TAMPA, Fla. — The Bears split snaps evenly between their three running backs during the Week 1 loss, with rookie running back Roschon Johnson taking over late during garbage time. The Bears loved Johnson’s effort, attention to detail, and physicality. The rookie’s work against the Packers appears to have earned him a bigger share of the workload, with the Bears making running back D’Onta Foreman a healthy scratch for Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Foreman carried the b

Very few people viewed the Atlanta Falcons or the Green Bay Packers as contenders coming into the season, but both teams took care of business in Week 1.

The Falcons defeated rookie quarterback Bryce Young and the Panthers by 14 points, and the Packers trounced Justin Fields and the Bears by 18 points.

As Atlanta and Green Bay prepare to face off in Week 2, here are 10 players we’ll be watching closely

Bears receiver Chase Claypool said he met with coaches at his behest shortly after his effort was the subject of criticism in last week's loss.

Brisker exited with an injury in the first quarter and went to the locker room.Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times TAMPA, Fla. — A challenging day for the Bears got much tougher by the end of the first quarter as both starting safeties left with injuries.Jaquan Brisker went out first with what appeared to be a heat-related illness. The Bears were treating him with a wet towel and sponge on the bench. He went to the locker room, and the team said he is questionable to return.Jackson got hurt a few plays later. He had a left foot injury and, after a long time in the injury tent, was taken to the locker room on a golf cart. It’s the same foot in which he had a season-ending Lisfranc injury last season. The Bears ruled him out for the rest of the game shortly before halftime.The Bears sent in Elijah Hicks and Quindell Johnson in their places.Hicks was a seventh-round pick last year and has two career starts, while Johnson is an undrafted rookie making his NFL debut. The Bears claimed him off waivers from the Rams shortly before the season.The Bears have no other safeties on the active roster against the Buccaneers, and backup nickel cornerback Josh Blackwell is out with a hamstring injury.

The Bucs’ Baker Mayfield and the Bears’ Justin Fields embrace after Sunday’s game.Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images Three takeaways from the Bears’ 27-17 loss to the Buccaneers:Baker cooksThe Bucs’ Baker Mayfield, the former No. 1 overall pick-turned-journeyman quarterback, finished with 317 passing yards and a 114.5 passer rating Sunday. The Bears defense allowed a 123.2 passer rating to the Packers’ Jordan Love in Week 1. Dating to last year, the Bears have allowed a passer rating of 114 or higher in each of the past four games. Five games ago, the Bills’ Josh Allen had a 71.3 rating in a game at Soldier Field with -12 wind chill.Cairo kicksWhen kicker Cairo Santos made a 52-yard field goal at the two-minute warning in the second quarter, he improved to 3-for-3 on the season. Since Dec. 26, 2021, he’s made all but two of his 32 field goals.Big ‘dogsThe early point spread for the Bears’ game Sunday in Kansas City is the Chiefs by 11 ½. If that holds up, it’d be the largest spread in any game played thus far this season. Since 2020, the Bears have been 11 1/2 -point underdogs twice — in a 2021 losses at Green Bay and Tampa Bay.

The Bears suffered another disappointing loss when they fell to the Buccaneers 27-17 on Sunday. But the loss of Eddie Jackson partway through the game may hurt them more moving forward.The Bears’ safety went down with a non-contact injury in the first quarter and never returned to the game. Further, Jackson appeared to hurt the same foot that was affected by a season-ending Lisfranc injury last year and needed to be carted into the locker room.After the game, head coach Matt Eberflus was cautiously optimistic about Jackson’s latest injury.“We’re positive right now, but we’ll see where it goes. We don’t know how positive that will be, but we’ll see.”As for whether the team was positive enough to rule out another Lisfranc injury:“We’ll see, we’ll see where it is.”The Bears typically do not share injury information until their first injury report of the week is released on Wednesdays, so we may not get an update on Jackson for several days.Things looked like they might have been much worse for the Bears secondary for a short time. Two plays before Jackson’s injury, Brisker had to exit the game. Eventually the team announced Brisker was simply out with dehydration, and Brisker returned to the game in the second half. For two quarters however, the Bears had to run with second-year player Elijah Hicks and undrafted free agent Quindell Johnson at safety.Finally, Darnell Mooney suffered a knee injury over the course of the game. The extent of Mooney’s injury is unclear.

The Bears’ special teams proved one bullet point on a long list of adjustments needed after falling to the Packers during Week 1. They’re showing up against the Buccaneers, however. Check out this blocked field goal that special teams created during the second quarter. Rasheem Green got a hand on it and Tyrique Stevenson squeezed in the kicker’s space, too. The Bears remain ahead, as of this writing, with a 7-3 lead. Click here to follow the Under Center Podcast.This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

For the second week in a row, the Bears dialed up screen passes early and often on offense. They had more success on the short throws this week compared to last week, but Luke Getsy called a screen one too many times, and it might have been their undoing against the Buccaneers.With the offense backed up near their own goal line late in the fourth quarter, Getsy called a screen– for the second play in a row– and the Bucs were ready. Shaq Barrett read the play all the way, stepped back into th