Jonathan Owens will feature for the Chicago Bears in London this weekend having spent his summer watching wife Simone Biles dominate the Paris Olympic Games ; watch the Bears face the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday, live on Sky Sports NFL
Image: Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens and Olympic champion wife Simone Biles
Jonathan Owens digs into his pocket and proudly pulls out a miniature model of Big Ben, the newest prized souvenir on his European road trip. He can’t quite recall the name of the weirdly-famous clock in his hand, but he is excited.
His next souvenir? A Chicago Bears win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, he hopes.
The Bears safety is back across the pond having spent his summer watching wife Simone Biles clinch her fifth, sixth and seventh Olympic gymnastics gold medals at the Paris Games, where he had been pictured diligently keeping score in the crowd.
“Paris was amazing,” Owens tells Sky Sports. “That was my actually my second time to Europe. But I was actually able to have a chance to just be in the culture, explore the city.
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“It was amazing seeing everything and obviously getting a chance to watch the Olympics was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“And you know, my wife was the star of the show. I just felt like I was spoiled, I got VIP treatment around there and really got the chance to see the city, experience the art, the culture, the history of Paris. It was amazing.”
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Sky Sports Neil Reynolds sits down with Chicago Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams ahead of his team’s clash with the Jacksonville Jaguars in London
This weekend, the attention turns to Owens in what marks his second trip to London as Matt Eberflus’ Chicago outfit, led by No 1 pick quarterback Caleb Williams, seek their fourth win of the campaign.
Down time tends to be limited for players upon their arrival in the UK, though merely being here is enough for Owens.
“It’s a pretty amazing experience,” he continues. “I’m pretty familiar with just the travel and getting accommodated to everything, so this is pretty exciting to come and play in front of an international crowd and to continue expanding football around the world.
“The shopping is pretty dope. You have to keep the main thing (the game) as the main thing here, but you get to experience a little bit so that would be nice. Honestly, my favourite part is being in the culture.
“It’s so different, you hear everyone’s accent, you walk around and see these historic buildings. I was always a big history guy in school so I like seeing all the buildings.”
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Owens features as part of a Bears defense ranked among the league’s best so far this season, and a secondary with a third-most 11 takeaways on the year, including interceptions from five different players.
Eberflus and Eric Washington have been precise and particular in their use of the blitz, leaning on a four-man rush like all efficient modern defenses while putting their defensive backs in position to feast.
“I think it’s just been everyone being on the same page,” said Owens of Chicago’s success. And everyone really being able to trust each other, it’s about going out there making plays. We brought a lot of good guys in this offseason and just continue to build that culture, everybody has meshed well and I’m excited to see it again Sunday.”
Familiar foes await for Owens on Sunday having previously faced the Jaguars twice a season during his three years with the Houston Texans from 2019-2022.
His Bears will be spearheaded by rookie quarterback Williams, who, like counterpart Trevor Lawrence, had been touted a consensus No 1 overall draft pick since the beginning of his footballing journey. Having endured a slow start customary to every rookie play-caller, Williams is coming off his best performance of the season after throwing for 304 yards and two touchdowns against the Carolina Panthers.
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“He’s handling this seamlessly,” said Owens. “You come in, you’re the number one quarterback, you have all these expectations, everybody has an opinion on social media and man, he’s handled it with grace. And he will just continue to get better.
“Every week, that’s all you can ask for. I’m excited to see him come out and put his talents on display again.
“Everybody saw last week, but we’ve been seeing it in practice, it was just all about putting everything together. So we’re we’re excited to watch it.”
In addition to the introduction of Williams came the offseason arrival of Keenan Allen and D’Andre Swift to bolster one of the strongest groups of offensive weapons a rookie quarterback could wish for. With that came heightened expectations and visions of a new era of contention for the Bears in the coming years.
They enter Sunday’s matchup 3-2 and third in the NFC North having beaten the Panthers and the Los Angeles Rams over the last two weeks.
“This is where we expected to be, in a position where we’re competing,” said Owens. “We’re in a pretty tough division, so every game counts. This is what you work for, so it’s exciting that the work you’re putting in is showing on the field.
“We want to make sure we create that winning culture this year. We have got the guys to do it, have the coaches to do it.”
Watch the Chicago Bears face the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday October 13, live on Sky Sports NFL, with kick-off at 2.30pm; Also stream with NOW.
Sourse: skysports.com
