The Chicago Bears (3-12) suffered a 35-13 loss to the Buffalo Bills (12-3), which marked their eighth straight defeat of the season.
It was a tale of two halves for the Bears, who managed to get things close heading into the third quarter, thanks in large part to an impressive effort by an injury-depleted defense. But the Bills started to pull away after scoring consecutive touchdowns to open the third quarter.
Chicago’s offense scored just one touchdown on the afternoon, a six-yard pass from Justin Fields to Dante Pettis. Outside of that opening 8-play, 64-yard touchdown drive, the offense was ineffective, managing two field goals after that score.
There were no shortage of standout performances — both good and bad — in this loss. Here’s a look at our studs and duds from the Bears’ loss to the Bills.
STUD: WR Velus Jones Jr.
Velus Jones has battled adversity throughout his rookie season, where he hasn’t been able to carve out a role for himself on offense and has served as a returner and gunner on special teams. Jones had his best game as a rookie and most productive on offense. He hauled in two catches for 52 yards, including a 44-yard reception from Justin Fields. Jones also had some nice kickoff returns, averaging 28.3 yards on four returns, including a 40-yarder.
DUD: Bears run defense
Chicago’s run game has struggled all season, and they had a brutal showing against Buffalo, where tackling was a huge issue. The Bears allowed 254 rushing yards, where they essentially allowed two 100-yard rushers. Devin Singletary had 106 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown while James Cook had 99 yards on 11 carries and a score. Josh Allen added 41 yards on six carries and a touchdown.
STUD: CB Kyler Gordon
Rookie Kyler Gordon has had his best two games over the last couple of weeks, where he’s accounted for three takeaways. Gordon recorded an interception in a second consecutive game, picking off Josh Allen to halt a Buffalo scoring drive. Gordon added five tackles and a pass breakup.
DUD: OC Luke Getsy
Luke Getsy continues to struggle with situational play calling, and it was a huge issue during Saturday’s game. When it as clear the run game wasn’t working, Getsy remained steadfast in his commitment to it — even when Justin Fields was finding success through the air. There was one series, in particular, that was infuriating. After Fields connected with Velus Jones for a 44-yard bomb, Getsy called three straight runs.
Exhibit A:
Bears plays since Justin Fields' 44-yard pass to Velus Jones Jr.:
– Herbert for 3
– Montgomery for 5
– Montgomery for -1
– Fields to Griffin short of the 1st
(Morrow INT)
– Fields to Herbert for -2
– Montgomery for no gain
– Fields scramble
– Santos FG— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) December 24, 2022
STUD: RB David Montgomery
While Chicago’s run game as a whole didn’t work — they totaled 91 yards after averaging 186.9 per game — David Montgomery found the most success on the ground, and contributed through the air. Montgomery accounted for 84 scrimmage yards, including 62 yards on 16 carries (3.9 avg) and 22 yards on four passes.
DUD: Bears offensive line
The Bears were down their best two offensive linemen in Teven Jenkins and Cody Whitehair, and it showed against the Bills. Chicago’s offensive line struggled both in pass protection and run blocking. They allowed two sacks on Fields and the league’s best run game stalled against Buffalo, totaling just 91 yards after averaging 186.9 yards per game.
STUD: LB Nicholas Morrow
Nicholas Morrow had a solid outing for the Bears in an otherwise unimpressive outing by the front seven. Morrow led the team with eight tackles and a pass breakup. He also intercepted Josh Allen at the Buffalo 23-yard line, which led to a Cairo Santos field goal.
DUD: RB Khalil Herbert
Khalil Herbert made his return to the lineup after missing the last four games on injured reserve with a hip injury. Herbert’s return was underwhelming, to say the least. Herbert averaged 6.0 yards per carry (highest among qualifying running backs) before this game, but he only managed seven yards on six carries against the Bills. Herbert also had two catches for -4 yards.
