Maybe Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers can outscore everyone on the way to the Super Bowl.
The 49ers are scoring at will lately. Purdy is playing as well as any quarterback in the NFL. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is the hottest play-caller in the league. The defense … well, the defense might be a problem in the playoffs, but the offense looks unstoppable.
Advertisement
The 49ers gave up 38 points on Sunday night and still won a wildly entertaining and crucial game against the Chicago Bears. Purdy accounted for five touchdowns, including a 38-yard touchdown to Jauan Jennings with 2:15 remaining to give the 49ers the lead. Caleb Williams, who had a big game, drove the Bears downfield and had the Bears on the 3-yard line with four seconds to go. The 49ers forced an incompletion on the final play to hang on to a 42-38 win.
The 49ers will host the Seattle Seahawks next week with the NFC West and the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the line.
The highlight of the night for Purdy came in the third quarter, when he avoided the pass rush as he rolled left, split two defensive linemen to step up and pass it to Kyle Juszczyk for the touchdown. Purdy has been on fire the past few weeks and he was fantastic on Sunday night. The 49ers didn’t have tight end George Kittle, who was out with injury, and they lost offensive tackle Trent Williams on the first play of the game with a hamstring injury. It didn’t matter because Purdy and Christian McCaffrey, who had 181 total yards, were dominant.
Advertisement
With the win, the 49ers set up a huge home game for Week 18. Since Super Bowl LX will be in Santa Clara, a win next week means the 49ers will not play another road game this season.
Scoring explosion in first half
The first half was one of the most eventful of the season.
It started with Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards picking off Purdy on the first play of the game and returning it 34 yards for a touchdown. Unfortunately for Chicago, that was one of the few things the defense did right in the first half.
Purdy had a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown by the end of the first quarter. Caleb Williams had a 35-yard touchdown pass to Luther Burden III in the first quarter. It was the first NFL game this season in which both teams scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, NBC said on its broadcast.
Advertisement
Neither offense was done. Williams had a 36-yard touchdown pass to Colston Loveland. McCaffrey scored on a touchdown run, and then Purdy had another rushing touchdown. There were 49 points in the first half alone.
Last week, the 49ers scored on seven of their first eight drives against the Colts, and the other drive was a missed field goal. The game before that against Tennessee, San Francisco scored on seven of eight drives, with a fumble ruining a shot at a perfect game. The Bears did force one punt in the first half, and it was San Francisco’s first punt since Nov. 30. Their offense has been on a tear, and it continued against Chicago.
Bears, 49ers make NFL history
The points kept coming in the second half. The game was tied 7-7, 14-14, 21-21, 28-28 and 35-35. It’s the first time in NFL history that has happened. Both offenses were putting on a great show, but both defenses looked like a potential roadblock to making a playoff run.
Advertisement
The 49ers finally got stopped in the second half. They had a fourth-and-7 on the Bears’ 43-yard line in a tie game. Kyle Shanahan could have gone for it, but he decided to punt. The trust in his defense was misplaced. The Bears drove downfield, but the 49ers’ defense did hold Chicago to a field goal. The Bears led 38-35 with 5:22 left.
The way the 49ers’ offense had moved the ball most of the night, getting at least a field goal to tie the game seemed inevitable. Purdy hit Jennings on a crossing route and Jennings took it the rest of the way for a 38-yard score. It was Purdy’s fifth touchdown of the night, with three passing and two rushing. The only problem seemed to be that the 49ers defense had to hold for 2:15 to win the game.
Advertisement
The Bears got into 49ers territory with more than a minute to play. Williams hit Burden for a huge 14-yard gain on third-and-10 to keep the drive going. The Bears then faced a fourth-and-5 with 33 seconds left and Williams hit Loveland for the first down. A hook-and-ladder play got the Bears to the 2-yard line but they had time left for just one more play after spiking the ball, and Williams couldn’t find anyone open as he scrambled around and threw incomplete into the end zone.
