My, what a difference two players can make, something we saw in the Chicago Bears' Week 6 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
The Bears welcomed back Caleb Williams and Kyler Gordon on Sunday, and both made massive impacts in their respective returns to the field.
Williams completed 30-of-36 passes for 305 yards and one score, and Gordon was an absolute menace in his own right with three sacks and two forced fumbles while playing just 17 snaps.
Thanks to their performances, the Bears notched a victory and are now moving up in the NFL power rankings of experts for Week 7, going as high as into the top five of one expert's rankings.
Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated
Ranking: 5 | Last week: 13
This is the biggest leap up for the Bears in our power rankings round-up.
Orr rightly points out just how massive of a difference it made for the Bears to have Caleb Williams and Kyler Gordon back.
"Caleb Williams's return was spectacular. But so, too, was bringing Kyler Gordon back into this defense as a no-nonsense nickel blitzer that will make Chicago not only the most fun offense to watch in the NFL, but one of the most unpredictable and enjoyable defenses as well," Orr said.
Nate Davis, USA TODAY
Ranking: 4 | Last week: 10
Davis gets cute here and talks about the impact of "getting a key guy back," but mentions Kyler Gordon only, not Caleb Williams.
"They looked awfully good after getting a key guy back … and we're referring to DB Kyler Gordon, who had three sacks − again, he's a DB − and two forced fumbles in his 2026 debut on Sunday, all in 17 snaps. He's the first player at his position to have such a game in 26 years," Davis said.
We know Davis is trying to be funny and Gordon deserves a ton of credit for what was a historic performance in 17 snaps, but let's not forget the offense looking vastly better upon the return of QB1, who was sensational.
NFL Nation, ESPN
Ranking: 9 | Last week: 13
ESPN's Courtney Cronin was asked to list the biggest issue on the offensive side of the ball right now and she picked penalties, which is certainly a logical choice.
Chicago had 12 penalties on Sunday, including eight in the first half alone, and a lot of them were holding flags.
"One area that can stand to be cleaned up more is offensive penalties, which accounted for seven of the Bears' infractions Sunday. Those offensive penalties helped generate Chicago's most penalty yardage in a game since 2016 (133). The Bears are currently tied for the third-most offensive holding penalties (10). That's an area they'll want to fix so it doesn't derail drives," she said.
Another issue on offense is the absence of Kyle Monangai. Sure, Roschon Johnson played pretty well, but he also had a costly fumble and he just isn't as good as Monangai.
Unfortunately, the second-year back is headed toward sitting out again after he was an estimated non-participant on Monday. A short week will make it difficult for him to get back.
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports
Ranking: 13 | Last week: 15
The Bears are still climbing their way out of the hole they landed in with Prisco after the abysmal Week 5 showing against the Green Bay Packers, with this being the lowest ranking in our round-up.
"Bouncing back from the loss to the Packers by winning on the road at Atlanta is a good look for this team," Prisco said. "Of course it helps to have Caleb Williams back."
In the three games the Bears have had Williams on the field in 2026, they've dropped 30 or more points in two of them. Not that it needed to be said, but this is a very different offense when he's under center.
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