CHICAGO (AP) — When the ball left the hand of Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels with no time left on the clock on Oct. 27 in Washington, the Bears were 4-2 and just needed to swat the ball to the ground to finish off their fourth straight win.
Instead, the ball was batted into the air.
And ever since it landed in the arms of a Commanders receiver, the Bears have fired an offensive coordinator and a head coach, haven’t won another game, and have another offseason looming full of questions over the future of the franchise.
It’s way too simple to say that one Hail Mary play caused the complete demise of the 2024 Bears, but it sure was a stark demarcation point. And now, a long, painful season is down to one more game for the Bears.
For their fans, it’s probably a merciful ending.
Sunday at noon
The Bears (4-12) head north to Lambeau Field for a season finale against the archrival Green Bay Packers (11-5). The game will be at noon Sunday, as the NFL has now finalized all the dates and times for Week 18 matchups.
While the Packers are headed to the postseason following Sunday’s game, the Bears won’t be for the fourth season in a row and the 15th time in 18 years since reaching Super Bowl XLI following the 2006 season.
They’ll also be trying to avoid ending the season on an 11-game losing streak, something almost unfathomable when the Bears went into their bye in Week 7 with a 4-2 record.
But they haven’t won since, and things reached an ugly crescendo during their home finale last Thursday night at Soldier Field.
When the Bears threatened to score in the closing minutes of a 6-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, fans expressed their feelings loud and clear.
They weren’t cheering for a touchdown or field goal. They had something else in mind.
“Sell the team!” they chanted.
“My job is to go out there and win games,” rookie quarterback Caleb Williams said. “And we don’t focus on the outside noise. The fans are going to cheer and maybe boo sometimes. And you can’t react to that. It’s not something that we react to.”
Chicago is 14-36 in three seasons under general manager Ryan Poles and now has two double-digit losing streaks.
The Bears dropped their final 10 game in 2022, when they were tanking as part of a franchise-record 14-game skid that stretched into last year. They’ve never lost more than 10 in a row in a single season, so they’ll be trying to avoid an ignominious franchise first on Sunday against a team they haven’t beaten since 2018.
The slide was at six games when the Bears fired former coach Matt Eberflus the day after a loss at Detroit on Thanksgiving, following a series of poor late-game decisions. They’re 0-4 under interim coach Thomas Brown, and they’ve been dominated by Green Bay in recent decades.
What’s working
The defense. A defense that has gone from ranking seventh in yards per game through the first six weeks to 25th did its part against Seattle. The six points allowed were a season-low and the 265 yards the Bears gave up were their second-lowest.
“As we know, our defense has a certain standard and we’ve showed it,” cornerback Kyler Gordon said. “So, obviously syncing a little bit. Just getting back on the guys to get back right. It’s just important to know what we can do and just go in there and execute.”
What needs help
Pass protection. Williams was sacked seven times Thursday, bringing his NFL-leading total and individual franchise record to 67. The Bears broke their previous mark of 66 sacks allowed in 2004, when they used four quarterbacks. Their issues on the offensive line are well-documented. And so is Williams’ tendency to hold onto the ball too long, resulting in unnecessary sacks.
“There were miscues,” Williams said. “There were stupid sacks that I was taking, losing 10, 14 yards, which is frustrating. But I will say that I will definitely take the heat for this one, just because (of) some of the situations that I put us in.”
Stock up
DE Montez Sweat. The Bears gave up 53 yards rushing on Seattle’s game-opening field-goal drive. But the line performed better after that. Sweat picked up his first sack since Week 12 against Minnesota on the first play of Seattle’s second possession, when he took down Geno Smith for an 8-yard loss. Though he’s only missed one game, Sweat has been slowed by ankle and shin injuries. His 5 1/2 sacks are a big drop from last season, when he had a combined 12 1/2 for Washington and Chicago while becoming the first NFL player to lead two teams in the same season.
Stock down
Williams. Coming off a promising outing against NFC leader Detroit that followed some shaky outings, Williams had a rough night Thursday. The No. 1 overall draft pick completed 16 of 28 passes for 122 yards — not much more than his low of 93 in a Week 1 win over Tennessee — after throwing for 334 yards and two touchdowns against the Lions. The seven sacks for 46 yards both matched his second-highest totals.
Injuries
The Bears reported no injuries during Thursday’s game, so there was at least some good news.
Key number
5 — The Bears once again had trouble sustaining drives, converting just 5 of 15 third downs and punting on seven of their 10 possessions. They tied a season low with 11 first downs and managed 179 yards. Chicago owns the NFL’s second-worst third-down conversion rate at 31.8% and is averaging a league-worst 287.3 yards per game.
Next steps
The Bears have lost 11 straight against the Packers — the longest streak by either team in the storied rivalry — and 26 of 29 counting the playoffs. They’ve dropped eight in a row at Lambeau Field since a win in 2015.