The 49ers know the defense will have to get some stops for them to win a championship. But the offense is no question at all.
Live coverage is over43 updates
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:47 PM PST
Ryan Young
The winner of this contest on Saturday night will not only claim the NFC West title, but will also get the No. 1 seed in the conference and the bye in the first round of the playoffs.
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers
Time: 8 p.m.
Location: Levi’s Stadium | Santa Clara, California
TV: ABC/ESPN
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:39 PM PST
Ryan Young
After recording a team-high 138 yards and a touchdown on eight catches, Luther Burden is now being carted off the field. He went down on that final play.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:37 PM PST
Ryan Young
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:36 PM PST
Ryan Young
The path to the No. 1 seed in the NFC is firmly in San Francisco’s control. If the 49ers beat the Seahawks next week, the bye is theirs.
The Bears, however, can no longer claim the top seed.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:35 PM PST
Ryan Young
San Francisco came up with one last stop, and this incredible “Sunday Night Football” matchup is theirs.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:34 PM PST
Ryan Young
Caleb Williams came so close there after scrambling up the left side, but Walker couldn’t quite make the grab. San Francisco has pulled off a wild win.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:33 PM PST
Ryan Young
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:31 PM PST
Ryan Young
The Bears have converted the first down after Williams found a wide open Loveland in the middle of the field. They’ve got 26 seconds left to get into the end zone.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:30 PM PST
Ryan Young
Caleb Williams couldn’t get it to Luther Burden there on the sidelines, so the Bears are looking at a fourth down with 33 seconds left. Here we go…
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:29 PM PST
Ryan Young
The Bears are driving and slowly getting into scoring position…
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:15 PM PST
Ryan Young
The Bears will have all three of their timeouts, and the two minute warning, when they get the ball back. But a field goal won’t cut it.
Let’s see if Caleb Williams can pull off another game winning drive…
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:14 PM PST
Ryan Young
Brock Purdy just found Jauan Jennings cutting across the middle of the field there, and he broke all the way down 38 yards to the end zone.
The 49ers are up 42-38 now with 2:15 to go.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:04 PM PST
Ryan Young
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:04 PM PST
Ryan Young
For the first time tonight, we have a field goal.
The Bears got all the way inside the 10 yard line — thanks to a huge 32-yard gain from Loveland — but their drive stalled out. The 49ers nearly intercepted Caleb Williams there on third down, too.
So Cairo Santos came out to hit a 29-yard field goal, and the Bears are up 38-35 with 5:22 left in the game.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:53 PM PST
Ryan Young
This scoring run has finally been broken up. The Bears got to Brock Purdy there and forced an awkward missed throw on third down, so the 49ers have to punt for the second time tonight.
The Bears will take over from their own 11 now with 11:23 left in the game.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:48 PM PST
Ryan Young
This stat from the NBC broadcast sums up the game perfectly. For the first time in a regular season NFL game, we’ve been tied at 7, 14, 21, 28 and 35 tonight.
That’s only happened one other time in NFL history, in a playoff game back in 2013 between the Ravens and Broncos.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:46 PM PST
Ryan Young
D’Andre Swift broke through the line and pulled off a 22-yard run to tie this game up on the first play of the fourth quarter. That’s his second touchdown of the night, and we’re tied up once again.
This game is not slowing down…
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:42 PM PST
Ryan Young
The Bears could have attempted a field goal there on fourth down, but they opted to go for it from five yards out and pulled it off. They’re in scoring position once again when we come back.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:32 PM PST
Ryan Young
Brock Purdy somehow managed to avoid the sack there, and then stepped up to find an open Kyle Juszczyk in the end zone! Naturally, Purdy started dancing immediately.
San Francisco is in the lead again, 35-28, with 4:52 left in the third quarter.
Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:18 PM PST
Ryan Young
And we’ve picked up right where we left off. D’Andre Swift capped a 10-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to open the third quarter, and this game is tied once again.