Twelve Bears penalties for 133 yards? That’s way too much laundry.
Roschon Johnson’s fourth-quarter fumble? Instead of the Bears going in for the kill, it kept the Falcons in it.
But we’re just nitpicking here, aren’t we? Nearly everything else about the Bears’ 31-23 win in Atlanta was good. No, very good. And in some cases, darn near great.
Let’s get to the grades:
Caleb Williams rolled left on his first snap in a month, hit tight end Colston Loveland for 16 easy yards and made a city rejoice. No, not Atlanta, though Bears fans did their best to take over Mercedes-Benz Stadium. No. 18 had 12 completions for 142 yards and a touchdown before his first errant pass, a wise third-down throwaway. A 30-for-36, 305-yard day was a thing of beauty. Adding next to nothing in the run game while protecting his all-important hamstrings was, too.
D’Andre Swift scored twice but averaged only 2.8 yards per tote, then was held out in the fourth quarter even after Johnson’s fumble; he’s banged up, and the Bears play again Thursday against the Patriots. Johnson rushed 13 times for 51 yards and had two catches for 34 yards, a big outing for him. He was running free for the end zone with a little over a minute to go but gave himself up so the Bears could kill the clock, a selfless play that no doubt made up somewhat for his turnover.
Luther Burden (eight catches, 95 yards) was everywhere. Loveland (six catches, 65 yards) got the Bears rolling with a bad-dude touchdown on the opening drive, holding on to an athletic grab at the goal line with cornerback Mike Hughes draped on him and safety Jessie Bates flying in with a heavy hit. Loveland wiped out two first downs with penalties and overran a route on which he could've scored easily, and rookie tight end Sam Roush had another false start.
Colston Loveland in traffic for the TD ?
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 18, 2026
?: FOX pic.twitter.com/391AmEl7Qj
Holding penalties would’ve been more damaging on a harder day, and Williams was sacked four times. One of the sacks was given up by tackle Ozzy Trapilo, active for the first time, and knocked the Bears out of field-goal position. Still, when big pushes were needed near the goal line, these guys delivered.
Bijan Robinson carried only nine times for 61 yards, an output with which the Bears had to be thrilled. Kentavius Street blew up a screen, James Lynch knocked down a fourth-down pass and a huge Daniel Hardy sack erased the Falcons’ chance to score before the half. Stretched thin, the wall held.
Hello, Kyler Gordon — the nickel back, finally back out there after what seemed like forever, sacked Michael Penix three times and added a lightning-fast run blitz for a key stop. Is there a DB in the NFL who comes off the edge as savagely as Gordon? Elijah Hicks and Cam Lewis prevented possible Robinson touchdown runs with one-on-one tackles, and Lewis made a stellar fourth-down stop on receiver Zachariah Branch in Falcons territory. Dillon Thieneman blew in for a sack, great to see from the first-rounder.
Punter Tory Taylor was on fire when called upon. Josh Blackwell’s recovery of Branch’s muff led to a touchdown that made it 21-7 at the half. Jahdae Walker, Zavier Scott and Blackwell were demons in coverage. Scott punched the ball out of Branch’s hands on a kickoff, with Nate McCloud recovering. Cairo Santos hit a 50-yard field goal but missed left from 56, and a potentially disastrous roughing of the punter by Walker in the third quarter was rendered moot when the defense rose up and kept the Falcons off the scoreboard.
Williams re-entered the fray seamlessly. Even with Swift hurting and Kyle Monangai out, the running backs contributed. Despite injuries and Montez Sweat’s suspension on the other side of the ball, the defense came out more than ready. A very fine day for both Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
