GRADING THE BEARS
QUARTERBACK
DWith a full week of practice, Chase Daniel (26-for-39, 285 yards, TD, two INTs) took a big step back, setting the tone for the bad day with a pick-six on the second play from scrimmage. He also had four fumbles. Daniel rallied the Bears to OT in desperation, but it never should have come to that.
RUNNING BACKS
BTarik Cohen (eight carries, 30 yards) would have been the hero if the Bears had pulled this one out. Cohen had 12 receptions for 156 yards to give him 186 yards from scrimmage, plus a one-yard TD pass at the horn that sent the game to OT. Jordan Howard (16 carries, 76 yards) had runs of 25 and 22 yards after a slow start.
RECEIVERS
BAllen Robinson (five catches, 79 yards) came through in the clutch, including an improbable 30-yard catch while battling C.W. Webb. Anthony Miller caught the one-yard TD pass from Cohen. Taylor Gabriel (three catches, 17 yards) had a tough day. Adam Shaheen caught a two-yard TD. Trey Burton had one target.
OFFENSIVE LINE
CCharles Leno Jr. had a nice block to help spring Cohen for an eight-yard gain on fourth-and-one on the Bears’ first TD drive. Overall, line play was adequate. The Bears rushed for 118 yards on 32 carries, but Daniel was sacked five times. Cody Whitehair had a low snap that led to a sack on the Bears’ lone drive in OT.
DEFENSIVE LINE
CAkiem Hicks continued to make a strong Pro Bowl bid with a sack, six tackles, a batted pass and a stuff of Saquon Barkley at the goal line. Bilal Nichols (six tackles) stopped Barkley for a threeyard loss on a second-andone. Roy Robertson-Harris had a third-down pressure that forced a punt.
LINEBACKERS
CKhalil Mack (five tackles, one pass breakup) and Leonard Floyd (one QB hit) had sacks, and Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith each had 10 tackles. But big plays were missing, as the Bears didn’t force a fumble and lost the turnover battle for the first time this season. Barkley rushed for 125 yards on 24 carries.
SECONDARY
CKyle Fuller (three pass breakups) had an interception and nearly had another. Eddie Jackson (six tackles) had a pass breakup on a deep ball to Odell Beckham Jr. The secondary was fooled on a trick play when Russell Shepard was wideopen inside the 10-yard line on a 49-yard TD pass from Beckham on an end-around.
SPECIAL TEAMS
B+ Daniel Brown recovered an onside kick that was perfectly executed by kicker Cody Parkey, and it led to the tying TD. Cohen had a 16-yard punt return. Pat O’Donnell had a 65-yard punt that flipped field position when the Bears were down 7-0 early.
COACHING
DMatt Nagy’s ill-advised decision to call a timeout after back-to-back sacks late in the second quarter ultimately provided the Giants with the spark they needed after the Bears had wrested control of the game. Daniel was worse when he was expected to be better. The late rally showed resilience that might pay off later.