The Bengals host their third-straight game at Paycor Stadium in Week 9 against the Bears.

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Scouting Report

By: Michael Hull

Bears Offense

The Bears offense scored a season-low 16 points in Week 8 after scoring at least 21 points in all six prior contests. QB Caleb Williams threw for 285 yards and an interception in the loss. Williams has completed 61.9% of his passes, ranking 33rd among QBs with at least 25 dropbacks per PFF, and has thrown nine touchdowns to four interceptions on the year but no touchdowns in the last two games. PFF has credited the 2024 first overall pick from Southern California with nine turnover-worthy throws this season, tied for the seventh most in the NFL.

Williams' 2024 draft mate WR Rome Odunze has led the Bears aerial attack. The first rounder from Washington paces the team in targets, receptions, yards and touchdowns. Odunze's 114 yards against the Ravens rank as the second most in his NFL career and his fourth 100+-yard performance in two pro seasons. His five touchdowns are tied for the fifth-most receiving touchdowns in the NFL among wideouts, while his 15.3 yards per reception rank 15th among receivers with at least 20 targets.

WR DJ Moore has been a dependable second option, recording zero drops in 26 receptions. The Bears also drafted TE Colston Loveland out of Michigan in the first round, who has 116 receiving yards in six games played.

RB D'Andre Swift has scored a touchdown in four straight games, leading the Chicago backfield with 100 carries and averaging 4.6 yards per attempt. Rookie Kyle Monangai, a seventh-round pick from Rutgers, saw his most work of the season in Week 7 against the Saints, carrying the ball 13 times. He had seven attempts for 24 yards in the loss to Baltimore and has 42 attempts on the season. Chicago averages 154.3 rushing yards per game since their Week 5 byem the third most in the NFL.

After allowing Williams to be sacked 68 times in 2024, the Bears offensive line has given up 12 sacks in seven games so far this season. Williams also has an average time to throw of 3.16 seconds, per Next Gen Stats, the longest in the NFL and the third longest since 2016.

Bears Defense

Chicago is allowing 26.4 points and 350.7 yards per game, both the eighth most in the NFL. They have been opportunistic on that side of the ball, however, leading the NFL with 16 takeaways and a +10-turnover differential. They forced multiple turnovers in each game of their four-game winning streak but did not force any in the Week 8 loss to Baltimore.

The Bears have struggled in run defense, allowing the sixth-most rushing yards per game in the league (143.3). They just allowed 5.1 yards per carry to the Ravens, as RB Derrick Henry found the end zone twice. On the year, Chicago has allowed 5.3 yards per carry, the third most in the NFL.

Chicago has generated 14 sacks this season, the eighth fewest in the league. DT Gervon Dexter Sr. leads the team with 3.5 takedowns from his interior spot, while edge rusher Montez Sweat paces the team with 23 total pressures.

On the back end, the Bears have been without star CB Jaylon Johnson since the start of the season. Johnson missed all of training camp, the preseason and Week 1. He returned briefly in Week 2 but left with a core muscle injury that required surgery. He became eligible to return from Injured Reserve in Week 8, but no move has been made as of now. Chicago was also without nickel corner Kyler Gordon and outside corner Tyrique Stevenson, their two-highest graded corners per PFF, in the loss to the Ravens, a game in which backup quarterback Tyler Huntley completed 17-of-22 passes for 186 yards and a score. S Kevin Byard III has four interceptions this season, tied for the most in the NFL, while LB Tremaine Edmunds has three, tied for third.

What to Watch For

By: Diego Branda

Run Game Looks to Continue Resurgence

Cincinnati's run game has exploded over the past two games as the Bengals totaled a combined 323 yards on the ground against the Steelers and Jets (161.5 per game), the third-most in the league since Week 7. They've also picked up 20 first downs via runs, tied with Kansas City for the most by any team over the past two weeks.

Leading the charge is the halfback duo of Chase Brown and Samaje Perine. Brown notched his second career 100-yard rushing game in the Thursday night win over Pittsburgh, finishing with 108 on just 11 carries for a career-best 9.8 average. His effort included his two longest runs of the season, a 37-yarder and 27-yarder which both kickstarted Bengals touchdown drives.

Perine is coming off a 94-yard effort against New York, which marked the fifth-most rushing yards in a game in his career and his most since he had 106 yards in Cincinnati's win over the Chiefs in Week 13 of 2022. His 32-yard touchdown in the third quarter against the Jets also was the third-longest scoring run of his career.

Brown, Perine and the Bengals' offensive line will face a Chicago run defense that has yielded 143.3 rushing yards per game this season (27th in NFL).

Ja'Marr Eyes More History

Ja’Marr Chase, who seemingly finds himself in historical company on a weekly basis this season, has a chance to put his name alongside another Hall of Famer on Sunday. Chase has recorded at least 10 receptions in each of the past three games, and if he reaches double-digits again versus the Bears, he would join Calvin Johnson as the only players in NFL history to post 10-plus catches in four consecutive contests. Johnson accomplished the feat in Weeks 13-16 of the 2012 season.

Chase's 38 receptions from Weeks 6-8 are tied with former Saints receiver Michael Thomas for the most in a three-game span in NFL history. Chase, who currently paces the NFL with 70 total catches this season, has a chance to become the first player to lead the league in receptions in back-to-back years since Thomas did it in 2018 and 2019.

Tee Inches Closer to 5K

Tee Higgins enters Sunday with 4,955 receiving yards in his career, just 45 shy of 5,000. Should he get there in what will be his 79th regular-season game, he would become the fifth-fastest player in Bengals history to reach the 5K milestone. The Cincinnati players to accomplish that feat in fewer games are Ja'Marr Chase (58 games), A.J. Green (63), Chad Johnson (70) and Cris Collinsworth (71).

Higgins' 44-yard touchdown last week against the Jets was his longest scoring reception since Week 16 of the 2023 season, when he had a career-long 80-yarder at Pittsburgh. Two weeks ago against the Steelers, he posted season highs in catches (six) and yards (96).

Higgins also has a chance to add to his streak of eight consecutive home games played with a receiving touchdown. It's the longest current streak in the NFL, and the longest such streak in Bengals history.

Money Mac Approaches 500 Points

Evan McPherson heads into this week having accounted for 497 points in his career (regular season). With three more in what will be his 70th career game on Sunday, he would become the third-fastest kicker in Bengals history to reach 500. Only Shayne Graham and Mike Nugent reached the milestone in fewer games while playing for Cincinnati, and both did it in their 68th appearance in stripes.

For the season, McPherson has converted 11 of his 13 field goal attempts (84.6 percent) and is a perfect 19-for-19 on extra points. After missing a 56-yard try in Week 6 at Green Bay, he has knocked through each of his last five field goal kicks.

Extra Points

• Zac Taylor enters Sunday with 49 regular-season wins as the Bengals' head coach and will have a chance to join former head coaches Paul Brown, Sam Wyche and Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati's 50-win club.
• Ja'Marr Chase has 51 career receiving touchdowns and is two shy of tying Isaac Curtis (53) for fourth-most in Bengals history.
• Cornerback DJ Turner II enters Week 9 as the league leader in passes defensed this season with 13.
• Linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. leads all rookies this season with 62 total tackles, while fellow linebacker Barrett Carter is tied for sixth with 44.

Check out the Bengals 2025 Schedule.