Chicago’s 23-12 win over the Jets looked comfortable on the scoreboard, but the game also worked as a split-screen of where both teams are right now: the Bears are starting to look organized on defense, while the Jets kept handing away chances to make the afternoon closer than it became.
The Bears held New York to 157 yards, and that number fit the way the game unfolded. Chicago’s defense got off the field quickly for much of the last three weeks, and against the Jets it added three sacks and seven quarterback hits. Most Chicago fans probably would not have guessed that this would be the part of the team that looked most settled in Week 4, but over the last three games the defense has been playing lights-out football.
That mattered because the Bears’ offense did enough to turn the game into a cruise. Chicago piled up 492 yards and set a franchise record with 34 first downs. The Bears also controlled the ball long enough to keep the Jets from ever finding a rhythm, even though the offense itself had the ball for just 17:15.
Kyle Monangai was the clearest example of how the Bears kept the game moving. He carried 30 times for 146 yards and scored twice, and the Bears fed him often after benching D’Andre Swift following his fumble, even if Ben Johnson says he didn’t. Rome Odunze added six catches for 94 yards, giving Chicago another steady piece in a game where the Bears did not need explosive plays to stay in command.
The quarterback situation also framed the day for Chicago. Caleb Williams was not active for the second straight game because of the hamstring injury he suffered in the Bears’ Week 2 loss to the Vikings, and he is expected to possibly miss one or two more games. In his place, the Bears are reportedly rolling with Tyson Bagent as the starter and Case Keenum as the backup. Keenum had already started and won by 20 points against the Eagles in Week 3, which at least gave Chicago a recent example of how the offense could function without Williams.
For the Jets, the frustration came from more than the final score.
Minkah Fitzpatrick returned to the field for the first time since exiting New York’s season opener with a groin injury, and there was arguably no bigger standout for the Jets on Sunday. But his return could not offset a day full of wasted chances. Aaron Glenn expressed frustration over the penalties and missed opportunities for turnovers, and the numbers backed that up: the Jets drew eight of the game’s 12 penalties and were flagged 12 times for 76 yards.
The most glaring missed opportunity came on defense. Aaron Glenn’s defense had three interceptions brought back on penalties, and only one of those turnovers will show in the final box score. That kind of sequence can change how a game feels in real time, but it also leaves the Jets with the same problem they had before the flags: the plays did not count.
New York’s offense was just as hard to watch. The Jets had the ball for only 17:15, and they managed only 157 total yards. Braelon Allen carried 14 times for 59 yards, averaging 4.2 yards per carry, but the Jets never built enough around that to matter. Garrett Wilson caught three passes for 27 yards, and Kenyon Sadiq did not record a reception. Geno Smith threw to Wilson and Sadiq only four times each, a usage pattern that left the Jets without much production from the players they seemed to be trying to feature.
That was the kind of afternoon that can make a loss feel bigger than the final margin. Chicago did its part, but New York also spent much of the game undercutting itself with penalties, missed turnover chances, and an offense that never stayed with the right targets long enough to threaten the Bears.
So the contrast from Week 4 is pretty clear. The Bears are getting quicker defensive stops, more dependable run production, and enough structure around the quarterback situation to keep winning while Williams is out. The Jets, meanwhile, left Chicago with the same kind of questions that have followed them all season: what they are trying to be on offense, and why so many of their best chances disappeared before the box score could even capture them.