Bears battle back for another thrilling win. Chicago is making a habit of these finishes lately. The Bears’ last game ended on a blocked field goal that sealed a comeback victory powered by a courageous Caleb Williams-led drive in Las Vegas. In similar fashion on Monday night in a rainy Landover, Maryland, Williams and the Bears won the four-quarter war by capitalizing on an opponent’s mistake and cashing in with a measured, productive drive to set up Jake Moody’s game-winning field goal. Over four quarters, it wasn’t exactly pretty, but every win doesn’t need to be for a team attempting to turn a corner. If we’ve learned one truth over the last two games for these Bears, it’s this: They’re tough and won’t go down without a 60-minute fight.
Daniels is definitely back. No, the 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year wasn’t perfect. Jayden Daniels’ interception came on an needle-threading attempt that was never going to work, and he mishandled a wet football right into a crucial fumble late in the game. But there was plenty to be excited about from Daniels, who finally looked healthy and like himself again, showing off his fantastic agility and mobility while dropping a dime on Chris Moore for a first-half touchdown, hitting a wide-open Luke McCaffrey for a score and patiently surveying before firing a bullet over the middle to Zach Ertz for six points. Unlike previous weeks, Daniels was playing with his full arsenal, powering the offense with his arm (19 for 26 for 211 yards, three touchdowns and one interception) and his legs (10 rushes for 52 yards). It’s a shame his late error led to the Bears’ walk-off win, but over the long haul, Monday night provided Commanders fans with the evidence they needed to rest easy going forward.
Johnson’s imprint is starting to show. As most recently seen from the Lions, any team’s turnaround doesn’t happen overnight. It starts with building blocks in the form of persistence, cohesion, and eventually, strategic improvement. If one is searching for clues of Ben Johnson’s impact on this team, look no further than Monday night’s game, in which the Bears demonstrated significantly improved blocking in the running and passing game, and scan down to D’Andre Swift stat line for concrete proof: 14 carries, 108 yards and a 55-yard touchdown reception to key Chicago’s fourth-quarter comeback. Without that score, the Bears might not have enough time left on the clock to earn one more possession. Bears teams of past years would have lacked the hope and faith that they could even work their way into a position to potentially win the game. Johnson’s effect has inspired this team, and the motivated bunch blocked better than ever for Swift, giving him the room to break 100 yards and power them to a team victory that wasn’t always pretty, but sure was invigorating.
Commanders fans should remain optimistic. This Monday night loss will undoubtedly sting, but consider how Washington even arrived to a place where a win was possible. Daniels finally regained the form that powered him to AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year last season and threw three touchdown passes while playing without Terry McLaurin and on a quiet night for an injured Deebo Samuel. Zach Ertz can still do it, Luke McCaffrey refuses to go away and Chris Moore made a spectacular touchdown grab. The defense got bullied up front — an admittedly surprising and mildly concerning sign — but managed to weather two offensive giveaways and give the offense a chance to climb back into the game. And despite the final result, the Commanders fought through a rainy night and gave themselves a chance to win. I’m not a believer in moral victories, but silver linings undoubtedly exist. The shiniest of all was wearing No. 5.
Next Gen Stats Insight for Bears-Commanders (via NFL Pro): The Bears’ win probability nearly tripled as a result of their fumble recovery with 3:07 to play trailing, 24-22, from 14.9% to 42.3%, an increase of 27.4 percentage points.
NFL Research: The Bears’ defense has three straight games with at least three takeaways, the longest such active streak in the NFL.
Discussion about this post