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Courtney Cronin
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Courtney Cronin
espn staff writer
- Courtney Cronin joined ESPN in 2017, originally covering the Minnesota Vikings before moving to the Chicago Bears in 2022. Courtney is a frequent panelist on Around the Horn and host of Best Week Ever and GameNight on ESPN Radio. She also co-hosts The Chicago Bears Podcast on ESPN 1000. He previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News as a multimedia sports reporter.
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john keem
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john keem
espn staff writer
- John Keim covers the Washington Commander for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2013 after working with the Washington Post. He began covering the team in 1994 for Journal Newspapers and later the Washington Examiner. He has authored/co-authored four books. You can also hear him on ‘The John Keim Report’, which airs on ESPN Richmond Radio.
LANDOVER, MD – For a while, it felt like Chicago’s Week 6 win at Washington was going to be just like the last time the Bears were with a loss on Monday Night Football to open the season. minnesota vikings,
The Bears had a double-digit lead over the Commanders and wasted it with a combination of blown coverage, settling for field goals on touchdowns, penalties and overall poor play.
But this time, approaching the one-year anniversary of the Bears’ last trip to Northwest Stadium, which ended in destruction on a Hail Mary, Chicago took advantage of their opponent’s late-game mistake and won 25–24 to make it back-to-back wins on the road.
jake moody Kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired, hours after being promoted to the game-day roster with the kicker cairo santos Dealing with a quad injury.
quarterback Caleb Williams That DC-area homecoming wasn’t perfect. But winning ugly remains a theme for the Bears, who won their third game in Week 1 since 2013.
Chicago Bears (3-2)
turn: When the Bears trailed 24-22 jayden daniels And Jeremy McNichols Their exchanges near midfield went haywire. Chicago recovered the fumble and gave Williams and the offense the final 3:07 to get back on track and turn an ugly game into a victory with the game-winning drive. Chicago had all three of its timeouts to use down the stretch as Moody prepared for the game-winning kick in the rain and wind.
Most Amazing Performance: d’andre swift Came into Week 5 averaging 3.3 yards per carry. Like last season against the Commanders, Swift had a season-high 108 rushing yards against Washington and generated chunk plays (7.7). Yards per carry) The Bears were looking for a run game. Chicago’s leading rusher also had the second-longest reception of his career, a short pass that he took 55 yards down the Commander’s sideline for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Biggest hole in the game plan: Deep ball defense. commander quarterback jayden daniels Had three completions on 20-yard throws against the Bears defense, including two touchdowns. Despite the Bears being on their defensive end at the end of the third quarter, no Chicago defensive player remembered to cover a Washington receiver Luke McCaffreyThat left him open for a 33-yard touchdown on a wheel route. –Courtney Cronin
Next game: versus New Orleans Saints (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)
Washington Commanders (3-3)
No other Hail Mary was needed to defeat Commanders Chicago BearsHe just had to take better care of the ball.
And he didn’t do that.
And they had to pay the price for it.
At the end of the fourth quarter the Commanders turned the ball over for the third time and took a two-point lead. This led to Chicago’s game-winning field goal and a 25–24 lead – and returning the favor of exiting the field with heartbreak.
Of course a year ago, quarterback jayden daniels Throwed a 52-yard Hail Mary to defeat the Bears. But Washington’s defense continues to struggle — and if it doesn’t improve it points to more pain as the season unfolds. They couldn’t stop Chicago’s ground attack, which was having trouble getting into the game.
But it was the turnover that did them: Daniels threw a red zone interception that not only cost them a field goal attempt, but also caused Chicago to drive for one of their own goals. Cheater Jacory Croskey-Merritt Then a fumble was lost which would have cost the Bears a touchdown.
Daniels then failed to provide a proper handoff to Croskey-Merritt, giving Chicago the ball at the 44 and leading to the game-winning field goal.
turn: Chicago was set for a 48-yard field goal attempt on the first play of the fourth quarter. but defensive behavior daron payne Passed over the middle to block the kick and put Washington ahead 17-16. While there were other big plays, those three points proved to be the difference as Washington never trailed again.
Quarterback Performance: Daniels had a great night–and two killer plays. He threw for 211 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for another 52 yards. He kept drives alive with his legs and fueled the passing game with big plays despite missing a top receiver. Terry McLaurin For the third consecutive game. But Daniels threw an interception and failed to execute a late handoff, leading to a fumble. Additionally, when Washington used an empty formation the Bears put constant pressure on it; Commanders did not adjust sufficiently to that form.
Biggest hole in the game plan: Washington did worse than running back d’andre swiftHe did not gain more than 78 yards from scrimmage in any of his first four games this season. Still he ran for 108 And caught two passes for another 67. He constantly burned Washington. The Bears did a good job of opening holes for him, but head coach and playcaller Ben Johnson also helped by running in the wrong direction.
Viewing Trends: rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt Stumbled for the second consecutive game. Croskey-Merritt has done a good job but gets the ball too loose at times – and gets hurt running up the middle. There’s a lot to like about him, and he rushed for a combined 175 yards in those two games, but it’s something to keep an eye on moving forward. –John Keim
Next game: But dallas cowboys (4:25 PM ET, Sunday)
