Staley Da Bear
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- Mar 16, 2019
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Jimmy Graham made a one-handed 19-yard touchdown catch from Mitchell Trubisky as time expired—and then promptly ran to the tunnel and the locker room. The Bears did not attempt the extra point, resulting in a final score of 21-9.
Prior to that last drive, the Bears' best chance to score a touchdown came late in the first quarter on an impressive trick play from the Saints' 40. David Montgomery took a shotgun snap in the Wildcat formation and handed off to Cordarrelle Patterson, who pitched the ball back to Trubisky. The Bears quarterback heaved a perfect pass to a wide open Javon Wims. But Wims dropped the ball in the end zone.
The Bears later reached the Saints' 10, but Cole Kmet drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and they had to settle for Cairo Santos' 36-yard field goal, cutting the deficit to 7-3 with 8:06 left in the half.
The Saints took a 7-0 lead on their second possession of the game on Drew Brees' 11-yard touchdown pass to receiver Michael Thomas with 5:09 left in the first quarter. It was the first TD of the season for Thomas, who was limited to seven games due to an ankle injury.
Three plays after Wims dropped the sure touchdown pass, the Bears turned the ball over on downs when Trubisky was held to a two-yard rush on fourth-and-4 from the 34.
After the Saints' Wil Lutz missed a 50-yard field goal attempt wide right, the Bears defense generated a key takeaway. Blitzing safety Tashaun Gipson Sr. hit Taysom Hill's arm as he was throwing the ball, and defensive lineman John Jenkins caught the ball in the air at the Saints' 24.
But Kmet's penalty forced the Bears to settle for Santos' field goal.
The Saints extended their lead to 14-3 on their first possession of the second half on Brees' 6-yard touchdown pass to running back Latavius Murray. The 12-play, 85-yard drive was sustained by an offside penalty on safety Eddie Jackson on fourth-and-3 at the Bears' 13.
New Orleans scored another touchdown on their second possession of the second half as Alvin Kamara's 3-yard TD run widened the margin to 21-3 with 8:50 to play in the fourth quarter. The score capped a 15-play, 64-yard drive that burned 8:51 off the clock.
Before Kamara's TD, Khalil Mack sacked Brees for a 14-yard loss back to the Bears' 19 on second-and-goal. But the play was nullified by a holding penalty against rookie cornerback Kindle Vildor. Two plays later, linebacker Danny Trevathan was flagged for pass interference in the end zone, resulting in a first down at the 1.
The penalties and other mistakes ended a roller-coaster season for the Bears, who opened 5-1, lost six straight and then rebounded to win three in a row before closing with decisive losses to the NFC's top two playoff seeds, the Packers and Saints.
Check ChicagoBears.com later for expanded coverage.