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The streaking Chicago Bears did not let an overseas trip to London slow them down. In fact, their meeting with the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London brought out the best in their game. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams had his best game in Chicago's 35-16 victory, but the unheralded star of the game was tight end Cole Kmet.
Kmet has been a key part of the Bears offense and he caught five passes for 70 yards and two touchdowns, but his assignments did not stop with pass catching and blocking. Head coach Matt Eberflus had Kmet fill in as the team's long snapper because Scott Daly had to leave the game because of a knee injury. Kmet had been designated as the team's emergency performer at that position, but he never figured he would have to take on that role in a regular-season NFL game.
Tight end Kmet prepared for emergency role during practice sessions
Kmet said that his work prior to the game consisted of making several snaps at the team's Thursday practice sessions. The fifth-year player from Notre Dame had never had to show off his long-snapping skills in a game prior to the Week 6 meeting with the Jaguars.
Kmet's extra role consisted of snapping on five extra point attempts and one field goal attempt. All five of Cairo Santos' point after touchdowns were successful but the field goal attempt was not. Kmet did not have to make any snaps to punter Tory Taylor since the punter was not called on after Daly had to leave the game.
The idea of executing the position did not sit well with Kmet. He admitted he was actually quite nervous about the position.
“Definitely not a position I envisioned playing in the NFL — ever,” said Kmet. “(It’s) my biggest worry going into the game.”
The Bears actually fell behind 3-0 in the first quarter as their first two drives were three-and-out. However, once the Bears were able to string first downs together, the offense took hold and got the best of the Jacksonville defense.
Williams continues to show improvement in his performance. He completed 23 of 29 passes for 226 yards with 4 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also ran 4 times for 56 yards.
In addition to Kmet's huge day as a receiver, the Bears also received a notable day from veteran wideout Keenan Allen. The former Charger caught 5 passes for 41 yards and his first two touchdowns in a Chicago uniform.
The Bears have a bye in Week 7 and they will attempt to stretch their winning streak to four games when they face the Washington Commanders in Week 8. That game will focus on a meeting between Williams and Jayden Daniels, the top two picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.
