Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears survived a late New England push Thursday night, beating the Patriots 30-24 at Soldier Field to improve to 5-2 and move beyond their Week 5 blowout loss to Green Bay.
Williams threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover, delivering another sharp performance after returning from a hamstring injury. Drake Maye put up major numbers for New England and nearly led a comeback, but his red-zone interception in the second quarter became the decisive mistake when Chicago converted it into a touchdown.
The victory also evened the young quarterbacks’ head-to-head record at 1-1. Chicago had won their first meeting, 19-3, during their rookie season.
Williams gives Bears another explosive outing
Williams has now posted consecutive strong games since coming back from the hamstring issue. He became the first Bears quarterback since Mitchell Trubisky in 2018 to throw for at least 300 yards in back-to-back outings.
His two touchdown passes also gave him 13 career games with multiple passing touchdowns and no interceptions. That moved him past Hall of Famer Sid Luckman for sole possession of second place in franchise history, behind only Jay Cutler’s 18 such games.
After largely operating from the pocket in his first game back, Williams showed his mobility was no longer a concern against the Patriots. He completed all five throws made while on the move for 62 yards, producing a completion rate 14.8 percentage points above expectation. He added 18 yards on five carries.
Williams averaged 7.3 air yards per target, his first game above five air yards per attempt since Week 1. Several of his most important throws came as New England tried to erase Chicago’s 13-point advantage in the third quarter.
“These are the kind of nights you enjoy,” Williams said. “It is a prime-time game on a short week against a good football team, and it shows you what your team is about. We are physical, we are creative, and when things get rough, we do not lose our composure. We will keep fighting.”
Maye shines despite costly turnover
Maye completed 24 of 31 passes, a season-best 77.4 percent, for 321 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also paced the Patriots in rushing with 26 yards and scored on the ground.
The performance was Maye’s fourth career game with a completion rate of at least 75 percent, multiple passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. He broke a tie with Kyler Murray for the most games matching that combination by an NFL player younger than 25.
But the interception near the goal line proved damaging. Chicago capitalized with a touchdown, creating the scoreboard swing that ultimately separated the teams.
Bears coach Ben Johnson praised Maye’s ability to extend plays and create offense even when a defense keeps its rush to four players.
“He is an outstanding quarterback and very difficult to contain,” Johnson said. “If you rush four and nothing is immediately there, he can locate a crease and get moving. What stands out is his ability to find those underneath outlets that can still turn into vertical gains after the catch. He looks like he has found his rhythm at this point in the season.”
Chicago’s offense regains momentum
Johnson said Williams handled the short-week preparation well, particularly after producing two straight games in which he consistently found open receivers.
“As a play-caller, you always prefer a full practice week because you can see the concepts develop and discuss them in more detail,” Johnson said. “Given the short turnaround, I thought Caleb did a very good job.”
With Williams healthy and operating behind one of the NFL’s stronger offensive lines, Chicago’s offense has regained the form it lost in the lopsided defeat to Green Bay. The Bears will try to carry that momentum forward after escaping a prime-time test against an increasingly dangerous New England quarterback.
