Justin Fields had arguably his best game as a member of the Chicago Bears, but the team's defense struggled in the second half as they fell to the San Francisco 49ers 33-22 at Soldier Field.
Justin Fields threw for 175 yards and a touchdown, and rushed for 103 yards and another score, but it wasn’t enough as the Bears dropped their third straight game.
Jimmy Garoppolo had a strong day at the office, throwing for 322 yards. He also picked up a pair of rushing touchdowns, leaving a 49ers second half surge that resulted in the team snapping a four-game losing streak.
Deebo Samuel caught six passes for 171 yards, and Mohamed Sanu had three catches for 59 yards.
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Darnell Mooney led the Bears with six catches for 64 yards, and Jesse James caught his first touchdown pass as a Bear in the losing effort. Khalil Herbert rushed for 72 yards in relief of Damien Williams, who left the game in the first half with an injury.
Early in the second quarter, the Bears finally put a touchdown up on the board, with an 11-play, 74 yard touchdown drive that ate up nearly six minutes of clock. Fields capped off the drive with a tremendous pass, rolling out to the left and throwing across his body to Jesse James, who made a diving catch to give the Bears a 10-3 lead with 12 minutes to go in the first half.
After Fields’ touchdown pass, the teams began to trade field goals, with each squad picking up a pair of field goals from their kickers. The 49ers got one to end the first half, leaving them down 13-9 at the break, but the Bears responded with another one to start out the third quarter, putting them up 16-9.
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The Niners, who had failed to score a touchdown against the Bears in any game since 2015, finally succeeded in that endeavor in the middle stages of the third quarter with a seven play, 75 yard-touchdown drive. Garoppolo did the honors himself, scoring off the left side from two-yards out. Slye missed the extra point to the right, leaving the Bears up by a point.
As the fourth quarter began, the 49ers handed the ball off to Mitchell, and he obliged with an 11-yard run and a five-yard touchdown run on back-to-back plays. The 49ers converted the two-point conversion, giving San Francisco their first lead of the day at 23-16 with 14 minutes remaining in the game.
After Robinson came up short of the line to gain on third down, Fields and the Bears opted to go for it on 4th-and-1. With several 49ers defenders in his face, Fields reversed field and ran up the left side, dodging several tackles and scoring on a remarkable 22-yard touchdown run.
Unfortunately for the Bears, Santos missed the extra point attempt, leaving Chicago trailing 23-22 with 9:32 remaining in the game.
Right after Fields’ incredible touchdown, the 49ers responded by marching down the field and scoring on a five play, 75-yard touchdown drive. For the second time in the half, Garoppolo stormed into the end zone for a rushing touchdown, but the 49ers settled for an extra point kick to go up 30-22, keeping it a one-possession game.
The Bears were forced off the field with a quick three-and-out, with Fields getting enveloped on a sack on third down with less than five minutes remaining in the game.
The 49ers moved the ball back down the field, and although the Bears' defense stopped them in the red zone, Slye made a short field goal, giving San Francisco a 33-22 lead in the game's waning stages.
Fields' deep throw to Mooney was picked off by Josh Norman, sealing the win for the 49ers.
The loss is the third straight for Chicago, leaving them with a 3-5 record on the season. The Bears will have an extra day of preparations in Week 9 as they’ll take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in a Monday Night Football showdown at Heinz Field on Nov. 8.
