Bears win close one, Packers stumble but are still favored | 1st & North
Bears win close one, Packers stumble but are still favored | 1st & North
On this episode of "1st & North:" The Bears pull out a close win — but still have plenty to improve. The Packers finish in a tie with Dallas — raising the question, how do you put a stop to ties in the NFL? Plus, bye week blues for both the Bears and Packers — will the break help in the long run? And why are the Packers still favored to win the division?
This Monday’s game has been circled on the Chicago Bears’ schedule for a while.
It’s not just the Washington, it’s the Jayden Daniels’ Commanders. It’s not just the Commanders, it’s the team the Bears will be compared to for years. It’s not just the Washington Commanders, it’s the team that beat the Bears last year on the NFL’s Play of the Year.
The fans remember it. The Bears who remain from the 2024 roster remember it, too. So does Tyrique Stevenson.
He was the cornerback looking to the crowd as the play started, and he was the cornerback who tipped the Daniels’ heave into the air. It landed into Noah Brown’s hands.
"It just hurt my feelings, being a football player and having one of those mistakes that’s going to linger," he said. "It still hurts."
That play won’t keep Stevenson down, though. He’s using it as motivation, not just for himself but to make sure he won’t let his teammates down again.
The backstory:
One day, Stevenson will have to face that play again. In that moment down the road, it won’t be a coach or teammate asking him about it.
"Even when my son grows up, I’m going to have to explain that to him," Stevenson said.
That’s in the future, however.
Now, Stevenson just wants to do right by the players he let down nearly a year ago during that "Fail Mary" of a play.
"The best I can do is show these 10 guys I’m locked in," Stevenson said.
After that fateful play, Stevenson was benched in favor of Terell Smith. The two split time, but Stevenson has won his starting job back with the Bears under first-year head coach Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
Allen has what Steveson brings to the cornerback room. He’s physical and brings confidence to the position that’s needed.
That confidence needs to shine on Monday night. Stevenson says it will because he’s not focused on winning for the individual. He’s focused on the 10 other individuals around him.
Last year, after the loss, Stevenson remembers being in the locker room after that play.
"I got a couple side eyes," he said.
Stevenson had to re-earn trust. He spent the rest of last season, this past offseason and this past training camp doing just that. With this game coming up, he made it clear.
The other 10 Bears on his side of the field matter. The Commanders fans and critics do not.
"It’s 10 guys I’ve been working with all week to prepare for this game," Stevenson said. "They are the 10 guys I have to answer to."
What's next:
Stevenson has had a second reclamation project this year.
Through four games, Stevenson has shown his potential. He struggled against the Vikings and Lions to open the season. Against Dallas and Las Vegas, he showed his mettle. He took a ball away from Javonte Williams and laid out to pick off Geno Smith in consecutive wins.
"Tyrique had one of the more athletic plays I've seen," Bears head coach Ben Johnson said after the win over the Raiders. "The way he bounced up after that. I thought that was incredible. We don't win that game without those turnovers."
That bounce back was what Stevenson wanted because he didn’t believe the play in the first two games exemplified what kind of cornerback he is.
"That’s not who I am, and I put that on film," Stevenson said. "I am who I say I am."
He’ll get a chance to do that again this Monday night.
"I had a bad play. It is what it is," Stevenson said. "Best thing I can do is come out there and be the CB1 for this team and get the job done."
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