The Chicago Bears upset the Philadelphia Eagles in an important win to help keep pace in the NFC North and take pressure off Caleb Williams to return. With this in mind, there will plenty of coverage around the incredible night that Case Keenum had and the credit the aging quarterback deserves. As a reminder, this is the same signal caller who was talked out of retirement two years ago to backup Williams and help develop the young quarterback.
With that said, it isn't just Keenum who deserves immense credit for this win, but defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. Chicago's defense put on a masterclass of bending but not breaking early in the game and found a way to shut down the run in the second half.
What Allen's unit did best was cage in Jalen Hurts and force the quarterback to make quick decisions unable to get outside the pocket and create. There is no way around the fact that this was a clear design and an elite decision that helped shut down the Philly defense and buy Keenum plenty of time to settle into the game and push Chicago out to a lead they would refuse to give up the rest of the way.
Allen's defense took a lot of heat early in the year as Carolina poured on points in the season opener with Bryce Young passing for over 300 yards and a trio of touchdowns. However, each week the defense has improved and this past week was arguably the best performance yet.
Dennis Allen deserves massive credit for Bears impressive upset win over Eagles in Monday night win
The Bears would limit Hurts through the air as well playing the perfect coverage in the second half and not allowing the quarterback time to take advantage of any secondary concerns. It was a complete effort in all phases with the defensive line play shining in the third quarter to help Chicago take complete control of the game.
Any questions about whether or not the Bears could hang in meaningful contention with Williams missing time has very promptly been answered. Keenum had an undeniably magical night, but it was the defense of Allen setting this up and never putting the aging quarterback in a position where he was under pressure to answer the opposing offense.
Chicago played within their offense and kept Keenum in his comfort zone and this was due to the defensive effort. It is easy to believe the Bears can continue winning even without Williams as long as this is the type of effort the other side of the ball is going to offer Dennis Allen.
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