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October 2023 (Part 01)

Chicago Bears: 40

Washington Commanders: 20

Steve and Andy went to an NFL game in early October, watching the Bears beat the Commanders.  They had amazing seats, at the 25 years line and only 10 rows up.  We drove down with Andy's friend, Max and his dad, Drew.  We thought we allowed plenty of time, but it took the full two-and-a-half hours to get there, so we got to our seats a bit before kickoff.  After the game, traffic was incredibly gridlocked, so we wound up playing corn hole in the parking lot.  We could have left after two games, especially as it was a bit before 1AM, but we clearly had to play an abbreviated tie-breaker.  We got home at almost 2 AM, but it was so worth it.  We were very reserved about their chances, but were treated to a solid, end-to-end team win across most aspects of the game.  Steve actually recorded two of the touchdowns as they happened right in front of them on what were crucial downs.

The 0-4 Bears came into the game among the worst teams in the NFL so far this season and carrying a franchise-worst 14-game losing streak, with their last win coming last October 24th.  The entered the game with only 2 sacks in three games.  There was also significant controversy in the locker room, with a starting wide receiver acquired recently in a trade being left off the roster amid controversy about his lack of effort (and lack of blocking on the field).  It turned out having the boys there to cheer them on was what they needed.  They handed the 1-3 Commanders a 40-20 drubbing, which likely solidified the Bear's coaches jobs (for a week at least) and suddenly raised questions about the Commander's leadership team.  All of this occurred in front of the new Commander's ownership team.  The damage was severe. Chicago had eight scoring drives and amassed 451 yards. It was the fourth consecutive game in which Washington gave up more than 30 points — and it was the Commanders’ third straight loss. The Bears scored on their first five possessions and didn’t punt until the third quarter.  The finished with 5 sacks and 11 hits on Howell, the Commander's QB.  QB Justin Fields and WR DJ Moore looked in synch, connecting for four touchdowns including an amazing diving face catch in the corner of the end zone right in front of us.

The Bears picked apart the defense, drawing first blood at the 2:56 mark. Cornerback Benjamin St-Juste was beaten by wide receiver DJ Moore for a 58-yard completion along the left sideline on a third and nine during the Bears’ opening drive. Then, on third and 14 just three plays later, Bears quarterback Justin Fields went back to his favorite target for a 20-yard touchdown. Second-year safety Percy Butler drifted inside in coverage, leaving the left side of the field without help over the top. Moore slipped past cornerback Kendall Fuller and had a clear lane to the end zone.  The crowd at packed FedEx Field was silenced, but Moore, the former Maryland standout, was just getting started.  Running back Khalil Herbert collected 34 yards on a run up the middle on Chicago’s second drive, easily slipping through the grasp of rookie cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. to help set up a field goal.  Washington’s response: a three-play drive that resulted in the loss of a yard — a gift, really. Chicago happily accepted as Fields again found Moore on third-and-long early in the second quarter for an 11-yard touchdown that extended the Bears’ lead to 17-0.  The only thing keeping the Commanders from being shut out in the first half was a 51-yard field goal by Joey Slye.  But any shred of momentum was short-lived. After St-Juste stayed glued to wideout Darnell Mooney in coverage to force an incompletion in the end zone and a subsequent field goal, Commanders quarterback Sam Howell was picked off. Chicago quickly scored again, this time on a Cole Kmet touchdown catch from four yards.  The Bears led 27-3 at the half.  Washington picked up just 84 yards as Chicago amassed 307 in the first half. The Bears had 14 first downs to Washington’s five and converted 67 percent of their third downs while the Commanders converted just 40 percent.

Although the Commanders responded appropriately to open the second half — a 75-yard scoring drive that Howell (37 for 51 for 388 yards, two touchdowns and one interception) capped with a two-yard scoring pass to Logan Thomas and a run for the two-point conversion to make it 27-11 — the costly mistakes continued, watering down any momentum. Thomas fumbled on the Commanders’ next drive.  Later in the third quarter, Howell connected with running back Antonio Gibson, who lined up at receiver and picked up 41 yards on a catch-and-run. But Howell was sacked two plays later on a cornerback blitz.  Forbes, who was torched by the Philadelphia Eagles in a frustrating 34-31 road loss Sunday, missed another tackle on Moore to allow a 32-yard gain just before the end of the quarter. That led to three more points for Chicago to make it 30-14, and soon the rookie was benched for Danny Johnson.  Although Washington came back to make it a 10-point game on a three-yard touchdown catch by Curtis Samuel, it couldn’t get out of its own way long enough to build on it. In position to narrow the Bears’ lead to one score, Slye pushed a 46-yard field goal attempt wide right, sending many fans to the exits.

We were amazed at the crows at the end of the game.  There were almost no home fans in the lower bowl or entire stadium.  The crowd was almost entirely Bears fans.  Washington is a transient city, but this was embarrassing for the home team.  It was interesting watching the jerseys, as other than Fields there were almost no jerseys of players in recent years.  A few for Urlacher (which Andy had) and Peppers, but most from the 1980s or earlier.  With Disk Butkus passing away that morning, it was wonderful to see a number of people sporting his jersey and number 51.

Great seats, so much fun.