KEENUM LOOKED READY.
Keenum finished 24-of-34 for 247 yards, two passing touchdowns and no interceptions, then added a rushing touchdown. Chicago did not ask him to imitate Caleb Williams. The Bears let him distribute the ball, stay on schedule and punish Philadelphia when coverage gave him an answer. The 41-yard touchdown to Kalif Raymond supplied the explosive play, but the bigger story was how little the offense looked rattled with its third quarterback option on the field.
PHILLY’S OFFENSE LOOKED PEDESTRIAN.
The Eagles entered 2–0 without consistently looking sharp, and Monday finally made the uneven play cost them. Philadelphia committed 10 penalties, turned the ball over three times and never found sustained rhythm. Chicago’s defense deserves credit, but from our view this was also a warning for an Eagles offense with too much talent to spend this much time fighting itself.
WHY DID SAQUON DISAPPEAR?
Saquon Barkley was productive enough to justify staying central to the plan, yet Philadelphia never established the kind of second-half rhythm that would let the run game control the night. Penalties, turnovers and repeated stalled possessions kept changing the down-and-distance picture. We would still have preferred the Eagles to keep Barkley more involved rather than letting the offense become increasingly dependent on a passing game that was not creating enough easy answers.
CAN CHICAGO HOLD THE FORT UNTIL CALEB RETURNS?
At 2–1, Chicago bought itself something valuable: time. Caleb Williams was inactive with a hamstring injury, and Keenum showed the Bears can still operate a functional offense without asking the defense to win 13–10 every week. That does not mean the ceiling is the same without Caleb. It means Chicago can stay relevant if Keenum protects the football, the run game helps him and the defense keeps producing short fields.
J.J. McCARTHY GETS A SECOND OPENING.
New York acquired J.J. McCarthy from Minnesota for a 2027 fifth-round pick after Jaxson Dart’s knee injury. Short term, McCarthy gives the Giants another developmental quarterback behind Jameis Winston and a player with enough mobility and arm talent to expand the offense once he learns it. Long term, this is a reset. Minnesota moved on after injuries and inconsistency stalled his first chapter; New York now gives the former No. 10 pick another chance to prove he can become an NFL starter. With Dart expected to miss the regular season, the opportunity is real — but McCarthy still has to earn whatever comes next.
WHAT MONDAY CHANGED.
Chicago leaves Week 3 at 2–1 with more confidence in its depth. Philadelphia is also 2–1, but with a much louder question about its offensive consistency. The result also closes our Week 3 board: Power Rankings, MVP Watch and Rookie Watch are now final as we turn toward Week 4.
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