Bears PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 1 win vs. Panthers - Bears Wire
The Chicago Bears had a historic showing in their 59-37 win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 1, where the offense flat-out dominated while the defense struggled but tightened up in the second half.
The Bears got off to a rough start with penalties and committing a turnover on their opening possession and were quickly down 7-0. They responded with three straight touchdown drives and looked to have a commanding lead before the Panthers closed the gap and made things interesting by halftime and leading 31-24. But Chicago was able to pull away in the second half, scoring 28 more points for a resounding victory to kick off the 2026 season.
There were a number of good and bad performances in this historic win. Here are the best and worst performers, according to Pro Football Focus:
D'Andre Swift led a dominant Bears rushing attack with 124 yards on 18 carries, averaging 6.9 yards per carry, and three scores just days after inking a three-year contract extension. Kalif Raymond led Chicago's passing attack with eight catches for 84 yards on nine targets, and he's proving to be a sneaky good free-agent addition. Darnell Wright and Jonah Jackson paved the way for a rushing attack that totaled 291 rushing yards and six touchdowns, where most of those runs came from that right side of the offensive line. Meanwhile, Cole Kmet was on the receiving end of one of Caleb Williams' best throws -- a 22-yard touchdown early in the second quarter.
It was a rough rookie debut for Sam Roush, who whiffed on a couple blocking assignments, which nearly included a blocked field goal in the second quarter. But it's a long season for the rookie. Overall, the offensive line had a strong showing, but Garrett Bradbury did have a costly holding penalty that negated a nice first-down run by D'Andre Swift. Colston Loveland was a non-factor in the passing game as he was targeted just twice -- which didn't come until the second half -- and had no receptions, although he served a key role as a blocker. Caleb Williams had one of the best showings of his young career with 269 passing yards, a 72% completion percentage, two touchdowns, 65 rushing yards and two rushing scores along with the highest QBR of Week 1 (94.9), so it makes no sense why he's among the lowest graded. Kaden Davis was elevated from the practice squad and played a key role on special teams.
Malik Muhammad, along with fellow rookie Dillon Thieneman, were the biggest standouts on defense against the Panthers, but only Muhammad cracked the top-five list. Muhammad totaled three tackles, two pass breakups and an interception just before halftime to prevent a Carolina score. Grady Jarrett, who totaled three tackles and one QB hit, had an overall poor showing against the Panthers, so it's a huge surprise to find him among the highest-graded defenders for Chicago, which might speak to the defense's struggles as a whole. Cam Lewis totaled six tackles while getting the start at safety in place of an injured Xavier Woods while Elijah Hicks (one tackle) and Skyler Thomas (one tackle) rounded out the top five.
There were a lot of poor showings on defense, which is to be expected when you give up 37 points. T.J. Edwards led a disappointing showing from all Bears linebackers, where he totaled just one tackle. Rookie Jordan van den Berg failed to crack the boxscore in his NFL debut, but he had his moments. That didn't include an offsides penalty when he lined up at defensive end. Starting cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson had equally rough showings, who allowed 113.7 passer rating and 158.3 passer ratings, respectively, when targeted.
