On Sunday, the Chicago Bears beat the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium in a 25-24 victory. This marks the team’s first win on the road this season. It was an ugly win that had fans sitting on the edge
of their seats down to the last 30 seconds of the game, but it was a win nonetheless.
Regardless of how ugly the win, good teams fight tooth and nail until the very end and find a way to win. That’s something the Bears were never able to do under former Head Coach Matt Eberflus’ tenure. For fans, this win against the Raiders is more significant than simply improving the Bears record to 2-2 before the bye week. Instead, it serves as the first sign that the Bears’ culture and reputation is shifting under first-time Head Coach Ben Johnson. In a post-game presser, even Johnson described the win as a “huge character win” for this team.
As the Bears head into their bye week, here are this week’s Windy City Honors awards:
Quarterback Caleb Williams’ Best Throw of the Game
The Bears had a difficult time getting in the red zone throughout the game, but when they did, Williams made sure it counted. His best throw of the game was his 27-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Rome Odunze.
There can be a case made that this is Williams’ best throw of his career. During third and long with the pocket collapsing and under pressure, Williams delivers this dart with both anticipation and deep-ball accuracy, two QB fundamentals Williams struggled with last season. Williams continues to show tremendous growth as the season progresses.
Worst Drop of the Game
Veteran tight end Cole Kmet had one of his worst performances of his career on Sunday. Not only did Kmet commit two false start penalties, but he dropped a perfectly placed ball in a crucial moment for an already struggling Bears offense. That catch would’ve set the offense up to finally get six on the board. Instead, the drop led to a drive-killing sequence that ended with the Bears punting the ball away.
While Kmet is usually a consistent ball-catcher, he only caught three of his nine targets for 46 receiving yards, receiving the lowest Pro Football Focus grade on the offense.
Biggest (and Sweetest) Plot Twist of the Game
Of course I saved the best for last.
After an 11-play, 69-yard drive that resulted in a two-yard touchdown run from running back D’Andre Swift, the Bears failed a two-point conversion attempt and left 1:34 remaining on the clock. The Raiders quickly marched into field goal territory, and Bears fans instantly knew this one would end in another heartbreaking loss. And it did. Just not for the Bears.
For the first time maybe ever, the Bears end up on the right side of a heartbreaking loss thanks to cornerback Josh Blackwell who blocked a 54-year-old field-goal attempt.
After the game, Blackwell gave credit to long snapper Scott Daly who gave him a piece of intel on the Raiders’ long snapper that he picked up watching the Raiders’ film. “Throughout the week, Scott Daly had given us a little tip with the snapper. He would move the ball right when he would snap it,” claimed Blackwell.
A seemingly small detail, but a game changer for the Bears.
This team has a long way to go still, but all three phases rallied at the end and pulled out a comeback win. That’s what I call progress.
