Brisker's interception seals the deal in Bears win over Rams |
CHICAGO - If you want to make the playoffs in today's NFL, the goal is to win as many home games as possible while trying to play .500 ball on the road. That hasn't been the case for the Chicago Bears (2-2) the past two seasons, but after their season-opening win at home, Chicago dropped two straight games away from Soldier Field.
Looking to remain unbeaten at home and move back to .500, the Bears took on the Los Angeles Rams (1-3), who were coming off a massive come-from-behind win against the San Francisco 49ers last week. Talk about a drastically different game from one week to the next. Caleb Williams had no where close to the production he showed in week three, as he was held to under 200 yards passing for the third time this season. A big reason for that was a rushing attack that finally got things rolling, as D'Andre Swift put forth his best showing as a Bear. Swift finished the day with 93 yards rushing and 1 TD while also leading the team with 72 yards receiving. Pair that with another strong defensive showing that held the Rams to 18 points, and the Bears picked up their second win of the season, 24-18. As expected, it was the defense that made the biggest play of the game as Jaquon Brisker intercepted Matthew Stafford with just under a minute to go which gave the Bears a massive win. It was all Los Angeles in the first quarter as the Bears were held to just 16 total yards of offense while the Rams racked up 124 yards on their first two possessions. 68 of those yards came on the Rams first possession as they needed 13 plays to move the ball into Bears territory. Stafford (224 yards) used his arm to start things off, finding Demarcus Robinson for 19 yards for the biggest play of the opening drive. Stafford also found Jordan Whittington for another first down before a 46-yard Joshua Karty field goal gave the Rams an early 3-0 lead. One possession later, the Rams offense was at it again. Stafford hooked up with Tutu Atwell for 18 yards and moved the ball into Bears territory. Tack on a roughing the passer call on that play, and the Rams were threatening to score, only to have the Bears defense hold them to another field goal and a 6-0 lead. Once the second quarter got underway, the Bears defense came away with the first big play of the game, and it came after another Chicago punt. All it took for the Bears to get the momentum to shift was a Montez Sweat strip sack as they recovered the fumble inside the Rams 20. Four plays later, the Bears took the lead as Roschon Johnson plowed in from one yard out to make this a 7-6 game. Apart from that fumble, the Rams offense was doing what it needed to do to move the ball, as another massive hookup to Atwell moved the ball into Bears territory again. Once, the Bears defense used the bend but not break strategy, as the Rams were forced to go for another field goal, only to have this one go wide. It was at that moment that the Bears started to smell blood in the water, as their defense was keeping them in the game. Looking to close out the half with points, Williams started to use his arm to make plays. He found Swift on a perfectly executed check-down play, and he did the rest for 27 yards. Swift also used his legs to move the chains later in the drive, which set things up for a Cairo Santos 40-yard field goal to put the Bears in front 10-6 at the half. Like in the first half, the Rams offense was able to move the ball to start the second half as they drove 63 yards against the Bears defense. It took 13 plays to get it done, but when you don't have Cooper Kupp or Puca Nacua, you have to take what the defense gives you. Having a back like Kyren Williams does help, as he accounted for the first 23 yards of that drive and had close to 40 total yards on the drive. The result was another short-field goal to pull the Rams within 10-9. This was the point in the game when field goals were no longer an option, as the next three possessions resulted in touchdowns, two of them by the Bears. The first of those touchdowns came off a 12-play 74-yard drive, as Cole Kmet and Swift moved the chains with a pair of first-down receptions. This drive had no plays longer than 20 yards, as Williams found DJ Moore for the 9-yard score to put the Bears on top 17-9. Not only did Los Angeles have an answer, but for the first time in the game, they seemed to solve the Bears' defense, needing less than three minutes to go 70 yards. Finding Whittington for 16 yards did help, as did another 25-yard hookup from Atwell, who is Stafford's favorite target right now. Williams closed out the drive from there, as he was responsible for the final 25 yards on that drive, capped off by a three-yard TD run to make this a 17-15 game. Los Angeles did go for the tie, but the Bears defense withstood the two-point attempt, keeping Chicago in front 17-15. Some would say that was the play of the game, as the Bears offense not only got back to work but drove right down the Rams' throat, with Kmet hauling in a 22-yard first-down reception following five short plays. One play later, Swift got free, as his 36-yard scamper broke the game open 24-15 and provided the game-winning score for the Bears. D’Andre Swift took the OL out to dinner this week Los Angeles did manage to tack on a 52-yard field goal on their next possession, but with less than two minutes to go, it would come down to the Rams' offense. They had the ball one last time and a chance to win. Leave it to the Bears' defense to make the play. Brisker came down with a massive interception to end the game, and the Bears held on for the 24-18 win. Bears get the W with a pick to seal it! Along with the big game from Swift, you also had Williams rack up 94 yards on the ground with one score, as this was a game of the RBs. Looking at the upcoming schedule for the Bears, they have a chance to make some noise, so this win was crucial. .@CALEBcsw's HYPED pic.twitter.com/iyRvB3d7aM Let 'em know, RoJo ‼️ pic.twitter.com/2YHSs4spYP
I think he needs to every week pic.twitter.com/txA4bruEf4
(via @ChicagoBears) pic.twitter.com/o50x5UdwOj
