Bears' Caleb Williams makes ESPN's Week 9 style list before a messy win over the Bucs
Caleb Williams wore a patch-covered Supreme zip-up into Soldier Field, then survived four interceptions as the Bears beat Tampa Bay 27-24 to reach 7-2.
Justin Jefferson's black leather trench coat now tops ESPN's weekly roundup of NFL gameday arrivals, but the Chicago Bears quarterback had the Sunday night spot. Caleb Williams walked into Soldier Field before the Tampa Bay game in a Supreme zip-up covered in varsity-style logo patches. He finished the look with a white cap and his usual iced matcha. Across the way, Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield wore a plaid bomber jacket. Before Jefferson's Monday night outfit was added, the Williams look had led ESPN's list.
The game itself was much rougher than the outfit. ESPN's game recap called it one of Chicago's worst performances of the season. The Bears turned the ball over five times, and Williams threw a career-high four interceptions. The last one, a deflected pass that Tampa Bay linebacker Alex Anzalone caught with Chicago ahead 17-13, helped Mayfield lead a late comeback. Williams answered on the final drive. He found rookie tight end Colston Loveland for 38 yards, and Cairo Santos hit a 38-yard field goal as time expired to win it 27-24. Santos had two field goals on the night. Afterward, Williams said of the turnovers, "That's not my identity."
The win kept Chicago's streak going. The Bears are 7-2 and have won four straight since the 31-7 loss at Green Bay. They are 6-1 since the 9-3 home loss to Minnesota in early season. Close games have been part of the pattern lately. Three of the last four wins came by eight points or fewer. The exception was the 34-17 win at Seattle, decided by 17.
What it means for the Saints game
Chicago doesn't play again until Sunday, Nov. 22, when New Orleans visits Soldier Field for a Fox broadcast. That gap gives Ben Johnson's staff an unusually long stretch to work on ball security. Five giveaways is the number that will follow this team into the next game, and the Bears can't count on another last-second kick to cover for that against every opponent.
The overall numbers still look good. Through nine games, Chicago has scored 241 points and allowed 184, a margin of plus-57. That works out to about 26.8 points scored and 20.4 allowed per game. The 59-37 shootout win at Carolina accounts for a large share of the offense. Even without it, the Bears have averaged better than 22 points a game. The defense held both the Jets (12) and the Eagles (7) to 12 points or fewer. Lately, though, it has given up 24 points in two of the last three games.
Home field has helped. The Bears are 4-1 at Soldier Field this season, and the only home loss was the low-scoring Vikings game. They are 3-1 on the road. The Saints game is the first chance to show that Sunday's sloppy finish was a one-off and not a pattern, with first place in the conversation and a healthy cushion above .500.
The Bears team page has the full schedule and results.