# The Bears won 59-37 and the defense still lost > Chicago scored a franchise record in Week 1, and the only real story is how badly the defense played. - Title: The Bears won 59-37 and the defense still lost | Shortify - Summary: Chicago scored a franchise record in Week 1, and the only real story is how badly the defense played. A record-setting offense papered over a defense that… - Keywords: bears, nfl, defense, week 1, caleb williams, news, local, won, 59-37, still, lost, Chicago Sun-Times - Source: Chicago Sun-Times — https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2026/09/13/bears-panthers-final-score-59-37-defense-struggles-opener - Published: 2026-09-13T20:35:53.071+00:00 - Read time: 2 min - Topics: bears, nfl, defense, week 1, caleb williams, news, local ## A long season, already If the Bears defense keeps playing the way it did in Charlotte, the year is going to drag. Every game will also take about four hours. > If the Bears defense keeps playing like this, it's going to be a long season. ## 59-37, franchise record The Bears beat the Panthers in the highest-scoring game in franchise history. Nobody is apologizing for the win, but the defense has no reason to enjoy it. ## Bryce Young looked like a Hall of Famer Carolina's quarterback carved up Chicago in the first half of the season opener. The Bears made him look like Fran Tarkenton. > The Bears made Panthers quarterback Bryce Young look like Fran Tarkenton in the first half. ## Jaylon Johnson finally forced the issue Early in the fourth quarter, the cornerback ripped the ball out of receiver Tetairoa McMillan's arms. That takeaway gave the offense the breathing room it needed. ## 24 points before halftime Carolina put up 24 in the first half alone. The Bears looked helpless enough that their own coach started coaching like he did not trust them. ## Fourth-and-one from the 21 Up 21-14 in the second quarter, Ben Johnson went for it on fourth down from his own 21. Caleb Williams got stuffed on the sneak. ## Punished three plays later The Panthers took the short field and scored to tie the game three plays after the stop. The gamble cost Chicago immediately. ## He had never done that before In his whole play-calling career, Johnson had never gone for it that deep in his own zone with the quarterback under center. Last year his deepest fourth-down try came from his own 37. ## Faith in the offense, or fear With the Lions, the only fourth-down tries that deep were fake punts. Johnson will call it belief in his offense; the truer read is what he thought of his defense. > Johnson will undoubtedly frame the decision as having faith in his offense, but the inverse was likely true about his defense. ## One good play in 30 minutes Montez Sweat's sack of Young was the single positive defensive play of the first half. It was also the team's only tackle for loss or quarterback hit in that span. ## A rookie showed up Malik Muhammad started in the slot, slid outside when Tyrique Stevenson kept leaving with injuries, and grabbed his first career interception. ## Questions in, questions out Chicago opened with new starters at defensive tackle, linebacker, cornerback and safety, and learned almost nothing about any of them. The offense covered for it Sunday. It will not every week. > Given how well their offense played, it didn't matter Sunday. But it will, and soon, if things don't get better. ## Key takeaway A record-setting offense papered over a defense that made one positive play in the entire first half, and that math does not hold up over a season.