How the Bears could upset the Rams in Week 1

The Chicago Bears will battle the Los Angeles Rams to open the season, where the Bears will be looking to upset the heavily-favored Rams.

While there’s not a lot of confidence that Chicago can beat Los Angeles, there’s definitely a blueprint to a Bears victory. Now, whether Chicago executes is an entirely separate matter.

Here’s how the Bears could pull an upset over the Rams in Week 1.

Bring pressure on Matthew Stafford

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The Bears will face a familiar foe in former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was traded to the Rams this offseason. Stafford has gone 11-9 against Chicago in his career, where he’s completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 5,440 yards with 32 touchdowns and 23 interceptions for a 86.3 passer rating. Stafford has also been sacked 49 times by the Bears in 20 games, which bodes well for a Chicago front seven looking to bring pressure on Stafford. For what it’s worth, Stafford is winless against Chicago in season openers.

Balanced offensive attack

AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton

If the Bears stand any chance in this game, they need to get things going on offense. While they’re not going to get into a shootout, the offense needs to establish a balanced attack, which starts with running the ball with David Montgomery. The best thing the offense can do is keep the Rams’ high-powered offense off the field, which means they’re going to need to keep drives alive and eat up as much clock as possible. If Chicago can keep it close and a low-scoring affair, they might stand a chance.

Limit mistakes and win turnover battle

AP Photo/David Banks

For the Bears to find a way to upset the Rams, they can’t afford to make mistakes that would make things even more difficult on them. The most important thing they need to do is win the turnover battle, which starts with protecting the football. But it’s also about limiting the silly mistakes including drive-halting penalties that Chicago has been known to struggle with in the past. The Bears will need to play near flawless football — no turnovers, no penalties, no poor clock management — if they want to win.

Limit Aaron Donald's impact

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The Bears aren’t going to stop Aaron Donald. But the offensive line is going to need to do its best to limit the most dominant defensive player in football if they stand a chance. It’s a tall order for any offensive line, but an even more difficult task for a Bears offensive line searching for consistency. Chicago was able to contain Donald once in the last three meetings, back in 2018 when then-rookie guard James Daniels held his own against Donald, who was held to just 1 QB hit and no sacks. If the Bears can establish a balanced attack, it’ll go a long way in attempting to limit Donald’s impact.

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