CHICAGO — Luther Burden III picked a prime time to come alive for the Bears.
Burden finished with a season-high 130 receiving yards on four catches, all in the first half. On three-and-17 from the Patriots’ 24 with 21 seconds until halftime, he housed a tunnel screen from quarterback Caleb Williams.
Williams followed up his Week 6 NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors with another exceptional performance, finishing 22-for-33 passing for 308 yards, two touchdowns and a 116.7 passer rating.
Kicker Cairo Santos sealed the Bears’ 30-24 win with a career-long 58-yard field goal with less than two minutes remaining.
Tight end Cole Kmet suffered a knee injury in the fourth quarter and was carted to the locker room. Cornerback Malik Muhammad II exited the game in the third quarter with a toe injury. Neither returned.
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The CHGO staff reacts to the win …
Adam Hoge: The Bears made that win a lot harder than it needed to be, but the Patriots are a good team and never quit. Caleb Williams was excellent again and should still be in the MVP conversation. Cairo Santos’ 58-yard field goal was as clutch as it gets, especially after the miss.
Adam Jahns: It might have been too crazy to be called a signature win. But it was still a darn good one for the Bears. They beat the defending AFC Champions and quarterback Drake Maye. Ben Johnson and Dennis Allen matched wits with Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels. And Caleb Williams played well again after coming back from his hamstring injury.
Patrick Norton: That almost feels like the most satisfying win of the Bears’ young season. The moment wasn’t too big for anybody on the Bears’ sideline, and Caleb Williams is absolutely playing at an MVP level. And kudos to Cairo Santos. That had to feel good to drill it from 58 after a doink from 53.
Mark Carman: Grind-it-out win on a short week by the resilient Bears. Caleb Williams was impressive with his arm and his legs on a short week. Rome Odunze struggled early, then came up with two huge catches late that helped put the Bears in position to win. Cairo Santos bounced back after a doink to nail his career-long 58-yard field goal. Daniel Hardy and ‘Marco Jackson were very solid in place of TJ Edwards. The 5-2 Bears now get a long weekend before they play again in 11 days at Seattle.
Greg Braggs Jr: Five days, two wins. And the Chicago Bears are right on track. You could not have asked for a better start to the season considering everything they have overcome. Caleb Williams is back and quite literally better than ever. And now Ben Johnson gets a mini bye to get his team healthy for a very tough stretch in their schedule. One thing can be certain: throw out the Xs and Os, the way this team plays for each other shows they are one of the most dangerous teams in football. What a time to be alive.