5 changes the Chicago Bears made to beat the Washinton Commanders

The Chicago Bears needed a win in the worst way, and they got it with a blowout over the Washington Commanders. Washington may not be good, but it was a statement win nonetheless and may have shown this team to how to put games away, an issue they had just the week prior.

The Bears put a team away after struggling to do so, but there were other factors that changed for the team to win. What happened?

5. The Chicago Bears dialed up more designed runs

This had been one of the most confusing factors of the first four weeks. We knew that Justin Fields needed to improve as a passer, but first, the Bears had to get his legs going to open the passing lanes. It is always about maximizing his ability.

However, through four weeks, he hardly had his name called. Fields had 29 rushing attempts through four games. Of them, 15 were designed runs. That is 3.75 per game. Last year, the number was at six per game, and in the second half of the season, that shot up to seven per game.

It was perplexing why the Bears would go back to not calling designed runs, but on Thursday, they finally got back to it. Ten of the 11 times Fields rushed the ball, it was by design. Some of this has to do with Khalil Herbert, Roschon Johnson, and Travis Homer all leaving with injuries.

Still, from the start, they were using Fields and his legs by design. It was not 2022 Fields, but he moved the chains and had a solid night rushing. More than that, he did it with his passing first. The combination can be lethal, and we finally saw both work together.