CHICAGO – The Bears ended 2023 and their home team with a bang on Sunday, dominating the Atlanta Falcons from the opening whistle with a resounding 37-17 win at Soldier Field.
Quarterback Justin Fields put together one of his most complete games, giving the Bears and general manager Ryan Poles something to think about on the day they received the No. 1 pick. Wide receiver DJ Moore added another 100-yard game to his tally, and the defense did the rest, suffocating Atlanta's woeful offense from start to finish.
The Bears are now 7-9 and are three inexplicable faceplants away from becoming a playoff team. The playoffs will have to wait until next year, but the Bears' backyard smackdown on Sunday showed that the Bears have fought their way out of the NFL's basement and are firmly in the crowded middle with a green arrow pointing up.
Here's a New Year's Eve piece worthy of the champagne and the victory cigars the Bears lit in the home locker room after the win:
Passing offense
Fields was sensational from the opening throw.
The third-year quarterback opened his day with a beautiful strike to Moore down the right sideline for a 32-yard lead. Fields finished the drive by passing a score to Moore in the back of the end zone for a 7-yard touchdown.
Fields' first half on Sunday was among his best in a Bears uniform, trailing only the perfect first half he put together against the Denver Broncos earlier this season.
Fields missed a few throws and was late on a few, but he also threw a beautiful pass to Tyler Scott for a touchdown that the rookie couldn't score.
The quarterback's day also included an absurd 13-yard scramble on third-and-8 in which he fended off two Falcons defenses to avoid a sack and score the first down.
This was Fields at his best.
He finished the day 20 of 32 for 268 yards and a touchdown while adding 45 yards and a score on the ground. Moore completed nine passes for 159 yards and a score.
Without Darnell Mooney and with Cole Kmet limited, the Bears' passing game wasn't expected to have a big day against Atlanta's top-10 pass defense.
Instead, Fields cut her into pieces, sending a message in the process.
Flawless. No notes.
Fields Grade: A
Team grade: A
Rushing offense
D'Onta Foreman was a surprisingly healthy backup on Sunday, but his absence didn't affect the Bears' play.
Khalil Herbert once again had his power back, rushing for 124 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Herbert was slippery and showed great vision and acceleration in the open field.
Herbert didn't look like himself in the first few games after returning from the ankle injury he suffered in Week 5. But Herbert looked like himself again last week against the Cardinals and showed his trademark burst again on Sunday when he hurt the Falcons.
The Bears rushed for 192 yards on Sunday with 5.2 yards per tote.
Atlanta had no answer to the Bears' ground game, which wore them down early and tore them apart late.
Grade: A
Pass defense
While the Bears left Soldier Field on Sunday with a big question mark about what they should do at quarterback, the Falcons know they don't have the answer.
Taylor Heinicke was terrible on Sunday.
Taking away a 75-yard catch-and-run from running back Tyler Allgeier, the Bears held Heinick to 88 yards passing and four interceptions.
The Falcons' receivers struggled to assert themselves against the Bears' defensive backs, and Chicago's defensive line hounded Heinicke all day.
The Allgeier explosive is a flaw, but otherwise the Bears were perfect.
Grade: B+
Run the defense
The Bears' leadoff running back did an admirable job against rookie Bijan Robinson, holding him to 75 yards on 15 carries.
The Falcons trailed by two points early and had to abandon the running game in the second half. Aside from a tackle by Heinicke that caused them to lose control, the Bears' run defense was once again good.
It wasn't anything special, just a solid, craftsmanlike achievement.
Grade: B+
Coaching
In a season marked by late-game collapses, there were no defining moments for the Bears on Sunday.
The only questionable decision came when the Bears decided to roll Fields out of the pocket to make a throw late in the game with a 20-point lead. Fields was hit on the play and fumbled, but the Bears recovered.
Head coach Matt Eberlfus said they had free reign before the two-minute warning and wanted to get the only first down needed to tie the game.
Still, it was a strange decision to subject your quarterback to an unnecessary hit in a game that was coming to an end.
Grade: B+
In total
This was the Bears' best overall performance this season and probably their best since their loss to the New England Patriots in Week 7 last season.
Fields was outstanding, Moore tormented the Falcons and the defense continued to be the elite, dominant unit it has been for over a month.
If that's what the Bears want to be, 2024 will be an exciting year.
Grade: A
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