NFL News

Home

Teams

Quizzes

Watch

Newsletter

Power Rankings

Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

The Bears face a tougher Week 7 test than many expected and one Saints writer reveals the one player Chicago should worry about most

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Kole Noble | Last updated Oct 17, 2025 11:37 AM ET

The Chicago Bears return to Soldier Field on Sunday riding a three-game win streak with a matchup set against the 1-5 New Orleans Saints, but this seems like a recipe for a potential trap game the Bears can't afford to overlook.

Thankfully, under new head coach Ben Johnson, the Bears have been keeping one foot in front of the other and understanding how important each individual matchup can be.

"We're going to embrace what the mission is and that's to beat a really good football team coming to town," Johnson said on Wednesday. "This is a team that we're about to play that they have a lot of veteran players that have played at a high level and are a prideful group. I have a lot of respect for how they play. They're getting better every week. They continue to ascend. We won't overlook this opponent. This is a good football team that's on the rise."

Offensively, the Saints have a lot of talented players such as dynamic running back Alvin Kamara, a stout offensive line, and a dangerous WR duo in Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed. In Week 6, the Saints saw the return of Taysom Hill, adding a new layer to this team's offense. Yet, there's another player not yet mentioned the Bears should focusing on defending that many might be overlooked.

The play of Saints' QB Spencer Rattler has been surprising opponents in 2025

"New Orleans may be 1-5, but they’ve been highly competitive in all but one game in Kellen Moore’s first season as head coach. The biggest surprise from a roster standpoint may be quarterback Spencer Rattler.

"The young starter has been efficient and taken care of the football so far this season. Kellen Moore has liked to take early risks downfield, and that’s paid off on multiple occasions with Rattler finding Rashid Shaheed or Chris Olave. I believe the reliability and comfort of Rattler so far this season has started to change the mind of some people who had major doubts entering the season." - Adam Holt, A to Z Sports New Orleans

Far from the first to say this, but — people would be viewing Spencer Rattler a lot more favorably if he was a first rounder.

Thanks to a 93.2 grade this week, he’s PFF’s 10th HG QB this season, and his 9 BTTs are 8th

He’s also 1st vs the blitz - 90.6 ⚜️pic.twitter.com/tvXSpuIzPk
— Mike Kennedy (@MikeKennedyNFL) October 16, 2025

Rattler is the true wildcard in this game and he has a little extra motivation going up against Caleb Williams, who years ago took his starting position at Oklahoma. Beyond the motivating factors, Rattler has been playing at a really strong level when it comes to creating big plays and has been one of the top quarterbacks against the blitz.

Despite the final results, Rattler is playing clean football and distributing the ball well throughout the entire offense. His legs have been a factor as well, rushing for 143 yards on 26 attempts this season. It's hard to blame any of the losses on Rattler.

The advantage for Chicago on Sunday is actually going up against the Saints' defense. New Orleans has struggled early in games defensively and played at an "inconsistent" level that puts the entire team behind. Meanwhile, the Bears have one of the league's top scoring offense in the first quarter, scoring an average of 7.4 points. So, getting to a hot start will be critical in this one.

"Going into this with the right mindset is what we will have and what we will do," quarterback Caleb Williams added. "And understanding the opportunity that we have to be able to go out and execute the way we need to be able to turn out 4-2."

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: