4 Chicago Bears stats every fan must know from their Week 17 loss

The Chicago Bears (4-12) turned in another disappointing outing on Thursday night, falling to the Seattle Seahawks (9-7) to the score of 6 - 3. The team's tenth straight loss, week 17 marked the Bears' final home game of the year and garnered incessant "sell the team" chants from the Soldier Field faithful.

Despite a rough visual product, there were a few bright spots for this team as they soon look to turn the page to the 2025 season. To see where the team can build from here - and where they still need to improve - here are four important statistics that summarize the team's recent loss:

7

The Bears again struggled to protect rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who finished the game with a problematic 7 sacks.

Williams has not had it easy in his first season, accumulating 67 sacks through 16 games, already the fourth-highest single-season mark in NFL history. The quarterback has been brought down multiple times in each of the team's games but one, and now has six outings where he has been sacked five or more times. Some of the responsibility lies on Williams, who frequently attempts to extend plays longer than he should. Still, the majority of the blame belongs to some combination of the offensive line, blocking schemes, and general offensive play-calling, all of which have let down the rookie passer throughout the year.

0

The offensive had one of their worst performances of the year on Thursday night, ending the game with 0 touchdowns.

The Bears did get into the endzone, but the play was ultimately called back for a holding penalty. Nonetheless, for the third time this season, the Bears were shut out of the end zone. Heading into the season, the Bears offense had been held without a touchdown just three times over their previous 45 games, a span that dated back to October 2021. Accomplishing three such outings over the last couple of months, it is safe to say that the Bears offense is as broken as it has ever been in recent memory despite an increase in production from the quarterback position. Finding a way to turn drives into touchdowns is obviously a must, and for a team that seems to have talent on paper, the Bears' inability to do so remains a frustrating aspect of the team's losing streak.

1

The Bears defense was able to shut down the Seahawks for the majority of the game but walked away with just 1 takeaway despite having other opportunities.

Coming in the form of a Kyler Gordon forced fumble and recovery, the Bears' only takeaway of the game uncoincidentally set the team up with their best starting field position of the night. Entering the game, quarterback Geno Smith ranked second in the NFL with 15 interceptions, but the defense was unfortunately unable to get a ball back from the quarterback. Notably, on Seattle's opening drive, linebackers Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards clashed as they honed in on an interceptable pass on the quarterback's third attempt. Ultimately, the ball fell to the ground, and the Seahawks were able to put three points on the board to start the game.

5

Special teams continue to be a silver lining for the Bears, including rookie punter Tory Taylor, who landed 5 punts inside Seattle's 20-yard line.

Coming off of seven total attempts, Taylor netted an average net yardage of 46.7 per punt while punting 45 yards or more on six of his kicks. Perhaps even more impressively, the Seahawks finished with zero total punt return yards. It can still be debated if selecting a punter so high in last April's draft was ultimately a wise decision, but it is impossible to claim that Taylor is not a weapon. Seattle's average starting field position was the 17-yard line, and with a strong defensive performance, the Seahawks faced an uphill battle when it came to scoring thanks in large part to the special teams play.