Caleb Williams leads 4 scoring drives as Bears beat Rams 24-18

 

[September 30, 2024]  By ANDREW SELIGMAN

CHICAGO (AP) — Once Caleb Williams and the Bears' offense found their rhythm, they started stringing together the sort of possessions the team and its fans envision on a regular basis.

Williams led four scoring drives, D'Andre Swift had 165 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown, and Chicago held off the Los Angeles Rams 24-18 on Sunday.

The Bears (2-2) scored touchdowns on back-to-back possessions in the second half after struggling early. Jaquan Brisker intercepted Matthew Stafford with about a minute remaining following a punt on the previous play.

Williams threw for 157 yards and a touchdown after setting a Bears rookie record by passing for 363 yards on 52 attempts in a loss at Indianapolis last week. He said this performance was a step forward.

The No. 1 overall draft pick and former Heisman Trophy winner out of Southern California was 17 of 23 with a 9-yard TD pass to DJ Moore in the third quarter. He did not have a turnover, coming off a game in which he got picked off twice and lost a fumble.

“Obviously when you don’t have two turnovers, that’s the most important thing,” Williams said. “When you have a defense like us, you have a punter and a kicker like we have, you’re not turning the ball over, it goes a long way. You’re going to win a lot of games.”

Swift had his best game since signing with the Bears in March. A Pro Bowler with Philadelphia last season, he broke off a 36-yard touchdown run that made it 24-15 in the fourth quarter. He finished with 16 rushes for 93 yards and seven catches for 72 yards.

Roschon Johnson ran for a 1-yard touchdown in the second quarter following a strip-sack by Montez Sweat deep in Los Angeles territory, and Chicago finished with 131 yards rushing after managing 63 against the Colts.

“We’re addressing the issues that need to be addressed,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “Early on it was getting in and out of the huddle and cadence and making sure we’re doing good there. And then it was distributing the ball to different skill sets. We did that. Now it’s running the football. We did a better job with that today. We’re just addressing the issues. When you’re building chemistry the first time together with a new and young quarterback, I just think that’s a part of growing.”

Brisker's clinching pick felt particularly good since a penalty negated his interception in the end zone in the first half, and he also was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“I owed the team one, just get my mind right, stay locked in, stay focused and try to get the ball at some point today,” said Brisker, who also had a sack in the fourth quarter.

The Bears won for the first time since beating Tennessee in Week 1 and snapped a three-game skid against the Rams (1-3), who were coming off a fourth-quarter rally to beat San Francisco.

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, left, and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford talk after the Bears' 24-18 win over the Rams in an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

“The guys stayed in the fight,” Los Angeles coach Sean McVay said. "There was some good things, but there was some really uncharacteristic mistakes that we made as a team in regards to just some mental errors, where we left people free. And you can’t do that if you’re going to be a good offense and consistently execute.”

Stafford passes Eli

Stafford moved ahead of Eli Manning for 10th on the NFL's all-time passing list with 57,025 yards. The two-time Pro Bowler completed 20 of 29 passes for 224 yards. But he threw a late interception on first down at the Los Angeles 8. The Rams also had trouble finishing drives, with just one touchdown in four trips inside the red zone.

Tutu Atwell had 82 yards receiving with Cooper Kupp (ankle) and Puka Nacua (knee) sidelined, and Kyren Williams ran for 94 yards and a TD.

“They sting when you lose,” Stafford said. “They're frustrating. I don't really want to sit here and talk to you guys. There's a lot of things that are frustrating about losses and they eat at us. But come Monday, time to move on and find a way to get a win next week.”

Williams and Williams

The Bears led 17-9 after Caleb Williams found Moore in the back of the end zone late in the third quarter.

The Rams answered with a 70-yard drive, capped by Kyren Williams' 3-yard score on the first play of the fourth. That made it 17-15, but the 2-point conversion pass failed.

Chicago then went 70 yards for another TD. Caleb Williams hit Cole Kmet over the middle for a neat 22-yard pass, and Swift leapt over a lunging linebacker Michael Hoecht at the line on the next play to spring his long touchdown run, his first score since signing with the Bears in the offseason.

Joshua Karty cut it to 24-18 with a 52-yard field goal.

Injuries

Bears: RG Teven Jenkins (ribs) exited early in the second quarter after he was hurt blocking on a run.

Up next

Rams: Host Green Bay next Sunday.

Bears: Host Carolina next Sunday.

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