Bears Schedule Favorable for Caleb Williams, Screams of Poetry

The Chicago Bears schedule is finally here! Aside from a trip to London and a Thanksgiving Day matinee against the Detroit Lions, the schedule was as predictable as possible. Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze will make their NFL debuts against the Tennessee Titans in Week 1 but that's only the beginning.

Caleb Williams vs. Who?

Bears vs. Titans

When the Bears kick off against the Titans in Week 1, Caleb Williams will get his first taste of NFL action in a mtchup against Tennessee quarterback, Will Levis. While Levis showed flashes of skill during his rookie season, he isn't a terrifying matchup worthy of worry, despite throwing to DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley.

Nevertheless this is still Williams's first NFL game and will likely shake off the rust as the game progresses. But as the Titans don't own a top-10 defense, Williams, Odunze, and Keenan Allen should have a field day with this secondary.

Chicago Travels to Houston and Indianapolis

Weeks two and three of the 2024 NFL season are where things get really interesting. The Bears travel to Houston to face C.J. Stroud and the Texans in what should be a thrilling offensive shootout. Houston added veteran receiver Stefon Diggs in the offseason and the Texans were a huge surprise in 2023, making them a likely "sleeper" team for 2024.

The thought of Caleb Williams dueling C.J. Stroud is incredible. This game should be high scoring and could very well go right down to the final seconds to decide victory. But the fun doesn't end here.

The next week, Chicago travels to Indianapolis to face the Colts. If Anthony Richardson is back and fully healthy, this will be another outstanding quarterback matchup. Plus, we'll get to watch Caleb Williams try to escape the clutches of rookie pass rusher Laiatu Latu and those will be reps we'll evaluate for the entire season.

Back-To-Back Tough Battles

Facing the Jacksonville Jaguars will be tough regardless of where the game takes place. Trevor Lawrence is still a quarterback to fear in spite of mistakes and inconsistencies at times.

But this game is in London and that's a first for many players on the Chicago Bears. The Jaguars are used to traveling across the pond and will be in their element much more than the Bears will be.

The only slight benefit the Bears will have is they are traveling to London at the same time the Jaguars are, so any jetlag issues will plague both organizations. Jacksonville will be staying in London for an extra week to take on the New England Patriots while the Bears head home entering their Week 7 bye week.

On the other side of the bye week though, is a matchup with the Washington Commanders and second overall pick, Jayden Daniels.

There's no avoiding the issue here. Daniels is a great quarterback; so much so that many people prior to the 2024 NFL Draft thought the Chicago Bears should take the LSU product over Caleb Williams.

Coming out of the bye week for the first time in the NFL will be a challenge for Caleb Williams. If head coach Matt Eberflus and the rest of his staff are any good at their jobs, they will have this Bears team prepared and ready to fight after a much-deserved week off.

The Most Intriguing Weeks For The Bears

Arguably, the Bears' schedule doesn't get really interesting until more than halfway through the season. From Weeks 11 to 16, the Bears will face the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions twice, the Green Bay Packers once, and the San Francisco 49ers once.

Caleb Williams will face off against J.J. McCarthy and Jared Goff twice each in this stretch. While Goff is a trusted NFL veteran capable of winning clutch games, McCarthy is a fellow rookie. These matchups are enticing but both very different.

Against the Lions, Williams will have to overcome Dan Campbell's defense and hope Chicago's defense can stop Goff and company from driving right through them. It could come down to whichever quarterback plays hero as the timer hits double zeros. 

Against the Vikings, the winner of these games could be attributed to which quarterback makes mistakes first. This deep into the season, both Williams and McCarthy will have enough experience to know their way around the NFL.

But as rookies, rookie-mistakes still happen and the most intriguing aspect of these games will be: who throws the first interception? Could it really be that simple? Maybe.

Bears vs. Packers Returns To Being An Actual Rivalry

The 49ers are the pinnacle of the NFC and Brock Purdy is no joke. He can ball and the San Francisco offense didn't take too much of a loss this offseason meaning they're still a team that needs to be beat. They won't beat themselves.

Williams facing off against Purdy will be very fun to watch and the Bears just might surprise everyone with a win here.

Lastly, the rivalry between the Bears and the Packers hasn't been as even lately as it has been in the past. But that will change with Caleb Williams. The Packers are a formidable organization and Jordan Love proved he can sling the pigskin.

Watching Williams and Odunze wreck the Green Bay secondary is something that may be derived from a delusion of grandeur. But the Bears won't see Green Bay until November and that's plenty of time for the offense to build a rhythm.

Could the Chicago Bears sneak into the playoffs as a Wild Card team? It's quite possible with the ease of schedule they have. Fans should enjoy each week while it's happening though because the 2024 season is building a foundation for Chicago to succeed long term.