CHICAGO, IL — The Chicago Bears turned Sunday afternoon into a lesson in controlling the football, controlling the clock and controlling the line of scrimmage.
Kyle Monangai was at the center of it all.
The rookie running back carried the ball 30 times for 146 yards and two touchdowns, while Chicago’s defense completely disrupted the New York Jets in a 23-12 Bears victory at Soldier Field.
Chicago controlled the game from the opening quarter, running 89 offensive plays and holding the ball for nearly 43 minutes. The Bears finished with 34 first downs and never had to punt — the first time the franchise had accomplished that since 2014.
The Jets, meanwhile, managed just 32 offensive plays, seven first downs and 157 total yards.
New York also went 0-for-7 on third down, an indication of just how difficult it was for the Jets to sustain anything offensively.
“We’ve got to execute and do whatever we can to keep our defense off the field,” Jets quarterback Geno Smith said. “That’s a part of playing complementary football. I think we can do a lot better job in that area.”
The disparity was historic.
Chicago became the first NFL team since Pittsburgh in 1999 to record more first downs than its opponent ran offensive plays. The Bears also held an opponent without a third-down conversion for the first time since 1997.
For Chicago coach Ben Johnson, the defensive performance was the product of an entire unit playing together.
“I thought those guys all stood out,” Johnson said. “It was another one of those days where it’s hard to single out any particular guy. I just thought everyone played really good football on that side.”
Devin Bush, Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo each recorded a sack as the Bears consistently pressured Smith and prevented New York from establishing any rhythm.
But the defense was only half of Chicago’s formula.
Monangai repeatedly kept the Jets defense on its heels, pounding away at the line of scrimmage and making the most of the opportunities created by Chicago’s offensive line.
His first touchdown came on a 1-yard run on fourth-and-goal late in the opening quarter, putting the Bears ahead 7-0 after Chicago had previously turned the ball over on downs at the New York 1-yard line.
Monangai struck again in the third quarter, breaking through for a 5-yard touchdown with 2:26 remaining in the period to stretch Chicago’s advantage to 20-6.
The Bears never allowed the Jets to make a serious comeback.
“No flinch from him,” quarterback Tyson Bagent said of Monangai. “He’s been outstanding ever since he got here. Does the right thing.”
Monangai’s approach in the closing minutes was straightforward: keep running.
“Toward the end of the game, if they don’t want to be out there anymore, you just keep running at them,” Monangai said. “Running at them, 4-yard gain, 4-yard gain, 20-yarder come out of nowhere, big play in the passing game, and then 4-yard gain, 4-yard gain, it gets tiring. So you definitely feel it.”
That relentless style helped Chicago finish the afternoon without giving New York an opportunity to regain control.
Bagent also delivered a strong performance while filling in for Caleb Williams, completing 25 of 34 passes for a career-high 268 yards. Williams missed his second consecutive game because of a right hamstring injury.
Bagent wasn’t technically the first Chicago quarterback to take a snap Sunday.
Case Keenum opened the game behind center before Bagent took over. Keenum pitched the ball to D’Andre Swift for a 2-yard gain on Chicago’s opening play, providing Johnson with a lighthearted way to handle the quarterback situation.
“I got all these memos saying that Tyson was starting before I ever made an announcement so I wanted to get Case out there the first time,” Johnson said. “It was like a ceremonial first pitch out there, handing off the torch.”
Bagent made the most of the opportunity.
Rome Odunze was his top target, catching six passes for 94 yards as Chicago continued to move the football consistently throughout the afternoon.
Cairo Santos added three field goals, giving the Bears another reliable source of points as their offense repeatedly crossed midfield.
The Jets did briefly find life in the fourth quarter.
Smith connected with Isaiah Williams on a 58-yard touchdown pass with 9:16 remaining, cutting Chicago’s lead to 23-12. It was the first touchdown of Williams’ career in his 27th NFL game.
But the Jets could not capitalize.
Jason Sanders missed the extra point, leaving New York needing two scores and a successful two-point conversion just to tie the game.
Chicago responded by taking the remaining time off the clock with an 18-play, 77-yard drive.
The Jets never got the ball back.
Earlier in the afternoon, Minkah Fitzpatrick finally ended New York’s remarkable interception drought when he stepped in front of Colston Loveland for an interception in the second quarter.
The pick snapped a Jets drought that had reached 20 games.
Even that moment, however, came with a caveat. New York appeared to have three additional interceptions, but penalties wiped each one away.
For the Jets, it was another frustrating afternoon in a season that began with promise.
New York opened the season with a victory at Tennessee but has now lost three consecutive games, falling to 1-3.
Aaron Glenn acknowledged that his team was badly outplayed in the most fundamental area of the game: keeping its offense on the field.
“We have to do a better job of complementing each other and that did not show up today at all,” Glenn said. “When you have the discrepancy of 89 plays and 32 plays, it’s something we have to look at and something we have to continue to work on. That’s the only thing we can do is continue to work.”
Chicago improved to 3-1 and has now allowed just 28 points over its last three games after giving up 59 points in its season-opening victory at Carolina.
The Bears are beginning to establish an identity built around physical football, sustained drives and a defense capable of forcing opponents into long stretches without the ball.
Wide receiver Rome Odunze summed up the collective effort.
“Shout out to the offensive line, the running backs, the whole offensive crew as well as the defense as well for having a great day,” Odunze said.
Monangai did leave the game dealing with a thumb injury and said he expected to know more about the extent of it Monday.
Injuries
Jets: Edge rusher Braiden McGregor left with a chest injury. Cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr. departed with a concussion.
Up Next:
Jets: New York returns home next Sunday to host Cleveland.
Bears: Chicago travels to Green Bay next Sunday for a matchup with the Packers.
