The Chicago Bears have a plethora of talent in the receivers room, and they should lean into that this weꦇek when they travel to Houston 🐷to take on the Texans.
Bears Receivers (and Tight Ends)
(Q) = Questionable
Texans Secondary
Bears Receivers Expectations
Chicago has one of the better receiver rooms in the NFL, but if we learned anything from Week 1, they’re still learning how to deploy all of that talent.
Offensive Coordinator Shane Waldron’s personnel groupings left plenty to be desired. The Bears’ top three receivers — DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and Rome Odunze — were on the field together for only 10 snaps. Tight end Cole Kmet played only 48 percent of the snaps, while Gerald Everett played 61 percent of the time.
On Thursday, Waldron admitted that he needs to find a better balan🅘ce.
“That’s more on us, st☂arting with me, of getting the reps a little balanced out,” . “But it also goes back to playing efficient footb൩all.”
Tennessee’s DC Dennard Wilson had a solid game plan and an excellent secondary to deploy it with on Sunday. Houston’s secondary isn’t nearly as good as Tennessee’s, so if Waldron was looking for a time to hit the reset button and find that balance he spoke of on Thursday, Sunday’s matchup against Houston would be it.
I mentioned on Thursday that DJ Moore’s usage was near the top of the list of head-scratchers in Week 1, which needs to change this week. In Week 1, Moore’s ADOT was 6.6 yards. Last season, it was 10.9 yards. Even if it were somewhere in the middle this weekend in Houston, it would be a step in the right direction.
Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze have been dealing with injuries this week, with Allen coping with a nagging heel injury and Odunze dealing with a low-grade MCL sprain. Allen should play this weekend, but Odunze’s status is more in doubt despite Head Coach Matt Eberflus saying this week that Odunze was considered “day-to-day” and the injury was considered “nothing serious.”
That’s probably a bit of gamesmanship by Eberflus, with Odunze likely inactive on Sunday night, if I had to guess. That means that DJ Moore’s usage becomes all that much more critical. It also means that Waldron has to figure out a way to get Cole Kmet more involved in the passing game than he was last week.
Velus Jones Jr. is listed behind Carter on the receiver depth chart right now, but I feel Jones will also be inactive this week, making Tyler Scott the fourth receiver (if Odunze and Jones are inactive). Carter looked explosive in the return game and even had a deep win on a go route as a receiver against the Titans but was overthrown 🍎by Williams.
Texans Secondary Expectations
Houston’s secondary isn’t great. The Texans ranked 20th against the pass last season, allowing 230 passing yards per game and allowed 10.1 yards per completion to opposing quarterbacks in 2023. They picked up where they left off last week in their opener against the Indianapolis Colts, allowing 22.1 yards per completion and two scores to Anthony Richardson.
Houston allowed 27 points to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1. Richardson threw for 212 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in a 29-27 Texans victory. Despite𒊎 escaping with a win, Houston was vulnerable to the deep ball, with Alec Pierce averaging 41.7 yards per reception on three catches and Ashton Dulin hauling in a 54-yard touchdown reception. Additionally, Adonai Mitchell had an 88.89 percent separation rate in Week 1, the most of any wide receiver with more than six opportunities.
DeMeco Ryans’ top two cornerbacks—Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter—were ranked near the bottom of all cornerbacks in Week 1 in overall defense and coverage grades at Pro Football Focus. Stingley had a 57.5 overall grade and a 48.5 coverage grade, and Lassiter had a 54.6 overall grade and a 52.0 coverage grade.
Houston’s defensive line will give the Bears fits, but if Waldron commits to exploiting their weak secondary and the offensive line can play better than they did in Week 1, Chicago has a path to victory on Sunday night.
X-Factor
DJ Moore has to be a focal point of this week’s game plan. Houston is vulnerable in the secondary, especially on the deep ball. Indianapolis shredded the Texans’ secondary last week, and the Bears have a significantly better receiver group and quarterback.
Moore is the best of the bunch, and Waldron should scheme up a handful of deep shots for Moore on Sunday night in Houstonജ. In 2023, Moore ranked♑ fifth in the NFL in deep targets and seventh in EPA (+83.9).
