Week nine is here and the Chicago Bears (4-3) are back on the road, taking on the Arizona Cardinals (4-4) for a mid-afternoon showdown in the desert. A matchup of two Heisman Trophy-winning, Lincoln Riley-coached, first-overall pick quarterbacks in Caleb Williams and Kyler Murray, today's battle may be an inflection point for either team as they reach the halfway point of the NFL season.
The game poses an opportunity for the Bears to turn the page from their crushing loss a week ago and earn their first road victory (on American soil) since week 12 of last season. Across the gridiron, a win for the Cardinals would keep them atop the neck-and-neck NFC West with their third straight victory.
After beating the Cardinals on Christmas Eve a year ago, the Bears are looking today to earn their second straight win against the team, but to do so, they will have to accomplish the three following keys to success:
1) Get the ball to offensive playmakers quickly
Two weeks after their bye, the Bears are still dealing with several injuries, especially across the offensive line. Tackles Braxton Jones and Kiran Amegadjie have already been ruled out for week nine, and both Ryan Bates and Teven Jenkins are listed as questionable following a week of limited practice.
Fortunately for the injury-riddled line, the Cardinals' pass rush has struggled thus far and is ranked 26th across the league with 15 sacks through eight games. Still, with potentially several reserve linemen being called upon, the Bears may find it difficult to consistently gain a push in the rushing attack or protect Williams for downfield throws.
To counteract this, getting the ball out of Williams' hands quickly and into those of the offensive playmakers would help significantly. D.J. Moore, Rome Odunze, and D'Andre Swift are all dangerous with the ball in open field, and Cole Kmet and Keenan Allen both serve as reliable targets over the middle. If Williams can play point guard and set his targets up without putting stress on his line, the Bears should be able to overcome their injuries.