The Chicago Bears are 3-1 heading into a pivotal game on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, and the Bears are favored going into a game at Lambeau for the first time in over 20 years.

What’s even crazier is that the Bears are going into this game with a backup quarterback and a third string left tackle on offense and still missing key contributors on defense. And yet, the line is still favoring Chicago in this game. That’s a testament to Ben Johnson’s coaching ability, and more importantly the roster he’s helped shape with the Bears.

“We’ve got tremendous depth throughout this roster,” Johnson explained. “There’s competition every single week to see who’s active and who’s inactive… We’ve got a lot of guys across the board that we want to get playing time. The cliche ‘next man up’ certainly (applies), but our guys, we know we have a lot of depth and talent throughout this roster from the front to the backend. We always know we’re going to have a chance each and every week.”

Bears don’t lack confidence with Tyson Bagent at QB, which gives Caleb Williams ample time to heal

Going back to the quarterback situation, the Bears have already announced that Tyson Bagent will lead the offense for the second week in a row when the team travels to Green Bay on Sunday. Bagent looked decent in Sunday’s win over the Jets and certainly had some plays he’d like to have back. But, the Bears don’t have a lack of confidence in his ability to operate the offense for another game.

“He made a lot of really good decisions, the operation was smooth and clean, and his teammates really responded to him being out there,” Johnson told reporters on Monday.

The decision to announce Bagent as the starter on Monday eliminates the possibility of Caleb Williams returning in Week 5. Johnson even noted that he doesn’t expect Williams to practice this week as he continues rehabbing from his hamstring injury.

“He’s doing a great job with his rehab,” Johnson said. “He’s not going to be there this week for us, but we think it’s still a week-to-week deal.”

With this particular injury, the more time Williams has to recover, the better. And that’s not a luxury other teams could rely on in this situation. And yet, the Bears are able to keep Williams off to the side until he’s fully ready and still feel confident in their backup.

More people need to be talking about the LT situation the way we’re talking about the QB situation

I get it, the quarterback position is the most important position in football and it’s been a major story in Chicago for three games now. But, the situation at left tackle and how the Bears have managed it has been just as impressive and needs to be talked about more.

The Bears entered the season with Braxton Jones as the starter and mixed in Theo Benedet from time to time to keep Jones fresh. The play of both players has allowed the Bears to take things slow with Ozzy Trapilo’s recovery from his patellar tendon injury. Trapilo has been off the injury report for weeks now, but still is working his way to game shape and there’s no need to rush him back.

“We’re still working out Ozzy just to make sure that the confidence is back. He’s looking better each and every week,” Johnson explained. “Like I said, he was one of those guys in Wednesday night’s practice in pads that I mean he stood out in a good way. So I think he’s going the right way and he might be available sooner rather than later.”

After Jones was injured and later placed on the injured reserve last week, many thought the Bears would have to speed up Trapilo’s timeline and have him active in Week 4. Instead, the Bears turned to Benedet as the starter and kept Jordan McFadden on the gameday roster as the swing tackle, who had previously been a healthy inactive.

“Really encouraged with where Theo was at for the first showing,” Johnson said. “Hopefully the more time on task we get, the better rapport he’ll have with Joe Thuney there on the left side and we’ll continue to see the arrow pointing up.”

Slot cornerback position also needs to be mentioned with Kyler Gordon’s absence

Even on the defensive side of the ball, how the Bears have gone about Kyler Gordon’s absence has been notable. Granted, this has been a more frustrating situation with Gordon’s recovery process. But, the Bears still made it a point that they need Gordon to be fully healthy before being able to put him on the field.

Gordon returned to practice last week as a full participant and is eligible to play on Sunday against the Packers for the first time this season. However, it wouldn’t shock me if the Bears continue playing things slow with him as well.

“We got to make sure that he’s healthy,” Johnson said of Gordon. “We got a three-week window, 21 days, to where we can truly evaluate where he’s at physically and make sure there’s no setback. I think that’s step one.”

In the meantime, the Bears have been more than impressed by what they’ve seen from fourth-round rookie Malik Muhammad II in the slot. It’s not a position Muhammad was accustomed to playing, but he hasn’t batted an eye through the first four weeks, giving the team confidence to make sure they don’t rush Gordon back into action.

“I think we’re really pleased with where he’s at, being able to contribute to our defense and our team in general,” Johnson said of Muhammad. “He’s a competitor and we really like where he’s at right now. He’s on an upward trajectory.”

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While other teams take the “woe is me” approach or rush injured players back onto the field, I’ve been really impressed with the stance Johnson has taken with these three situations. And it helps having the right players in the building who are able to step up.