LONDON – The Bears spent this week in Ware, England, about an hour’s drive outside London. There’s a tony, somewhat old-fashioned country club there that caters to high-end members looking for get away from it all.

Hanbury Manor features quiet luxury, with a spa, massive indoor pool and an 18-hole golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus over its 200 acres, with a football field smack in the middle of it for weeks like these when the NFL’s in town.

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The Bears prepared for Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on that plot tucked between golf holes, looking to use this time away from home to bond, get better and enter their bye well above .500.

There’s confidence they can do so against a struggling Jaguars team and on the back of two straight dominant wins. There are questions remaining, though, that the Bears must address to come out of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with a win.

1. Can Caleb Williams, Bears offense remain explosive?

It has been fascinating to see Caleb Williams learn from mistakes and improve each and every week. The rookie quarterback has an uncanny knack for expanding his ways of being a weapon, from his mobility to his pre-snap smarts. Then we started seeing the running backs used as weapons in a Week 4 win. The following game, the receivers became a major part of the Bears experience. That’s when the Bears became truyl explosive.

If they can continue that, this offense can match their defensive counterparts in terms of intimidation. We saw DJ Moore do well against the Panthers, but Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet and D’Andre Swift are all explosive elements in the passing game.

It’s pretty hard to cover all those guys, especially for a Jaguars pass defense that ranks dead last in yards allowed. The Bears should put up big numbers against a defense like that, especially if they protect well, no matter where this game is played.  

2. How will Bears deal with key secondary loss(es)?

We know for sure that the Bears will play Jacksonville without safety Jaquan Brisker, (concussion) who didn’t travel to London and was ruled out Wednesday.  It seems likely they’ll continue without cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who is doubtful after hurting his calf while practicing in England.

Elijah Hicks (above) will step in for Brisker. Jaylon Jones is expected to stand in for Stevenson if he can’t go.

While there’s a natural drop-off from starters to reserves, Hicks and Jones have experience playing games in this system. Both guys should be considered quality depth capable of filling in well.

The Jaguars will surely target those to with some talented receiving weapons, including Christian Kirk and explosive rookie Brian Thomas Jr. While Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence has had a rough start to the season, he has immense talent and can push the ball down the field.

Coverage must be tight, with some help from an active and engaged pass rush, to mitigate the issues created by recent Bears injuries.

3. Did Bears make right move coming to London early?

That’s something we’ll find out in the first half. Sluggish teams will often start slow, as the 2019 Bears found out falling behind 17-0 in the first half against the Raiders in London. That group came over late.

This one did not. The Bears have bonded over the experience and have gotten solid work done in relative isolation outside London. They’re riding a two-game winning streak, with a chance to go 4-2 against a wounded-animal Jaguars team fighting to regain relevance.

The Bears have spared no expense on this trip and given themselves every opportunity to play well. The team must have used their time here well and continue to find ways to let a group of top-tier players be themselves and go get a win.

4. Can pass rush force Trevor Lawrence into mistakes?

The Bears pass rush was a supposed weakness heading into the season, with many wondering where pressure would come from outside of star Montez Sweat. The answer to that question: from everywhere.

Defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. seems to have turned a corner in his second season. Andrew Billings has shown improvement providing interior pressure. The trade for Darrell Taylor has paid immediate dividends off the edge opposite sweat. All those things were evident against Carolina, when the Bears had 26 total pressures and six sacks. They have nine in the past two games heading into a contest with agile Trevor Lawrence, someone with mobility who has also made some mistakes during a rough start. He has just two interceptions, though, and has been sacked 12 times.

That’s decent, but it’s hard to retain possession against a Bears defense excellent taking the ball away. If the pass rush can force an errant throw or force some fumbles, that could turn the tide in this game.

5. Will no huddle offense continue to pay off?

Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron has done a good job in recent weeks of putting his players in better position to succeed. We’ve seen that in routes and runs selected to accentuate a player’s skill set. We’ve also seen it in trying to make things more comfortable for Caleb Williams.

That has meant more no huddle for an offense that’s right on the ball. That doesn’t mean the Bears always operate with tempo. Sometimes they just survey from the line, which buys Williams precious seconds to make reads and checks. It has been effective to this point, and could help the Bears again if they can continue to sustain drives.

“We’ll keep working on it,” Waldron said. “But again, it really depends what the situation in the game is, what advantage we think we can create from that, so week-to-week we’ll always look at it. It’ll always be something we have as part of our system. How we utilize it will depend on the individual game.”