The Chicago Bears closed out the preseason with a 27-24 win against the Tennessee Titans on Saturday.
Usually, the end of the preseason signals excitement for the start of the regular season. And while that’s still the case, it’s hard to deny the excitement that rookie quarterback Justin Fields has brought to the preseason.
While Matt Nagy played it safe through most of the first half, with a plethora of runs and questionable play calls, Fields finally got a chance to show what separates him from anointed starter Andy Dalton near the end of the first half.
Fields put an exclamation point on his preseason with an impressive back-shoulder throw to tight end Jesper Horsted for a 20-yard touchdown during a two-minute drill at the end of the first half.
It was one of those Oh my God throws that Bears fans will be replaying on a loop until he inevitably makes his regular-season debut at some point during his rookie season.
Horsted made a strong case for a roster spot with his impressive performance against the Titans, where he caught three touchdowns, including a one-handed grab in the fourth quarter. Horsted led the Bears with
While the Bears rested most of their starters, there were a few starters on defense who saw some reps in the first half, including nose tackle Eddie Goldman and linebacker Danny Trevathan. Goldman looked like his old self and Trevathan even had an interception of Titans quarterback Matt Barkley in the first quarter.
With takeaways being a point of emphasis for Sean Desai’s defense this year, Chicago’s defense showed up big in the first half with two interceptions — one by Trevathan and one from cornerback Tre Roberson.
Roberson got some help from Trevis Gipson applying pressure on Titans quarterback Logan Woodside. Roberson returned the interception 27 yards for a score. At one point, the Bears defense had more interceptions than Chicago’s offense had first downs.
This final preseason game was exactly what you expect from preseason finales, with the exception of the Fields hype. There were a handful of players pushing for roster spots and starting jobs — some who made positive impressions and others who didn’t help their case. Guess we’ll see as the final cuts loom Tuesday.
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