8 takeaways from the Bears' last-second win over the Commanders

For the second game in a row, the Chicago Bears snatched victory from the jaws of defeat on the road. It's something that was extremely rare for the majority of the 2020s, but is now becoming a common occurrence under head coach Ben Johnson. The Bears won their third game in a row, this time thanks to a last-second field goal by Jake Moody to take down the Washington Commanders 25-24 in less-than-ideal conditions in prime time.

Chicago had the cloud of last season's infamous Hail Mary touchdown hanging over their heads coming into this game, but they showed early that it was of little concern. The Bears jumped out to a 13-0 lead thanks to timely defense and efficient offensive play calls.

Eventually, the Commanders stormed back with Jayden Daniels and a back-and-forth game ensued. This time, however, it was Washington who choked away the lead late in the fourth quarter. A bobbled handoff by Daniels on third down in Bears territory with the Commanders leading 24-22 was recovered by Chicago, and they proceeded to drive 36 yards to set new kicker Jake Moody up for a game-winning field goal. Moody came through and the Bears escaped D.C. with a win to go over .500 for the first time this season.

From the wet weather conditions to the questionable officiating, this game was a whirlwind. Here are our takeaways from Monday's win.

1. The Bears overcame adversity from all angles to win

Adversity strikes in different ways. For the Bears on Monday night, they had to deal with the elements of the pouring rain, extremely questionable calls from an inexperienced officiating crew, the road noise with a raucous Washington crowd, and late injuries that thrust the most unlikely players into game-winning situations. They overcame all of that in one of the gutsiest wins in recent memory.

That’s the mark of a quality coaching staff. Last game against the Raiders, the Bears became believers in what they can do. This week, they made believers out of everyone else. Previous coaching staffs would not have been able to weather those conditions (pun intended). And this is what we see out of successful staffs. Look at the gritty games Kevin O’Connell, Mike Tomlin, Andy Reid, and other winning coaches have won over the years. Ben Johnson is proving he’s capable of overcoming adversity in a short amount of time. That’s exciting.

2. D'Andre Swift was the MVP

Moody was phenomenal, and he will get his flowers from me in due time, but the MVP of this game has to be D’Andre Swift. The dynamic playmaker had his best game of the year as he totaled 108 rushing yards on 14 carries and added 67 yards on two catches with a touchdown. He accounted for 175 of Chicago’s 381 total yards on Monday, which was 45%. His 7.7 yards per carry were the highest he’s had since Week 3 of the 2023 season.

It wasn’t just the numbers, though. Swift looked decisive with his runs and continued to show toughness by earning hard yards after contact. He also showed the speed and quickness we know he has, blowing past defenders with ease. And when Swift needed to gain yards in crunch time, he delivered and then some.

Hopefully this is the start of a productive few weeks for Swift—especially with the changes coming on the offensive line. Perhaps Chicago isn’t in dire need of another running back, as many had thought. If the Bears truly figured out their running game with Swift at the helm, it’s going to make everyone’s lives easier. Regardless, Swift was the standout player on Monday night.

3. The offensive tackles made a massive difference

Swift and the offense were able to move the ball in large part due to the wide lanes the offensive line was opening up, and it starts with the tackle play. The Bears deployed a different line combination for the third week in a row with Theo Benedet at left tackle and the return of Darnell Wright at right tackle. It seems they found a formula that works.

Both players were instrumental in keeping Williams upright and providing holes for Swift to run through. On multiple occasions, Wright took on multiple defenders in space with ease, despite dealing with that injured elbow that kept him out of Week 4. Benedet held his own as well and showed quickness and no hesitation in blocking a free defender. We’ll see how teams adjust to his play now that there is some tape on him, but the Bears can work with these two young players anchoring the line.

