The Bears were in control throughout their second preseason game Thursday night, scoring the first 24 points of the contest en route a 27-11 victory over the Seahawks in Seattle.
“I thought it was a good outing today for us,” coach Matt Eberflus told ESPN after the game. “I thought, really, we wanted to start fast, so our offense came out and scored 10 points in the first [three] drives and our defense had two three-and-outs. That was our message; we didn’t do that well that first game. So, the second game we did. A lot of teaching moments for our guys on the tape and we’re gonna learn from it.”
Quarterback Justin Fields and the first-team offense were on the field for just one drive, but it was a successful opening possession as the 10-play, 52-yard sequence ended in a 35-yard field goal by kicker Cairo Santos.
Fields completed 5 of 7 passes for 39 yards, finishing with an 84.8 rating. Tight end Cole Kmet , who didn’t play in the Bears’ preseason opener against the Chiefs, connected with Fields twice on the drive—a 12-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage and a 19-yard completion six plays later.
Fields also kept the drive alive by drawing the Seahawks offsides on a fourth-down attempt.
“It’s a small sample size. We’re talking nine plays and a penalty, so 10 plays,” Eberflus said. “I thought the operation was good, [Fields’] preparation was great. He handled the offense the way we wanted him to, had a nice drive and scored the field goal. So, I think it’s progress and guys see more progress in practice sometimes, where his footwork is getting better, his delivery when he feels pressure, how he slides in the pocket and delivers the ball, that’s getting a lot better too. So, he’s improving every single day.”
Rookie receiver Velus Jones Jr. made his preseason debut in Seattle, serving as the Bears’ starting kick and punt returner. Near the end of the first quarter, Jones returned a punt 48 yards down the sideline to the Seattle 33, setting up a scoring drive for the second-team offense.
After three straight carries by Darrynton Evans, backup quarterback Trevor Siemian connected with receivers Isaiah Coulter and Nsimba Webster to reach the 2-yard line. Siemian capped off the six-play, 33-yard drive with a touchdown pass to rookie tight end Jake Tonges on the opening play of the second period, giving the Bears a 10-0 advantage.
Siemian ended his night completing 8 of 15 pass attempts for 48 yards and a touchdown, earning an 82.1 rating.
The Bears defense continued to shut down the Seahawks in the first half, while the special teams unit provided a big play. With 33 seconds left in the opening half, rookie Trenton Gill’s 43-yard punt was muffed by Seattle returner Cade Johnson, then recovered by rookie safety Elijah Hicks in the end zone for a touchdown, helping the Bears to a 17-0 lead after 30 minutes.
The Bears continued to dominate out of the break, scoring another touchdown on their opening possession of the second half. Third-string quarterback Nathan Peterman entered the game to start the drive, which started at the Seattle 47.
Peterman found receiver Dazz Newsome for a 14-yard gain then connected with Coulter on a 23-yard pass. A short throw to tight end Chase Allen got the Bears to the one-yard line, then Evans punched it in from there to increase the lead to 24-0.
“In the third quarter, we came out and had a nice defensive stop, created a short field, played complementary football there, then drove the ball down and scored another touchdown there to start the second half,” Eberflus said. “That was really one of our goals we wanted to accomplish, and we got that done.”
Peterman recorded a 75.0 rating, completing 8 of 14 passes for 85 yards.
Seattle got on the board toward the end of the third quarter with Jason Myers’ 27-yard field goal to finish off a 10-play, 55-yard drive. The Bears quickly fired back as Santos connected on a 47-yarder to extend the lead to 27-3 just under a minute into the final period. The drive started at the Seattle 46 thanks to a 58-yard kick return from Webster.
“Some really good plays on special teams,” Eberflus said. “We had a couple good, explosive returns. Velus had a really nice punt return, Nsimba had a nice kick return, that was really good. And it’s not just those guys, it’s the guys that are blocking for them. It’s the whole team that’s out there and [special teams coach Richard] Hightower did a really good job of coaching those guys to do it the right way. So, we’re excited about that as well.”
With 2:12 to play, the Seahawks cut the lead to 16 points with a 9-play, 44-yard touchdown drive followed by a successful two-point attempt.
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