CHICAGO — The New England Patriots and Chicago Bears traded punches in a tightly contested prime-time matchup at Soldier Field on Thursday night, pitting two of the top selections from the 2024 draft class against one another.
Both squads entered the Week 7 contest with identical 4-2 records, according to SB Nation. Chicago looked to protect its home turf behind head coach Ben Johnson and a healthy Caleb Williams, while Mike Vrabel’s Patriots aimed to push their winning streak to four games despite missing a lengthy list of starters to injury.
Before the game began, the Bears honored franchise legend Mike Ditka, who recently passed away, NESN reported.
Early Chicago lead and second-quarter fireworks
Chicago jumped out to an early 10-0 advantage in the opening quarter. Kicker Cairo Santos drilled a 43-yard field goal to start the scoring after New England failed on a fourth-down conversion attempt, Yahoo Sports reported. Running back D’Andre Swift, who briefly required medical attention after taking a hit to his knee, returned to the game and punched in a touchdown to extend the Bears’ lead, according to NESN.
New England answered early in the second quarter. Patriots quarterback Drake Maye lunged toward the goal line, and after Vrabel successfully challenged that Maye reached across before hitting the turf, officials awarded the Patriots a touchdown. Following another Bears field goal and an interception thrown by Maye in the end zone, the teams exchanged rapid touchdowns in the closing minutes of the half.
Chicago moved ahead when Williams tossed a short touchdown strike to Luther Burden III, NESN reported. With only seconds remaining before the break, Maye dumped a short pass to running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who sprinted through the Chicago defense for a 48-yard touchdown as the clock expired to keep New England within striking distance.
Back-and-forth action in the second half
Chicago took the opening drive of the third quarter straight down the field, with Williams connecting with tight end Colston Loveland for a touchdown, according to NESN’s live coverage. New England countered immediately on the following possession, leaning heavily on veteran tight end Hunter Henry before Maye fired a touchdown pass to Eli Raridon.
Defensive attrition continued to test both sidelines. New England entered Thursday night without numerous key contributors, as offensive linemen Mike Onwenu, Greg Van Roten and Alijah Vera-Tucker remained on injured reserve alongside wide receivers Romeo Doubs and Mack Hollins, Sports Illustrated reported. During game action, Chicago safety Kevin Byard III briefly left with an injury before returning, while cornerback Malik Muhammad exited to the blue medical tent in the second half, according to NESN.
As the third quarter came to a close, Maye was stopped on a third-down scramble, leaving the Patriots facing a fourth-and-2 situation to begin the final period of play.
