INDIANAPOLIS – Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams was surprised by his passing performance when told how many times he threw the ball in Chicago’s 21-16 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

“I threw the ball 52 times?” Williams asked. “Oh my goodness.”

Williams set the Bears’ (1-2) rookie passing record against the Colts by completing 33 of 52 attempts for 363 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions with a passer rating of 80.8. The No. 1 overall pick had 267 total passing yards in Chicago’s first two games of the season.

Despite facing a Colts defense that began Week 3 allowing 237 rushing yards per game, the Bears couldn’t get their running attack going at Lucas Oil Stadium. Chicago managed 63 rushing yards on 28 attempts (2.3 yards per carry) and managed just four running first downs on Sunday.

The Bears’ penultimate series of the first half illustrates these difficulties.

Trailing 7-0 at the end of a 16-play, 53-yard drive, Chicago ran the ball on five consecutive plays from the shotgun line inside the Colts’ 4-yard line. After failing to get into the end zone, the Bears ran a fourth-and-goal option play from the 1-yard line with 1:46 left in the second quarter.

The Colts presented the Bears with a different look on defense than they did on film, and Williams was immediately under pressure as he rolled left. The quarterback threw the ball early to running back D’Andre Swift, who was eventually tackled by Indianapolis defensive end Tyquan Lewis for a loss of 12 yards.

“It’s frustrating,” Williams said. “We were so close and you get four tries. I think we were under the 5-yard line on four tries. And not getting in in those moments is definitely frustrating. But I think that was the 17-play drive or something. And to be able to move the ball for 17 plays, that’s NFL ball. We just have to keep going and keep going.”

Tight end Cole Kmet said the Bears need to show “a better attitude up front” when it comes to putting the ball in from close range.

“I think it’s just that mindset, that change of attitude,” Kmet said. “It was a long drive and you’re tired at the end, but we’ve got to have the mindset that we’re going to take these guys down. We should think that it shouldn’t matter what kind of run Shane calls. We should be able to damage that front, and obviously someone is most likely going to be left free in the back, but we should be able to damage that front and get some yards there to score there.”

Williams’ first NFL passing touchdown came in the fourth quarter, when the No. 1 pick caught a 1-yard pass to fellow rookie Rome Odunze. Two drives later, Williams hit tight end Kmet for a 6-yard touchdown. Both touchdown drives came when the Bears were down by two points.

Williams said he was encouraged by the offense’s ability to complete attacks with passes and touchdowns and believes the Bears’ offensive identity is “evolving” and closer to where the team wants it to be than it was after Chicago’s first two games.

“I do whatever the team needs,” Williams said. “So if it comes down to 50 times (throws), then it’s 50 times. I can’t have two turnovers in those 50 attempts. And then if it comes down to 10 times and I make nine of those 10 attempts and we have 300 yards rushing and four touchdowns, I’m fully aware of that and willing to do whatever the team needs. So if it comes down to 50 attempts and we throw the ball around, if it comes down to 10 attempts — then that’s what the team needs, what the team needs to win.

“We’re going to keep throwing, we’re going to keep working on the running game. We’re definitely going to keep getting better on offense. We’re going to get this thing going soon.”

Although Williams has been able to provide volume, the Bears offense still struggles to create explosive passing plays.

More than half of Williams’ 33 completed passes were 5 yards or less (18), and he completed 4 of 14 for 137 yards and one interception on passes of 15 yards or more, according to ESPN Research.

Williams finished the game with 11 off-target passes and now has 29 off-target passes through three games after recording nine in each of his first two games.

DJ Moore, who caught eight balls for 78 yards, agreed with Williams that the offense needs to develop an identity that helps the Bears win games. Accomplishing that quickly, Moore said, is Chicago’s top priority.

“I don’t know. Whatever helps us win,” Moore said. “The first time we won (against Tennessee), the defense and special teams got us the win, and lately they’ve been doing it and we haven’t. We have to figure out our identity — now — for their sake.”