CHICAGO – The Rams (1-3) fell to the Bears 24-18 on Sunday at Soldier Field.
Redzone opportunities marked a key difference in this game. The Rams were 1-for-4 in that area, while the Bears (2-2) were 2-for-4 with a pair of touchdowns. Chicago also created two turnovers; Los Angeles had a forced fumble but did not recover it.
Running back Kyren Williams extended his streak of consecutive games with a rushing touchdown to seven on Sunday with his 3-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter; it is currently the second-longest such streak in franchise history behind Greg Bell's 10 from 1988-89. Williams had 19 carries for 94 yards overall in addition to that touchdown in the loss.
Here is the complete game recap:
The Rams took an early 3-0 lead on a 46-yard field goal by kicker Joshua Karty. A 37-yarder by Karty increased Los Angeles' lead to 6-0 early in the second quarter after a Matthew Stafford interception in the endzone was overturned upon further review by the officials.
Braden Fiske's strip-sack of Bears quarterback Caleb Williams forced the Bears to punt midway through the second quarter. However, two plays later, Chicago's Montez Sweat got a strip-sack of his own against Stafford, and the Bears recovered inside the Rams 20-yard line. A pass interference penalty against the Rams on the ensuing drive set the Bears up at the Rams 1, then Bears running back Roschon Johnson scored a 1-yard rushing touchdown to give Chicago a 7-6 lead with 5:42 left in the first half.
After Karty missed a 43-yard field goal attempt with 1:05 remaining in the first half, the Bears knocked through a 40-yard field goal to extend their lead to 10-6 just before halftime. Rams outside linebacker Michael Hoecht had a critical third-down sack on the series to force the Bears to settle for a field goal.
Leaning on the run game to open the second half, the Rams managed to get a 25-yard field goal from Karty at the end of that series to cut their deficit to 10-9 with 8:50 left in the third quarter. Los Angeles reached the Chicago 7, but the drive stalled there.
The Bears answered on the following series with a 9-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Caleb Williams to wide receiver D.J. Moore to extend their lead to 17-9 late in the third quarter.
After the teams traded 6-plus-minute scoring drives, Stafford got the Rams in Bears territory in just two plays, the second a 25-yard completion to wide receiver Tutu Atwell. Los Angeles capitalized with a 3-yard rushing touchdown by Williams at the beginning of the fourth quarter, cutting their deficit to 17-15 with 14:55 left in the fourth quarter after an unsuccessful 2-point attempt.
Chicago responded with a drive capped by a 36-yard touchdown run by running back D'Andre Swift to go up 24-15 with 12:26 remaining.
The Rams reduced their deficit to 6 with a 52-yard field goal by Karty on the ensuing drive. A blitzing Brisker sacking Stafford on second down on that series forced the Rams into a third-and-long, but they managed to get back into field goal range with a 12-yard completion from Stafford to tight end Colby Parkinson.
Forcing Chicago to punt with 1:13 remaining in the fourth quarter, Los Angeles got the ball at its own 8-yard trailing by six. On the next play, Stafford's pass intended for wide receiver Demarcus Robinson was intercepted by Bears defensive back Jaquan Brisker.
With the Rams out of timeouts, Williams was able to take a knee on back-to-back snaps to drain the remaining 56 seconds and secure the victory for the Bears.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Week 4 of the 2024 season. Take a look at photos from the matchup!