CHICAGO — The Bears spent most of this week unsure if longtime nemesis Aaron Rodgers would play in Sunday’s game for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The former Green Bay Packers quarterback has owned the Bears when playing them, especially at Soldier Field. While Bears players and coaches said they hoped to compete against one of the best ever, they didn’t have the chance.
Rodgers was inactive for the NFL Week 12 contest with an injury to his non-throwing hand. That left Mason Rudolph to face a banged-up Bears defense missing two starting cornerbacks and all three first-team linebackers.
That was a tough situation for the home team, even against a backup QB. The game remained close entering the second half, which fit the theme of this Bears season.
However, the Bears ultimately secured a 31-28 win over the Steelers.
Let’s examine three things we learned from this result, which kept Chicago (8-3) atop the NFC North and dropped Pittsburgh (6-5) out of the AFC North lead:
Finding a way (as always)
The Bears have been in close games all season, with a 5-1 record in one-score contests entering Sunday.
While the Bears had some significant setbacks against the Steelers, they found themselves in another tight game after a strong third quarter in which they established a two-score lead. That was cut to one with a Steelers touchdown in the fourth quarter, then the Bears went three-and-out and gave Pittsburgh a chance to tie it with a field goal or go ahead with a touchdown.
The Bears made a key stop, thanks to Grady Jarrett’s clutch batted pass on third down.
Quarterback Caleb Williams and the Bears’ offense had a chance to bleed out the clock and secure the win after the Steelers decided to punt with 2:01 left, but they couldn’t do it. That gave the Steelers one more shot, but they couldn’t capitalize, as Bears safety Jaquan Brisker tipped Rudolph’s fourth-down pass to put Chicago in victory formation.
Defense weathers injury plague
The Bears entered the game without linebackers Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards and Noah Sewell, all of whom were injured. Star cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon remained on injured reserve at least another week. Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson suffered an injury during the game. So did weakside linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II.
Those mounting losses could be felt Sunday, especially against the run early in the game. Steelers running backs who reached the second level easily gained extra yards without the typically sure tackling in the linebacker corps.
All those injuries weren’t a death sentence, though, as this game remained tight late. Linebackers D’Marco Jackson and Amen Ogbongbemiga were far from perfect, but they gave a gritty performance that improved as the game progressed. Jackson led the Bears with 15 total tackle, one for loss, and Ogbongbemiga was right behind him with 14 tackles.
Reserve cornerback Nick McCloud struggled some in coverage, allowing a big third-down conversion in the second half, but he made seven tackles. He also was called for a pass-interference penalty on a Steelers deep pass.
Montez Sweat, a rare healthy star, came through with a huge strip-sack in the third quarter as Pittsburgh threatened in Chicago territory.
The Bears turned that takeaway into a touchdown, which Kyle Monangai secured from 2 yards out for a 10-point lead.
While the defense managed this game well, the Bears will need reinforcements to remain competitive during the difficult conclusion to the 2025 schedule.
Brutal setback just temporarily costly
The Bears gave up a 95-yard Steelers touchdown drive late in the first quarter, then assumed possession after the kickoff. Darnell Wright was penalized for holding on the first play, and Williams followed with an incomplete pass.
Then, on third down deep in Bears territory, Williams did something inexcusable.
Williams held the ball way too long, giving Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt enough time to beat Wright. Williams ended up in the grasp in the end zone, and seemingly tried to get rid of the football to avoid a safety. He lost possession, though, and Nick Herbig recovered the fumble for a Steelers TD and a 14-7 lead.
That type of mistakes typically isn’t part of Williams’ game or the Bears’ winning formula, and it was a setback of the highest order.
As usual, the Bears survived the sequence and ended up taking a second-half lead. Still, that type of miscue simply can’t happen, as it conceded points in a close game.
Williams played well otherwise, though, with three TD passes.