“Why is this game so close?”
A question that likely lingered across the Chicago Bears’ sideline and in the red seats of Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, seats that had a staggering amount of navy and orange scattered throughout.
The Falcons had the ball with under three minutes to go, facing third-and-long. Down by one score, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. lined up with a long row of Bears defenders on the other side of the line of scrimmage, as they had been all day.
When Penix took the snap, six out of the eight defenders began their relentless blitz, and just off the right edge was defensive back Kyler Gordon.
Too quick for right tackle Jawaan Taylor to stop, and too strong for Penix to endure the boom stick Gordon laid out. Penix fumbled as he threw the pass, and Chicago linebacker Devin Bush won the mad dash for the football, sealing the victory for his team.
A much-needed return to form in more ways than one.
THE RETURN OF CHICAGO’S SUPERHEROES: ICEMAN AND SPIDERMAN
Last week, the Chicago Bears received a thorough beating at the hands of the Green Bay Packers by a score of 31-7. The type of loss Bears fans thought was behind them as head coach Ben Johnson led them into a new era. To be fair to Johnson, it’s not always easy to execute a great offensive game plan with Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum tossing up rubber ducks to the defense.
However, he wouldn’t have that problem this week as the face of the franchise, Caleb Williams, returned from the hamstring injury that sidelined him for three weeks.
On the other side of the ball, defensive back Kyler Gordon would finally make his season debut after spending much of the offseason rehabbing from a calf injury. Gordon has spent the better part of the past two seasons in street clothes rather than his uniform, leaving many frustrated.
BACK IN BUSINESS
Luckily for them, there was little reason to be frustrated for much of the game.
Williams ran the offense like he had never left, completing each of his first twelve passes, including a beautiful cross-body throw to tight end Colston Loveland for his first touchdown of the season.
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) passes the ball in the third quarter against the Atlanta Falcons during the game on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune).
Running back D’Andre Swift also got his share of the points as he ran for not one, but two scores in the first half.
The defense matched the energy as well, locking down Atlanta’s passing attack aside from a perfect throw-and-catch to the end zone from Penix to receiver Jahan Dotson. They also did their best to prevent superstar running back Bijan Robinson from gashing them for endless yards.
They had a great boost from the large number of Bears fans in the stadium, who were loud enough that Atlanta head coach Kevin Stefanski admitted the team had to use a silent count.
Even the special teams had a big moment as well, with a “banana ball” punt from Tory Taylor leading to a muff by Atlanta returner Zachariah Branch that was immediately recovered by Chicago special teams ace, Josh Blackwell.
All told, Chicago was up 21-7 at halftime and picking up where they left off like loading up an old save file.
Ben Johnson said after the game, “Our identity and play style showed up in all three phases”. If this is his team’s identity and play style, it has a bright future ahead.
FLAGS ON FLAGS ON FLAGS
The sole hiccup that Chicago dealt with in the first half and for much of the game was the sheer amount of penalties called against them.
While some were justified, others, like the defensive pass interference called against defensive back Malik Muhammad II on the first play of the second half and the offensive pass interference called against Loveland on a fourth-down conversion, were questionable at best and Charmin Ultra Soft at worst.
In fact, the Bears had more penalty yards than the Falcons had total yards for most of this game. A stat that speaks to how undisciplined the Bears are and how bad the Falcons were for most of this game.
They still weren’t as bad as the fans chanting “Green Bay sucks” while trainers surrounded Falcons linebacker Kendal Daniels dealing with a severe neck injury. Those fans stink.
Still, the Bears extended their lead to 31-7 thanks to a touchdown from running back Roschon Johnson and a 50-yard field goal from kicker Cairo Santos. Yet another fumble by Branch set up those last three points.
It was at this point that I thought to myself, “Man, these blowout wins sure are nice, but I miss last year when I got to write about all those close wins. Those were fun.”
Football gods, if you’re reading this, I’ll have you know that that was just an innocent thought, not a challenge!
UM… WHAT’S HAPPENING?
After this, Atlanta realized the object of football is to move the ball forward and score points, which they did, quickly and efficiently.
Going 91 yards in just eight plays, Penix found tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. for a touchdown and Branch for the two-point conversion. In other words, it was suddenly a two-possession game with 9:34 to play.
Chicago decided they would also let Atlanta back into the game, just for fun, as Johnson fumbled the ball into the arms of the defense.
Penix moved the offense quickly again, finding Pitts for his second touchdown in four minutes and receiver Drake London for another two-pointer. Just like that, it was 31-23 with eons of time remaining.
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) scores a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia (Brett Davis / Imagn-Images).
Even worse, Chicago’s offense went three-and-out on the next drive. Three and a half minutes and all three timeouts for Atlanta.
NEVER IN DOUBT
As Chicago’s defense lined up for its most important series of the game, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen continued to stack the box with the majority of defenders lining directly in front of the offensive line. He pushes defenders up like a degenerate gambler pushing their chips in Las Vegas.
For most of the game, he won big with frequent pressure on Penix. The past two drives, though, the deck hadn’t gone his way as Penix released the ball quickly and cut through the Bears’ defense.
This time, a four-yard run plus an incompletion plus a holding penalty meant it was third-and-16 at the Falcons’ 22 with 3:01 left.
You better believe Allen stacked the box again.
Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen looks on during the fourth quarter of the game against the Atlanta Falcons during the game on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia (Brett Davis / Imagn-Images).
Penix took the snap, and his offensive line was in disarray, trying to quickly figure out who was rushing and who was dropping into coverage.
They weren’t quick enough to block Gordon, and he knocked down Penix for his second strip-sack of the game, giving the ball back to his offense.
An unexpected Williams sneak, a smart Johnson slide, and a thunderous Williams kneel-down sealed the Bears’ fourth win of the year. It wasn’t the prettiest ending, but they hung on just enough for the win.
GAME BALLS
Ben Johnson handed out three game balls following his team’s victory.
Kyler Gordon: His first of the season for notching three sacks and two forced fumbles, including the game-sealing strip-sack on his return.
Caleb Williams: His first of the season for completing 30 out of his 36 passes for 305 yards and a touchdown to lead the offense to victory in his return from a hamstring injury.
Grady Jarrett: His first of the season for his leadership on and off the field, and getting the win against his former team.
SHORT WEEK
The Bears won’t be able to get much rest following this bounce-back win as they return home to take on the surging New England Patriots on Thursday Night Football.
The Patriots are also 4-2 and riding a three-game winning streak after a tumultuous start to the year.
The last time these two teams faced off was two years ago, when Williams and Patriots quarterback Drake Maye were both fresh-faced rookies on bad teams with worse head coaches. A lot has changed since then, and this upcoming duel will show us just how much.
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