The Chicago Bears turned to Nick Foles in the second half of Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons, and he delivered in a big way as he threw three touchdown passes to lead the Bears to a stunning 30-26 comeback victory at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Jimmy Graham hauled in a pair of touchdown catches in the game, and Allen Robinson snared a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter of the game, but it was Anthony Miller who played the role of hero as he hauled in a go-ahead pass with less than two minutes to go to help the Bears to yet another improbable victory.
The Bears’ offense was slow to get going in the game, with Cairo Santos missing an early field goal, and the Falcons took immediate advantage, as Calvin Ridley hauled in a 63-yard pass to set up the Falcons near the goal line. Hayden Hurst cashed in with the touchdown two plays later, and Atlanta took a 6-0 lead.
Santos and Younghoe Koo exchanged field goals as the game moved into the second quarter, but it was the Falcons that seized momentum. Brian Hill scampered in on a 35-yard rush with 4:37 left in the half, giving Atlanta a 16-3 lead.
Trubisky had a shining moment late in the second quarter, with Graham snaring a two-yard touchdown pass in the red zone to make it a 16-10 game at halftime.
After Todd Gurley rushed in for a 10-yard touchdown, Trubisky fired an interception on the Bears’ next drive, and he was pulled from the game after Koo made another field goal for Atlanta, paving the way for Foles to take over for the rest of the contest.
That move appeared to pay dividends late in the third quarter, but the Bears had a touchdown wiped off the board, as Robinson had a ball ripped out of his hands by Darqueze Dennard in the end zone. Officials overturned the ruling, changing it from a touchdown to an interception, and the Bears’ offense continued to be stymied in the contest.
Sports
It appeared that the Bears had scored a touchdown with less than 11 minutes to go, but video review showed that Anthony Miller lost possession of the ball while he was on the ground, forcing a turnover on downs for the Bears.
As they have multiple times this season, the Bears made things interesting in the fourth quarter, with Graham hauling in his second touchdown grab of the game with 6:20 remaining. The two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful, but the Bears had life as they trailed 26-16.
After a quick Falcons three-and-out, the Bears scored again just two minutes later. With just four and a half minutes left in the game, Robinson made another huge impact play, snaring a pass from Foles and scampering into the end zone to make it a 26-23 game.
The Falcons went three-and-out yet again, and the Bears made them pay, as they scored with 1:53 remaining in the game. Foles lofted a pass to Miller, who hauled it in and skidded into the end zone to give Chicago a 30-26 advantage late in the fourth quarter.
Ryan was trying to drive the Falcons back down the field, and Tashaun Gipson Sr. intercepted a pass deep in Chicago territory to give the Bears back the ball with a minute left.
The Bears were able to kill off the rest of the clock, giving themselves a 3-0 record on the season.
They'll hope to stretch that to 4-0 when Philip Rivers and the Indianapolis Colts come to Soldier Field next Sunday.
