Credit: @Peter Casey-Imagn Images

The Chicago Bears traveled to Washington full of confidence. They were riding high after three consecutive wins. Their 4-2 record good for the 7th seed position in the NFC. They had forged their way into the top ten in team rankings after 7 weeks.

Then Sunday came and the top ten ranking and the confidence of a three-game winning streak vanished. The Bears allowed a Hail Mary TD pass after a hard fought fourth quarter that saw WB Caleb Williams lead a would-be game-winning drive to take a 15-12 lead with 25 seconds left on the clock. Bears lost 18-15.

The game was filled with terrible play calling, poor execution and head scratching moments that should not happen after six games AND a bye week. 

Instead, the Bears were pathetic on offense for most of the game. The offense finally got a little rhythm going in the 4th quarter. After a Washington punt gave the ball to Chicago at their own 15-yard line. Williams took only 8 plays to put the offense in position for a TD at the Commanders one-yard line. This has been the spot where Doug Kramer would enter the game to block for Swift or Johnson. Indeed, Kramer reported as eligible. Instead of lining up in an offset I, Kramer was positioned directly behind Williams. Williams attempted to hand the ball to Kramer and a poor exchange resulted in a fumble which Washington recovered. 

Waldron drew ire from fans and reporters immediately, then even some players were critical after the game.

DJ Moore was surprised that play was called at that time of the game.

“I don't know the reason behind the play call,” Moore said on the Mully & Haugh Show on Monday morning. “It's been up for a few weeks, but I didn't think we were actually getting it called in a game like this. When I came out of the tent and just seen him running, I was just like, ‘What the hell happened?"

The Bears got the ball back at their own 38-yard line and Caleb Williams led the team on what should have been a game-winning TD drive, but the defense threw the game away. The last two plays of the game are blueprints for what not to do when the opposing team has only six seconds left on the clock, no timeouts, and the ball at their own 35-yard line.

The defense did not force a pass toward the middle of the field. Jayden Daniels completed an uncontested pass to Terry McLaurin to their 48. With two seconds left, Washington had no choice but to attempt a Hail-Mary. Daniels held onto the ball for more than 12 seconds and heaved a pass down field. No defender was in the back to box out Noah Brown.

Before the play Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson was on the near side jawing with fans. Replays show his back was turned to the play even after the ball was snapped.

He got to the crowd of players between the goal line and the 5-yard line and it was Stevenson that tipped the ball up rather than batting it toward the sideline. The ball floated over the rest of the Bears defenders and into the waiting hands over Noah Brown to secure the 18-15 win for Washington.

Respect The Game

Cole Kmet went to great lengths to openly criticize the team for their failure to "Respect the Game."

Speaking to the media on Monday, Kmet didn't hold back.

"I think it's a really good lesson for everyone to learn from in terms of how to respect the game," Kmet said. "I think we had examples of that throughout the game and quite frankly throughout the week of practice this past week. There are moments where maybe some guys lay off here and there, those are the types of things that can happen when you do that for just a split-second. It doesn't always come to bite you in the butt but when it does, it hurts. That's the unfortunate and I would also say beauty of this game, if you disrespect it in a certain way and it'll come to haunt you in some form or fashion."

Two weeks ago the Bears were riding high after a three-game winning streak and a 4-2 record had fans thinking about a post-season berth. When the team hits the practice field tomorrow, they will be looking to put the pieces back together.