Lions
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost 27-24 to the Chicago Bears on Sunday Night Football, November 8, when Cairo Santos kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired at Soldier Field. Kickoff was 8:20 PM ET, 02:20 CET on Monday. The Bucs are 3-6, and Chicago is 7-2 with four straight wins (Chicagobears.com, Buccaneers.com).
Key facts
- The Chicago Bears beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-24 on Sunday Night Football at Soldier Field on November 8 when Cairo Santos kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired (Chicagobears.com, Buccaneers.com, November 8).
- Caleb Williams threw four interceptions, yet Chicago won; Chicago gave the ball away five times (Pro Football Talk, November 8).
- Bucky Irving ran 20 times for 97 yards and two touchdowns and caught four passes for 28 yards (Pro Football Talk, Buccaneers.com, November 8).
- Baker Mayfield went 18-of-32 for 243 yards with two interceptions, one of which Jaylon Johnson returned 67 yards for a touchdown (Pro Football Talk, November 8).
- The Buccaneers are 3-6 and the Bears are 7-2; Tampa Bay has its bye in Week 10 and plays at the Detroit Lions on November 22 (Buccaneers.com, November 9).
How the game went
Chicago opened 14-0 on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Williams to Rome Odunze and a 56-yard touchdown pass to Luther Burden III. Chase McLaughlin kicked field goals of 27 and 21 yards for Tampa Bay in the second quarter, and Santos added a 25-yarder for Chicago, so the Bears led 17-6 at halftime (Chicagobears.com, On SI).
Irving's 2-yard run made it 17-13 in the third quarter, set up by a 57-yard completion from Baker Mayfield to Tez Johnson. Then Jaylon Johnson intercepted Mayfield and returned it 67 yards for a touchdown, and Chicago led 24-13 (Pro Football Talk, Chicagobears.com).
The comeback
McLaughlin's 35-yard field goal made it 24-16. After Burden fumbled and Ifeatu Melifonwu recovered at the Chicago 17 with 3:38 left, Irving scored from 6 yards out. Mayfield ran in the two-point conversion for 24-24 with 2:51 to play (Chicagobears.com, Buccaneers.com).
Williams then completed a 38-yard pass to Colston Loveland to the Tampa Bay 16, and Santos won it from 38 yards.
Five Chicago giveaways were not enough
Team | Turnovers | Detail |
|---|---|---|
Chicago | 5 | Four Williams interceptions (Tykee Smith, Zyon McCollum twice, Alex Anzalone) and the Burden fumble |
Tampa Bay | 3 | Two Mayfield interceptions (Cam Lewis, Jaylon Johnson) and a turnover on downs on a fourth-and-1 quarterback sneak |
Sources: Pro Football Talk, Chicagobears.com, Buccaneers.com, November 8. Williams's four interceptions were a career high per Pro Football Talk.
The Bucs had only six points at halftime. McLaughlin kicked a 27-yard field goal after Tampa Bay reached the Chicago 3 or 4, depending on the account, and a 21-yarder as the half ended (Buccaneers.com, Chicagobears.com, On SI). Their fourth-and-1 sneak from their own 35 was stopped by Devin Bush and James Lynch (Chicagobears.com).
The numbers
Mayfield finished 18-of-32 for 243 yards and two interceptions. Irving ran 20 times for 97 yards and two touchdowns and caught four passes for 28 yards. Williams was 22-of-37 for 279 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions, and Burden had seven catches for 97 yards (Pro Football Talk, Buccaneers.com).
Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. left the game with an ankle injury late in the first half. Our Winfield update has the details, and the Yaya Diaby MCL report covers the other defensive absence.
What comes next
Week 10 is a bye. The Bucs return at the Detroit Lions on Sunday, November 22, at 1:00 PM ET, 19:00 CET, at Ford Field (Buccaneers.com). The full schedule and the depth chart are on the site. The previous game is in our Week 8 recap.
This one will sting because the Bucs won the turnover fight on paper and still lost. Two Mayfield interceptions, one of them a touchdown for Chicago, and two field goals near the goal line kept a team that forced five takeaways from taking control. A bye week gives them time to fix that before Detroit.
No comments yet. Start the conversation.