Find out how the Chicago Bears performed this season. Our report card reveals grades for their first four games in the NFL.

The first quarter of the season is done… Well, technically, it isn’t quite a true quarter, since the NFL now has 17 games in a season. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll just refer to this early portion as the first quarter. With that in mind, it’s time to look over the report card to see what grades the 2025 Chicago Bears posted.

Will their performances versus the Vikings and Lions drag down the grade like a missing calculus assignment? Will we see an unexpected grade from a nice professor for “good effort”? Let’s jump into the grades and see how they did!

Offense: C+ (Borderline B- with the QB’s extra credit)

The offense had a rough start to the season, but Caleb Williams, under the tutelage of Ben Johnson, slowly improved week to week (even though it only resulted in two wins). The run game still has a long way to go, but the offense as a whole put up respectable numbers in the passing game. If the Bears want to finish with high marks through the rest of the season, they will have to get the run game sorted. Let’s check out the grades of the passing game, running game, and the offensive line.

Passing Game: B

Has the passing game been perfect? No, not at all. However, the rise of Williams cannot be downplayed. Williams has dramatically improved this season in comparison to the first four games last year. Beyond that, he has played at a top-10 level this season. He has also drastically cut down the number of sacks he’s taken.  Part of the reason the passing game has taken a huge step has been the emergence of Rome Odunze. Through four games, Odunze has 296 yards receiving and five touchdowns. This duo is on its way to being one of the best in the league. Rookie Luther Burden has also contributed with 99 yards and a highlight reel touchdown. Burden has a long way to go, but the future seems bright for him in this offense.

Running Game: D-

The Bears opted to sign D’Andre Swift to a big contract instead of extending David Montgomery. That decision looks worse and worse as each week goes on. Swift has done well in the passing game with big plays, but his efficiency on first and second down is about as bad as it gets. He has run hard at times and has come up clutch on third down, but there are just too many yards left on the field for this grade to be any higher.

Offensive Line: B

Joe Thuney almost single-handedly raises this a full letter grade. While there have been struggles at both tackle positions, Thuney has been an absolute stud this season. That is not to say the line has not played well in spurts. In pass pro, this line has done well to keep Williams upright and allow him to play with more confidence. The tackles have left a lot to be desired, but they have held strong in crucial moments. They have to nail down their run game assignments and communication. While the running backs have underwhelmed, the run blocking has been really poor in total to start. It seems whenever one side does its job, the other folds. I believe that as this unit gels more, it will improve quite a bit.

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Defense: D

The Bears’ defense has long been the strength of the franchise. This year has been far from that. By almost every metric, this is a bottom-five defense. They currently rank 31st in rush defense, 17th in pass defense, and 28th in total points allowed. It is important to note that health has had a big impact on the defensive failures. Being without Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Johnson, and TJ Edwards for most of the first quarter has definitely taken a toll on this defense. Their absence has been missed, especially in the run game. They have also lacked production from their big-money players. It’s bleak, but let’s peel off the band-aid and check out the grades of the rush and pass defense.

Rush Defense: F

This has been one of the worst rush defenses I have seen in all my years of watching football. The Bears have allowed a staggering 6.1 yards per carry and 658 yards on the ground so far. It really does not get much worse than that. This cannot continue if the Bears want to make any sort of noise this season. On the bright side, it can’t get worse, right?

Pass Defense: B-

The pass defense has been relatively solid so far this season. Part of that likely has to do with teams focusing on running the ball. That being said, this unit has been a bit of a surprise considering they have been without their two best secondary members this season. They should be getting back Gordon against the commanders, though, and they should help quite a bit. Tyrique Stevenson has been a big bright spot on this defense. Nashon Wright has struggled this season in coverage, and that, combined with minimal pass rush, has led to some big plays. If they can get healthy and cut down on the big plays, this secondary could become a formidable one.

Special Teams: C

Coach Hightower was retained by Johnson due to his resume and respect in the locker room. He will have to turn this unit around if he wants to continue with the Bears beyond this season. This unit has been relatively abysmal for four games into the season. Let’s dive deeper into the grades to see what is going on.

Punt Unit: D

Tory Taylor will be under the microscope more than any other punter in the league (maybe in history). Ryan Poles made a bold move using a fourth-round pick to select the Aussie punter out of Iowa, and so far this season, it hasn’t looked good. Yes, he has a cannon for a leg. However, he has routinely out-kicked his coverage, and the directional pinning has been at a minimum. So far, he has only had four punts downed inside the 20-yard line. He has all the talent in the world to turn it around. The blocking has been terrible without Travis Homer, so hopefully his return will result in a bit more confidence for Taylor. If he can add some height and hang time to his punts, he can really be the weapon Poles envisioned when he drafted him.

Kicking: B+

There is not much to say here. Cairo Santos is 6-7 on field goals so far this season and has made all 11 extra points. His big knock on him currently is his lack of an “elite” leg. It’s true he isn’t likely to hit a 60+ yarder during a game, but he has been respectable from 50+ yards this season. Santos has made 2-3 of his 50+ yard attempts in four games. He has been automatic from 50 yards and in throughout his second stint with Chicago, and that has to be taken into account.

Coverage: C

This grade would be even lower if not for Josh Blackwell’s heroic block to seal a week four victory. The punt and kick coverage units have been rough. It has been far from the worst in the league. They have been a middle-of-the-pack coverage team, and that will place them squarely in the C grade range.

Returns: B-

This grade is propped up by the Burden’s knack for big plays. The Bears currently rank 8th in kickoff return average, and Burden is a big reason why. He has almost taken it to the house on a few occasions, and it won’t be long before he does. Former All-Pro Devin Duvrenay has been serviceable in punt returns, averaging 11.4 yards per return, but hasn’t looked all that electric. Maybe Bears’ fans are just spoiled from their memories of the last Devin we had returning kicks.

Overall Grade: C

This grade accurately reflects their 2-2 record. It also shows that the arrow is pointing up in some areas. If this coaching staff is as good as most believe, we should slowly improve those rough areas and finish the next quarter with a much better grade. The thing to remember is, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. Here’s hoping quarter two’s report card will be filled with straight A’s!