Commanders defeat Bears with last-second Hail Mary |
Landover - In one of the most anticipated matchups of week 8, two of the most improved teams in the NFL took the field as the Chicago Bears (4-3) traveled to Landover, Maryland, to take on the Washington Commanders (6-2). Not only was this a matchup of two of the more improved teams in the NFL, but it was also a matchup of the top two draft picks in this year's draft as Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels squared off for the first time.
For the most part, this was an ugly game as the Bears were held scoreless in the first half and trailed 9-0. Then came the second half when the action picked up as the teams combined to score 24 second-half points, with 15 coming from the Bears. Leading 15-12 in the game's closing seconds, the Bears saw their victory get snatched from them as Daniels went up top for Noah Brown as his 52 yard hail mary handed the Commanders a walk-off 18-15 win. Daniels finished the day with 326 yards and that lone touchdown as he won the first of what could be many battles between the two of them. While Daniels was about as sharp as you can be against the Bears, Williams struggled to get much done. He completed just 10 passes for 133 yards, including 38 yards in the first half, as the Bears offense couldn't do much in the first half. The same can be said about Washington, although they did come away with a trio of Austin Seibert field goals to put the Commanders in front 9-0. The second half is when most of the action started to happen and it came after another Washington field goal put the Bears in a 12-0 hole. It took eight possessions for the Bears to finally crack the scoreboard and all it took was a massive D'Andre Swift win to get the job done as he got outside and raced 56 yards to pay dirt to pull the Bears within 12-7. Swift had a massive day as he rushed for 129 yards on 18 carries as the Bears rushed for 196 yards on the day. Following the Bears' first points of the game, Washington was on the move again. Daniels hooked up with Terry McLaurin for 25 yards to move the ball near midfield. The drive stalled shortly after that, setting Seibert up for another field goal, but this time, he was unable to connect, as the Bears still trailed 12-7. Three possessions later, and the Bears offense was at it again as Swift ripped off another big run to set the offense up as they were they approaching field goal range. Williams then found Rome Odunze and Cole Kmet for a pair of completions as the Bears offense was starting to find their groove. The big play of the drive came when Williams found DJ Moore for a massive 27-yard completion, but it was Williams putting the ball on the ground shortly after, resulting in a turnover to give the ball back to Washington. As they have done so often in the past, the Bears defense managed to keep them in the game as a quick three-and-out following that turnover gave the ball back to Chicago with a shot at taking their first lead of the game. Despite that costly fumble to end their previous possession, that drive awakened the Bears offense as they looked like a completely different unit late in the game. Odunze got things rolling with a clutch 16-yard reception on third down, only for Keenan Allen to come up with another big catch to move the ball into the Washington Red Zone. What was looking to be another drive stalling in the end, Washington committed a crucial pass interference penalty, which gave the Bears a fresh set of downs from the one. Roschon Johnson knew what to do from there. He plowed in from a yard out to give the Bears their first lead of the day, while Williams went to Kmet for the two to put Chicago up 15-12 with less than a minute to go. More often than not, anytime the Bears have the lead with less than 30 seconds to go, you have to like their chances to get the job done. However, as everyone has seen so far, Daniels isn't your typical rookie. After a pair of completions to Zach Ertz and McLaurin, the Commanders had the ball near midfield with one play to go. Knowing what was coming next, Daniels did his best Aaron Rodgers impersonation, heaving the ball 52 yards downfield and finding Brown in the end zone for the walk-off TD to give the Commanders the improbable 18-15 win. A;FK;JD;KJF;LAKEJFLKJVAL;KEJL;JF;EFJ;LFAKJ “When you lose on the last play, it’s gonna hurt," Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said after the game. "But let’s go back and look at the tape and get better from this.” Brown came away with 73 yards on three receptions, while Ertz added 77 yards on seven receptions. However, McLaurin had the best day, hauling in five passes for 125 yards as the Bears short-handed secondary was exposed in this one. Chicago was led by Odunze and his 41 yards, with Allen chipping in with 39 yards in the loss.
JAYDEN DANIELS HAIL MARY! @COMMANDERS WIN! pic.twitter.com/BsQ0Z84Rko
