Bears win wild shootout against Bengals
Insane. Madness. Chaos. Confusing.
Those were just the first few words that came off the top of my head. You can come up with your own for the Chicago Bears’ 47-42. The dictionary and thesaurus can be your best friends.
You might want to keep that open if you’re looking for words to describe both defenses, too. It was just a wild, emotional day that both teams have to move on from.
What should you make of the day? Consider some numbers from the day.
Kyle Monangai:
Kyle Monangai could be a fixture in Ben Johnson’s offense after yesterday. The Rutgers product rushed for 176 yards against the Bengals; that’s the second-most by any rookie in a single game in Bears history.
Monangai’s 63 rushing yards in the first quarter were the most by a Bears running back since David Montgomery did it in Week 14 of the 2020 season. His 198 yards from scrimmage were also the fifth-most by a rookie in a single game in franchise history, behind the likes of Willie Galimore, Gale Sayers, Jordan Howard and Harlon Hill, and ahead of Walter Payton.
That’s also the single-game high for an NFL rookie in the 2025 season so far, eclipsing the Raiders’ rookie Ashton Jeanty’s 138 rushing yards he recorded vs… the Bears.
Good for the rookie.
Speaking of rookies, Loveland became the first Bears rookie tight end to record multiple receiving touchdowns and a 100-yard receiving day in a single game since Mike Ditka did it in 1961.
Caleb Williams:
The Bears' QB1 continues to show his skills.
He wasn’t perfect on Sunday – there were still moments he missed throws, missed check downs and held on to the ball for too long – but, he saved his best throw for last. He recognized the coverage the Bengals were in, and floated the game-winning touchdown pass to Colston Loveland.
Loveland took the pass 58 yards for a score, but the throw was perfectly placed between four defenders.
According to the Bears, Williams became the first player in NFL history with at least 275 passing yards, 50 rushing yards and 20 receiving yards in a single game. He also became the first starting quarterback with two receptions in a game since Baltimore Colts QB George Taliaferro did so in 1953.
Still, that pales in comparison to this. In the NFL’s all-time fourth-quarter passer rating leaderboard, No. 11 through 14 rank as follows:
No. 11: Patrick Mahomes
No. 12: Tom Brady
No. 13: Caleb Williams
No. 14: Joe Montana
Williams also has the franchise record for most passing touchdowns in first two seasons as a Bear.
Williams also has four game-winning drives since Week 18 of the 2024 season. That ties him for second in the NFL with Bryce Young and Bo Nix, and sits behind only Baker Mayfield.
By the numbers:
Two other fun tidbits reside with coincidence and the head football coach.
Since 2000, the only other team to return a kick for a touchdown, recover an onside kick and block a field goal was the Lions. That was in Week 8 of the 2003 season, where Detroit also lost to... Dick Jauron’s Bears.
Ben Johnson won his fifth game on Sunday as the Bears’ head coach, doing so in game No. 9.
John Fox won his fifth game with the Bears in Game No. 12, which was a win over Green Bay on Thanksgiving. Marc Trestman also won his fifth game in Game No. 9. Lovie Smith won his fifth game in Week No. 13. Matt Eberflus won his fifth game in Game No. 24.
The other side:
The Bears might have broken the Bengals.
After the game, reporters asked Illini product and Bengals running back Chase Brown about the defense.
"Finish the f***ing Game. Just end it. Just end the f***ing game," Brown told reporters.
To be clear, the Bengals’ offense is great. An injured Joe Flacco is tearing up defenses. The team has two of the best receivers in the league. The only issue is the Bengals’ defense is really, really bad.
Star receiver JaMarr Chase was asked about the defense, too.
"I'm going to stay in my lane," Chase told reporters. "I don't want no defensive player to chew me out about what the f**k I'm doing."
That locker room needs some help.
Dig deeper:
Still, things weren’t great for the Bears, either. Winning 47-42 is great until you consider the fact the Bears gave up 42 points, including a 98-yard kick-return touchdown with a botched onside kick that led to a go-ahead touchdown to go with it.
I want to make it clear that I think Hightower is a great coach.
He’s spearheading the charge with all the special teams changes league-wide. His unit has literally won the Bears two games with a blocked field goal and a made field goal. Hightower got Jake Moody’s confidence back and ready to go to a point where he made eight field goals in two games.
People only talk about special teams when things are going really great or when things are going very bad.
Unlucky for him, things just went awry basically all day. Luckily for him, Johnson is a coach that'll give him a chance to bounce back.
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