When offense struggled, Bears RB D'Andre Swift added 'a little life into the situation'
D’Andre Swift, and not Caleb Williams, was able to shake the Bears out of their offensive funk Sunday afternoon. With about a minute to play, the running back took a handoff around the left end, behind blocks from tight end Cole Kmet and rookie Kiran Amegadjie, and ran up the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown.“Really good blocking on the perimeter,” Bears coach Matt Eberflus said Monday. “I know it puts a little life into the whole situation.”Commanders coach Dan Quinn thought it was one of the biggest plays of the game, which ended in a 18-15 win after a now-infamous Hail Mary.“A big, long play, that explosive play that goes for a score, those are the things that you have to fight your way through and come back for it,” Quinn said.Swift’s 56-yard run was the eighth-longest in the NFL entering Monday’s games. His 129 rushing yards were his most since he had 130 on Sept. 25, 2023.Swift’s turnaround has been impressive. In Weeks 1-3, he averaged 1.8 yards per carry — the worst average for any NFL player who averaged 10 or more carries per game. In Weeks 4-8, Swift averaged 5.4, which ranked sixth among such players.WoundedEberflus said it was “going to take some time to assess" the injuries suffered by three offensive linemen plus star defensive end Montez Sweat on Sunday. He expected an update Wednesday.Guards Teven Jenkins (knee) and Bill Murray (pec) left the game, as did left tackle Braxton Jones (knee) after 18 snaps. Jones was replaced by Amegadjie in his first extended NFL action.Sweat nursed a shin injury for most of the game, playing half the Bears’ snaps, but wasn’t healthy enough to be on the field for the Hail Mary.“Obviously, we would love to have him in there — he’s one of the guys that can get [quarterback Jayden Daniels] and chase him down,” Eberflus said.This and that• Daniels’ 92.7 passer rating was the highest the Bears had allowed all season.• The Bears downed five of Tory Taylor’s punts inside the 20, their third-most since 1991. Latest on the Bears Bears Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson: 'I let my teammates down' on Hail Mary Stevenson apologized to his teammates Monday at Halas Hall after motioning toward fans when Sunday’s Hail Mary was snapped. By Patrick Finley [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Halas Intrigue Halas Intrigue podcast: What just happened? Well, that collapsed quickly. By Sun-Times Staff [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Bears Making the grade: Assessing Bears' players, coaches in loss to Commanders Caleb Williams was off his game until the fourth quarter. The defense gave the Bears a chance to win by holding the Commanders to four field goals until the end. But the team started slowly and finished with a disaster — a bad look for coach Matt Eberflus and his staff. By Mark Potash [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone]
D’Andre Swift, and not Caleb Williams, was able to shake the Bears out of their offensive funk Sunday afternoon. With about a minute to play, the running back took a handoff around the left end, behind blocks from tight end Cole Kmet and rookie Kiran Amegadjie, and ran up the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown.
“Really good blocking on the perimeter,” Bears coach Matt Eberflus said Monday. “I know it puts a little life into the whole situation.”
Commanders coach Dan Quinn thought it was one of the biggest plays of the game, which ended in a 18-15 win after a now-infamous Hail Mary.
“A big, long play, that explosive play that goes for a score, those are the things that you have to fight your way through and come back for it,” Quinn said.
Swift’s 56-yard run was the eighth-longest in the NFL entering Monday’s games. His 129 rushing yards were his most since he had 130 on Sept. 25, 2023.
Swift’s turnaround has been impressive. In Weeks 1-3, he averaged 1.8 yards per carry — the worst average for any NFL player who averaged 10 or more carries per game. In Weeks 4-8, Swift averaged 5.4, which ranked sixth among such players.
Wounded
Eberflus said it was “going to take some time to assess" the injuries suffered by three offensive linemen plus star defensive end Montez Sweat on Sunday. He expected an update Wednesday.
Guards Teven Jenkins (knee) and Bill Murray (pec) left the game, as did left tackle Braxton Jones (knee) after 18 snaps. Jones was replaced by Amegadjie in his first extended NFL action.
Sweat nursed a shin injury for most of the game, playing half the Bears’ snaps, but wasn’t healthy enough to be on the field for the Hail Mary.
“Obviously, we would love to have him in there — he’s one of the guys that can get [quarterback Jayden Daniels] and chase him down,” Eberflus said.
This and that
• Daniels’ 92.7 passer rating was the highest the Bears had allowed all season.
• The Bears downed five of Tory Taylor’s punts inside the 20, their third-most since 1991.
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