(2) Waldron was impressed with this rookie quarterback's resilience Caleb Williams showed up after a slow start in Washington.
After the offense failed to score on the game's first seven possessions of the third quarter, Williams engineered two touchdown attempts to turn a 12-0 deficit into a 15-12 lead with 25 minutes left. On the Bears' final two possessions, Williams completed 6 of 8 passes for 95 yards, including gains of 27 yards DJ Moore22 yards to Keenan Allen and 16 yards to Rome Odunze.
“You see a true competitor who will never back down,” Waldron said, “that will make everyone around him believe that at the end of the game, no matter what the score is at the start of the game, we will win.” To have a chance to win it.
Even when Williams struggles, he always maintains the next-play mentality.
“But the best thing about Caleb is that when he misses a shot, he thinks ahead so he's ready for the next play and the next challenge,” Waldron said. “He won’t let that happen [previous play] Have an impact on his next game. He’ll be right back out there ready to fire and ready to go through the process.”
(3) Hightower praised the player Tory Taylor for his performance against the commanders.
The rookie fourth-round pick averaged 48.7 yards on seven punts, placing inside the 10 four times, with Washington starting drives at its own 9, 8, 7 and 9.
On the Bears' first possession, on fourth-and-20 from their own 20 yards, Taylor turned the field around by throwing a career-long 68-yard punt to the Commanders' 12-yard punt.
“I thought Tory punted better in that game than he did when he was named special teams player of the week against the Rams.” [in Week 4]Hightower said. “He had a fantastic football game.” Hitting the ball the way he hit it, the situations he faced and the way he hit the football was a huge development. We just have to get more of it.”
Hightower was pleased with the entire punt coverage team.
“I thought the defensive unit did a phenomenal job in this football game,” he said, “whether they were stepped up or in the plus-50 range to lock down those guys and give our defense wide open space. I had the feeling.” The Gunners did a great job out there to counter the returnees. We challenge them and the punt unit to make more impactful plays, and the Gunners have done a phenomenal job with that. Bye.”
(4) Washington liked what he saw defensively Jacob Martinwho made his Bears debut after missing the first six games with a toe injury.
Martin recorded two tackles, a tackle-for-loss and a quarterback hit. He signed with the Bears in March after spending his first six NFL seasons with the Seahawks (2018), Texans (2019-21), Broncos (2022), Jets (2022) and Colts (2023), recording 85 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 18.0 sacks, seven forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and four pass breakups.
“The energy was obvious,” Washington said. “His energy, the speed, the quickness, the toughness. I thought he did some really good things as an edge rusher. I thought there were a couple of times where he would be able to not only impact the quarterback but hit him, and I am. “I'm looking forward to him making a pretty significant jump this week.
(5) Waldron continues to be impressed by Tackle Larry Boromwho returned to training last week for the first time since injuring his ankle in the pre-season finale.
The fourth-year pro could play against the Cardinals on Sunday, especially because tackles Braxton Jones (knee) and Kirin Amegadjie (calf) and guard Teven Jenkins (knee) all did not practice on Thursday due to injuries.
“I think Larry has done an incredible job … staying connected, staying involved and staying up to date with the program,” Waldron said. “And he's worked hard to get healthy through this rehab and then get a chance to get back on the practice field. This is a guy that has played in games and played at a high level, so his readiness is mental. “The standpoint is right there, the physical standpoint is right there, so we have all the confidence in the world that he plays and performs at a high level in the game.