ARLINGTON, Texas — Bears quarterback Justin Fields took some figurative small steps forward Sunday, but it was a literal giant leap that helped seal his team’s fate in a 49-29 loss to the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium.
With the Bears trailing 35-23 with 5:17 left in the third quarter, running back David Montgomery fumbled as he ran towards the Bears sideline on a short pass play on third-and-17. Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons recovered on the turf at the Bears 36-yard line and Fields leaped over Parsons to avoid contact.
If Fields had even clipped Parsons, the play would have been over. Instead, Parsons was a live runner and alertly got up and navigated a sea of startled Bears offensive players for a 36-yard touchdown return that gave the Cowboys a 42-23 lead with 5:00 left in the quarter.
“That’s my fault for just hoppin’ over him. I should have tagged him,” Fields said. “I can’t tell you the last time I made a tackle, so [I] just gotta be aware in that situation, tag him and make sure he’s down.”
Montgomery also lamented not tackling Parsons, but even more so for fumbling in the first place. On third-and-17 from the Bears’ 19, he caught the pass at the 26, dodged a tackle the 29 and was stiff-arming Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch at the 32 when Vander Esch tipped the ball out.
“I thought he was down. I definitely should have chased the ball,” Montgomery said. “I was more disappointed in myself that I dropped the ball. I’ve got to be better for my teammates.
“It’s just not what I do. It was unfortunate that it happed the way it happened. I was out there playing ball and I wasn’t aware of my surroundings. I was trying to do more than I was trying to do It was unfortunate, but I dropped the ball.”
To their credit, the Bears responded with a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to cut the deficit to 42-29 with 13:40 left in the fourth quarter. But even for a resilient team that already had cut a 28-7 deficit to 28-23 earlier in the third quarter, Parsons’ touchdown created too big of a hill to climb.
It was a strange play that seemed contrary to the aggressiveness and instinct coach Matt Eberflus is counting on to become a Bears trademark. But it was another reminder that Eberflus’ H.I.T.S. principle is first and foremost a defensive mentality. The offense is still trying to get the hang of it.
“I thought he was down by contact and I thought they were celebrating,” Bears guard Teven Jenkins said. “But once I saw Riley [Reiff] sprinting toward the ball, I knew it was an active play still and that’s what kicked on in my head.”
Reiff, who was not near Parsons’ initial recovery, could only lament not being able to chase down one of the best linebackers in the game.
“You gotta touch him, man,” Reiff said. “I kind of had an angle on it. I tried to make play. Obviously I’m not the most athletic guy in space. But hats off to them. I know David’s hurting over that one, but it is what it is. We don’t point fingers. We just move on and keep fighting.”
Eberflus expects better, and added the Bears sideline could have done more to alert players on the field that Parsons was not down.
“Just touch him down,” Eberflus said. “We’ve showed multiple times during our situations tape that we show every Friday that you’ve got to touch guys down. We know that. It’s part of pro football and we’ve just got to do a better job there.”