4. The Bears pass rush is starting to come to life

The stellar line play wasn’t just limited to the offense on Monday night. The defensive line finally started to look like a cohesive unit as they dialed up the pressure on Daniels and the Commanders offense late in the game. The Bears pressured Daniels on 14 dropbacks and sacked him three times on the night. Those pressures became more consistent as the game wore on, and it eventually knocked Daniels off his rhythm. Even better was their run defense, which held Washington’s running backs to 3.3 yards per carry.

It wasn’t perfect, and I’m not here to tell you the pass rush has finally got it all figured out. They did, however, show they’re capable of throwing opposing offenses off with unique looks and blitzes from the secondary. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s far better than what we saw just two weeks ago.

5. The officiating was horrendous

There isn’t much worse than having to complain about bad officiating in a football game. We know it happens all over the league at various points of the season, but that’s no excuse for some of the calls Alex Moore’s inexperienced crew opted to make during Monday’s game. The Bears were called for multiple questionable calls, both on offense and defense. Moore’s crew became one of the main stories of the game, something that should never happen.

Multiple ticky-tack calls turned the tide for the Commanders, such as the phantom face mask call on Nahshon Wright, Benedet’s illegal shift that negated a Rome Odunze touchdown, Colston Loveland’s suspect push-off on a first-down pickup, and more. The good news is we can officially say the referees were not the reason the Bears lost a football game. But situations like Monday night can never happen again. And the Bears need to be more aware of how stingy a crew is going to be. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, that’s a 15-yard penalty, and we'll replay second down.

6. Jake Moody's career isn't over yet

The reports surrounding the demise of Jake Moody’s football career have been greatly exaggerated. What a story for the former Michigan standout kicker who was kicked to the curb (no pun intended) and found new life with a team that has been synonymous with back-breaking field goal moments over the last decade.

Moody’s career was at a crossroads when he was cut from the San Francisco 49ers after a disastrous Week 1. He was extremely volatile when it came to converting kicks, and while Cairo Santos had his own struggles to start the season, it didn’t feel like Moody was the right guy to have for insurance purposes. I was wrong.

With little preparation in poor conditions, Moody stepped up to the challenge and had a game he will never forget. Aside from the blocked kick, Moody did what he had to do to get the Bears the victory. I don’t see him taking Santos’ job anytime soon, but it’s good to know Moody still has what it takes when the game is on the line.

7. Caleb Williams needs to settle down in prime time

When Caleb Williams was drafted first overall last year, he made it a point to tell the media that he doesn’t get nervous when it comes to playing football. With all due respect, I think he’s lying to himself. We have seen Williams play in prime-time games a handful of times already, and his production, as well as the eye test, looks different than when he’s playing in the afternoon games.

This was Williams’ first prime-time win, and he had his best game under the lights yet, believe it or not. Still, in prime-time games, he has a one-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio with a passer rating of 74.7. For comparison, he has a five-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio and a passer rating of 93 in the early afternoon window.

Those are just some stats, but let’s look at the eye test. Williams still seems to not be as settled in the pocket as he does on a Sunday afternoon. We saw it against the Minnesota Vikings in a big way, and it popped up again this past Monday. Call it what you want, but I think the nerves are playing a factor with his performances. As he continues to settle into this offense, maybe that goes away.

8. The Bears are contenders to be playoff contenders

Parity is rampant in the NFL right now. Outside of a few bottom feeders, the vast majority of teams are very much in contention for the postseason as it stands going into Week 7. That includes the Bears at 3-2, and they could take an even bigger step with another win next weekend.

Before we start creating those playoff scenarios and generating the "in the hunt" graphics, I still think the Bears are on the outside looking in when it comes to playoff contention. They're 0-2 in the division and only now got over the .500 mark. They're firmly in contention to become playoff contenders, which is one step below. But the pathway is open. A win this weekend and splitting their next two road games against the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals would put them at 5-3 going into November. They still have a ways to go, but the Bears are getting closer to true playoff contention for the first time in years.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears vs. Commanders: 8 takeaways from Chicago's last-second win