Larry Mayer
CINCINNATI In an exciting offensive shootout that featured seven lead changes, the Bears defeated the Bengals 47-42 Sunday at Paycor Stadium.
Improving to 5-3, the Bears registered season highs in points and total yards (576) and have now won five of their last six games since an 0-2 start.
After the Bears scored 17 unanswered points to take a 41-27 lead, the Bengals responded with 15 points in 49 seconds to go up 42-41 with 58 seconds remaining. But Caleb Williams connected with rookie tight end Colston Loveland for a 58-yard touchdown with 25 seconds left to cap the exciting back-and-forth affair.
Loveland caught six passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner.
The Bears totaled 283 rushing yards, their most in a game since Sept. 30, 1984 when they also recorded 283 rushing yards against the Cowboys.
Starting in place of the injured D'Andre Swift, rookie running back Kyle Monangai ran for for 176 yards on 26 carries and catching three passes for 22 yards.
Williams completed 20 of 34 passes for 280 yards with three touchdowns, no turnovers and a 114.8 passer rating. He also ran five times for 53 yards and caught two passes for 22 yards and a touchdown.
The Bengals took an early 7-0 lead as Charlie Jones returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown.
The Bears responded by dipping into their bag of tricks to tie the score 7-7 on DJ Moore's 2-yard touchdown pass to Williams on fourth-and-goal, capping a 12-play, 73-yard drive.
Williams took the snap, flipped the ball to receiver Rome Odunze, who pitched it to Moore, who tossed it to a wide-open Williams in the end zone. Moore also caught passes of 16 and 19 yards on the drive.
Evan McPherson's 41-yard field goal then gave the Bengals a 10-7 lead.
The Bears answered with a second straight touchdown on Williams' 15-yard pass to receiver Olamide Zaccheaus to take a 14-10 lead on the first play of the second quarter. Zaccheaus went in motion, took a short flip from Williams behind the line of scrimmage and then turned up field, capping an 11-play, 74-yard drive.
The TD came after Cairo Santos missed a 47-yard field goal attempt. But Bengals defensive back DJ Ivey was penalized for lining up in the neutral zone on the kick, giving the Bears an automatic first down.
On Cincinnati's next possession, new Bears nickel back C.J. Gardner-Johnson sacked Joe Flacco on a third-and-7 blitz, forcing a punt.
The Bengals eventually closed the gap to 14-13 on McPherson's 33-yard field goal with 5:47 left in the second quarter. Cincinnati had first-and-goal at the 6, but a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. pushed the Bengals back to the 21.
The Bears extended their lead to 17-13 on Santos' 24-yard field goal with 1:29 remaining in the first half.
The Bengals responded immediately as Flacco connected with receiver Tee Higgins down the left sideline for a 44-yard TD pass that gave Cincinnati a 20-17 lead.
Devin Duvernay returned the ensuing kickoff 52 yards to the Bengals' 38, but the play was nullified by a holding penalty on Jahdae Walker.
Undeterred, the Bears advanced to the Cincinnati 29. But Santos' 47-yard field goal attempt was deflected by linebacker Joseph Ossai with :03 to play in the half.
The Bears opened the second half with a 12-play, 77-yard drive capped by Williams' 5-yard TD pass to Loveland. The first-round pick's first NFL touchdown gave the Bears a 24-20 lead.
After rushing for 100 yards in the first half, Monangai gained 22 yards on five carries and caught two passes for 22 yards on the TD drive.
The Bengals responded immediately, taking a 27-24 lead on Flacco's 2-yard TD pass to Higgins. The TD came after Flacco completed passes of 33 yards to tight end Tanner Hudson and 27 yards to receiver Mitch Tinsley on back-to-back plays.
The Bears answered with 17 unanswered points to take a 41-27 leadon running back Brittain Brown's 22-yard TD run, Santos' 36-yard field goal and Moore's 17-yard TD run.
Flacco's 23-yard pass to Noah Fant and subsequent successful two-point try on a throw to Higgins cut the Bears' lead to 41-35. The Bengals then recovered an onside kick after the ball deflected off defensive lineman Daniel Hardy, who was blocking on the play. Cincinnati then moved 57 yards in six plays, capped off by Andrei Iosivas' 9-yard touchdown reception, to take a 42-41 lead before the Bears' game-winning drive.
The Bears will look to move to 6-3 next week when they host the New York Giants at Soldier Field.
