decision wasn’t up to him, but he felt better as the week went on. It looks like he’ll be a real game-caller, which means the Bears should prepare for him and back Marcus Mariota just in case.

Mariota is 2-0 against Chicago in his career, but the Bears would certainly prefer to face him over the dynamic Daniels, even if neutral NFL fans clamor for a Rookie quarterback showdown. Let’s make three bold predictions about Sunday’s game, starting with Washington’s quarterback situation.

Things didn’t look good for Daniels’ availability when he missed practice earlier this week, but the fact he practiced on Friday tells me he’ll be there on Sunday. The question is: how effective will he be?

Daniels does a lot of his damage on the ground. He already has 372 rushing yards on the year, a number that would certainly be higher if he wasn’t forced out of the game last week after being tackled on a run of 46 yards. Whether on a planned run or attempting pass pressure, he is a threat at any time to take off and run for big yards.

Commanders will do what is best for Daniels and his health, and rightly so. Because their star rookie is dealing with a rib injury and not, say, a knee injury or calf injury that could easily worsen, he’s more likely to be able to play, but offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury will be careful with him, especially against a dynamic Bears defense which has already produced some big hits this year.

Daniels has shown he’s more than capable of lighting it up through the air, but once it becomes clear he’s not his usual run threat, Matt Eberflus and the Bears will be able to focus on coverage. This means TJ Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds can stick with Terry McLaurin, Zach Ertz and the rest of the Commanders’ pass catchers coming over the middle of the field, and spend less time spying on the backfield to make sure to be sure that Daniels doesn’t confiscate. out.

The Bears have arguably the best young secondary in the game when healthy, but unfortunately things are in a bit of disarray right now. Jaquan Brisker and Kyler Gordon missed the London game with a concussion and a hamstring injury respectively, and Tyrique Stevenson missed the past two after straining a calf muscle.

Stevenson had a limited practice on Thursday and a full one on Friday, so the Bears can expect him to reclaim his No. 2 cornerback spot. However, Brisker and Gordon were ruled out on Friday, which will bring another scrutiny to Elijah Hicks and Josh Blackwell, but they passed their test against the Jaguars with flying colors. Hicks broke up multiple passes and was one of the highest-rated Bears of the week according to PFF, and Blackwell had the only interception of the day when he picked off Trevor Lawrence in the fourth quarter.

Jaylon Johnson is healthy, and that’s a problem for Washington’s passing game because he’ll be able to shut down McLaurin, the only real weapon Daniels has to throw to. The rest of the secondary will be able to contain the rest of Washington’s mediocre receiving corps, and as a result, the Commanders won’t come close to their league-leading 31.1 points per game.

One receiver I do expect to have a big day is DJ Moore. The Bears WR1 took a back seat after Keenan Allen and Cole Kmet’s two-touchdown performances against the Jaguars, but he won’t get a better matchup than the one he faces on Sunday the rest of the year.

Saying Moore set the Commanders on fire last year would be like saying the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 warmed the city. Moore had the best game of his six-year career in Week 5’s Thursday night game, with eight catches for 230 yards and three touchdowns.

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn certainly saw last year’s footage, but he doesn’t have the personnel to do much about it. The Bears have weapons all over the court and Caleb Williams has shown in recent weeks that he is willing and able to spread the ball around to all of them. Washington’s only chance to slow the dogfight in Chicago is to reach Caleb quickly. If the O-line can protect him, it will be a busy day for the scoreboard operator.

Even if Washington can generate a lot of pressure, Moore is so good at getting under routes quickly that it might not matter. Caleb has gotten better at reading the ball quickly and clearing the ball quickly in recent weeks, but he’s also learned when to stay in the pocket, buy some time and look downfield.

Washington has had a lot of problems with talented receivers this year. Chris Godwin, Mike Evans, Malik Nabers, Ja’Marr Chase and Zay Flowers have all gone nuclear against the Commanders, and they’ve only played seven games. Look for DJ to put up something like eight catches for 130 yards and a touchdown.

It won’t just be DJ Moore cutting loose in the Commanders secondary, and the real problem for the Commanders is that Caleb Williams is playing with more and more confidence each week. From Keenan Allen to Cole Kmet to Rome Odunze, there will be open receivers all day, and Caleb will find them.

The Commanders are giving up over 130 yards on the ground per play, so expect a big play from D’Andre Swift as well. Frankly, there’s no reason that Chicago’s offense, which has looked phenomenal lately, should have trouble moving the ball against Washington.

Every time the Commanders faced good quarterbacks (Baker Mayfield, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson), their defense was torn to shreds. When they faced bad quarterbacks (Daniel Jones, Deshaun Watson, Andy Dalton), they looked good. Don’t let those performances fool you, as Caleb Williams proves every week that he is on his way to superstardom.

These are two offenses that are clicking on all cylinders right now, but Jayden Daniels won’t be 100%. The Bears have injuries on defense, but capable backups have shown they can get the job done. Injured or not, Chicago’s defense is miles above Washington’s.

The only reason for Bears fans to worry is the location of the game. The Bears are 0-2 on the road, with close losses to the Texans and Colts in Weeks 2 and 3. The Commanders are undefeated at home, with wins over the Giants, Browns and Panthers (admittedly, not exactly a killer row). If the Bears lose it’s because they don’t know how to win in a hostile environment, but their last game on a neutral site in London showed they are capable of playing great football away from Soldier Field.

I don’t think there’s another team in the NFL that you could say has gotten better every week, but the Bears have. With an extra week to prepare and Jayden Daniels operating less efficiently than peak, the Bears will make a big statement with a 35-20 win.