5 keys to victory for the Bears against the Jets in Week 4

The Bears are 2-1. The Jets are 1-2. Chicago is back at Soldier Field again and enters a game most experts expect them to win.

Williams has officially been ruled out with his hamstring injury, meaning either Tyson Bagent or Case Keenum will start, with Bagent being the leader in the clubhouse.

Meanwhile, the Jets arrive with a quarterback playing some of the best football of his career.

Geno Smith leads the NFL with a 75.5% completion percentage and has thrown four touchdowns without an interception. His 110.0 passer rating is the best by a Jets quarterback through three games in franchise history.

So, no, this isn't a game the Bears can simply assume they'll win because of recent team history.

Here are five keys to getting Chicago to 3-1.

1. Make the running game the foundation again

The Bears enter Week 4 leading the NFL with 184.3 rushing yards per game and 5.27 yards per carry.

Whether Johnson starts Bagent or Keenum, Chicago shouldn't ask its backup quarterback to carry the offense when D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai offer a much clearer path to victory. And yes, Keenum was the engine behind Chicago's win over the Eagles, but that felt more like a magical performance than a logical game plan you can rely on while Williams misses time.

Even with how well Keenum played, the Bears rushed for 154 yards against Philadelphia, controlled possession, and never allowed their backup quarterback to be placed in a situation where he had to chase the game. That's the blueprint again.

The Jets aren't an easy matchup in this area. New York has allowed only 87.3 rushing yards per game, seventh-best in the NFL entering Week 4.

Something has to give.

Run the football. Stay ahead of the chains. Keep the quarterback out of obvious passing situations. And make New York prove it can stop the best rushing attack in football for four quarters.

2. Don't allow Geno Smith to get comfortable

Smith is playing extremely efficient football through three games of the 2026 season.

Along with his league-leading completion percentage, Smith is averaging 261 passing yards per game and hasn't thrown an interception. Against Detroit last week, he completed 31 of 37 passes for 321 yards and three touchdowns.

According to Next Gen Stats, Smith is averaging 10.3 yards per attempt against single-high coverage, second-best in the NFL, while completing 88.9% of those throws.

Dennis Allen's defense has used single-high coverage on 60.2% of opposing dropbacks. That's something to watch.

Chicago can't allow Smith to get comfortable in the pocket and repeatedly find Garrett Wilson and rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq.

Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo, Grady Jarrett and the rest of Chicago's front need to pin their ears back and have an effective day rushing the passer.

The Bears don't necessarily need five sacks. But they do need disruption.

3. Don't let Garrett Wilson wreck the game

Smith's hot start has been aided by the presence of one of the NFL's most dangerous receivers. Wilson enters Sunday with 21 receptions for 243 yards through three games, and he just produced 10 catches for 107 yards and a touchdown against Detroit.

And he isn't Smith's only emerging threat. Sadiq caught seven passes for 105 yards and a touchdown against the Lions, making Wilson and Sadiq just the third wide receiver-tight end combination in Jets history to each top 100 receiving yards with a touchdown in the same game.

That's a tough assignment for a Bears secondary that has already dealt with significant injury issues this season, but explosive plays can't become a recurring problem.

The Bears have allowed fewer than 10 points in consecutive games for the first time since 2012 after surrendering 37 to Carolina in Week 1. Chicago's defensive improvement has been one of the most encouraging developments of the young season, and Sunday will tell us considerably more about whether it's real.

4. Win the Time of possession battle

Here's a fascinating statistic entering Sunday. The Jets rank first in the NFL in average time of possession at 34:58. The Bears rank second at 34:32.

Translation? Both teams want to control the game.

The Bears' logic is obvious. It keeps Smith and Wilson standing on the sideline. It reduces the pressure on whichever backup quarterback starts. It lets Johnson stay committed to Swift and Monangai.

That's why the team that performs best on third down is probably the team that will win the game.

The Bears held Philadelphia to 2-of-9 on third down Monday night while forcing three takeaways. Do it again, and Chicago should have a significant advantage.

5. Don't give the Jets life with turnovers

This is the simplest way to win a football game, especially against a team that's ripe for an upset win.

The Jets are 1-2, but both of their losses have come against NFC North opponents Green Bay and Detroit. New York lost to the Lions by seven last week despite Smith's outstanding performance. The Jets could be 3-0.

It's why the Bears cannot give Gang Green more possessions.

The Bears finished plus-three in turnover margin against Philadelphia, and the result was a 20-point victory. That formula will let Bagent or Keenum play free.

Bears have an opportunity they can't waste

Monday night was a dramatic and somewhat surprising win. Chicago was without Williams, Keenum was making his first NFL start in years, and an undefeated Philadelphia team arrived at Soldier Field with most experts expecting the Eagles to win.

Sunday doesn't carry the same underdog energy, and sometimes that can be a trap.

Chicago is 2-1 and can reach 3-1 before traveling to Green Bay in Week 5. There's a lot of pressure on this game, especially because it was penciled as a win when assessing the short-term outlook after Williams' went down.

Beating Philadelphia showed the ceiling of what the Bears can accomplish without Williams. Beating New York is just as important. It will show that Chicago can handle business when it's expected to.

Run the football. Harass Geno Smith. Contain Garrett Wilson. Control and protect the ball.

Do those five things, and the Bears

have an excellent chance to leave Soldier Field at 3-1.