What Just Happened
Coming into Sunday afternoon, the 4-3 Chicago Bears were facing yet another challenge in Week 9: the 3-5 Cincinnati Bengals. The Bears had a disappointing week in week 8, losing an injury-led battle against the Baltimore Ravens 30-16. Even though the Ravens had to roll out Tyler Huntley because Lamar Jackson was out, the Bears missing all of their starting cornerbacks couldn’t keep up. After committing 11 penalties for 79 yards, Bears head coach Ben Johnson had a lot to say about the team’s lack of fundamentals:
“The penalties to me, is what stands out first and foremost. We still have some of the pre-snap issues … that stuff adds up and it hurts us. We’ve got to play a cleaner game. We have to eliminate the penalties. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot way too much.”
Photo Cred: USA Today
An Awful Start
Entering the chilly afternoon, the Bears were committed to reducing penalties, and getting back into the win column. The opening kickoff by Cairo Santos was nothing out of the ordinary, it traveled to the one yard line and Charlie Jones decided to return it.
98-yards!!! Charlie Jones scores on opening kickoff
The Bears couldn’t have asked for a worse start. But Caleb Williams didn’t back down, and led a very pretty drive down the field, ultimately tying it up with a Philly special, with DJ Moore throwing it to Caleb Williams for the touchdown. Both teams went back and forth sharing scores, with the Bears taking a 17-13 lead with less than two minutes left in the first half. Bears fans thought they would go into the half with the lead, but Joe Flacco had other plans. As he showed time and time again in this game, Joe still got game. Joe Flacco needed two plays to connect with Tee Higgins on a 44-yard bomb to ultimately walk into the tunnel at halftime up 20-17.
Shootout Time
The Bears, hoping to recreate the magic the Bengals started the game with, started the third quarter with a long and inspiring 12-play, 77 yard drive that ended in Colston Loveland’s first career touchdown to take the lead, 24-20.
But fast forward to the fourth quarter, the Bears enter up 31-27, and start the scoring with a quick field goal two minutes in, to take the touchdown lead. Flacco continued to dominate, leading a drive all the way down the field, only to end with a missed field goal by Evan McPherson. Then the rookie Kyle Monangai has his play of the season so far, exploding for 39 yards and setting the Bears up in the Redzone. That didn’t last long, as D.J. Moore ran in the touchdown from 16 yards out the very next play, 41-27.
Photo Cred: WCPO
It’s crunch time, and Flacco is dishing the ball out. Early passes deep followed by various incompletions led Flacco to 2nd and goal at the Chicago 5-yard-line. But everyone has flaws, especially 40-year-old quarterbacks, and Flacco fired a dart directly to Tremaine Edmunds. Game over right? Up 14 with the ball, less than three minutes left, the Bears just need one or two first downs. But of course, three-and-out and right back to Cincy.
But Joe Flacco is not going out without a fight. The former Super Bowl champion knows how to drive a comeback, and it should be no surprise he led a drive into the endzone in less than a minute, bulleting a pass to Noah Fant, 41-35 (Bengals went for two). But what should be a surprise, is when the Bengals recovered the onside kick, and now a touchdown and they have the lead. And a near perfect drive gave them that, as Flacco delivered his fourth touchdown pass, finding Andrei Iosivas for the go-ahead touchdown with under a minute remaining, 42-41.
After the kickoff, Bears fans’ heads were low. After just choking a 14 point lead, now down one with one timeout and under a minute left. First down nobody got open, and Caleb threw it incomplete. On second down, nothing different, everything clamped. Now on third down with everything on the line, Caleb found a seam, bursting for 14 yards up the middle.
Now, no timeouts, still over twenty yards to go to get into field goal range, and Caleb Williams showed the Bengals and the NFL why he was the first pick. He fires a bullet up the seam, right to the rookie Colston Loveland to the 37 yard line, or better known as Cairo Santos field goal target line. But he doesn’t go down. He bounces off Jordan Battle, and he is GONE. 47-42 Chicago.
In the blink of an eye the Chicago Bears took the lead back, scoring the game’s third touchdown in the past three minutes. With 17 seconds left, there wasn’t a chance for Flacco to win it for Cincinnati. After a miraculous 470 yard performance by Flacco, it wasn’t enough. The game total of 89 points made a new season high.
Important Stats
CHI, Caleb Williams 20/34 280 yards, 3 touchdowns
CHI, Kyle Monongai 26 carries, 176 yards.
CHI Colston Loveland 6 catches 110 yards, 2 touchdowns
CIN Joe Flacco 31/47 470 yards, 4 touchdowns 2 interceptions
CIN Tee Higgins 7 catches 121 yards, 2 touchdowns
