The New York Giants fell to 2-9 on the season after losing their seventh consecutive game, this time to the Chicago Bears, 19-14.
The New York Giants returned from their bye week on Sunday and took the field against the Chicago Bears looking to end their six-game losing streak and delay their playoff elimination for at least one more week. And with jobs very much on the line, there was obviously something to play for.
However, when you pit two bad teams against each other, guess what you get? Bad football. And that’s exactly what a regional audience saw in Week 12.
The Giants and Bears started about as slowly as two teams could, exchanging three punts to open the game with neither team gaining more than 18 yards on their respective offensive drives before Mitchell Trubisky finally got things moving for Chicago.
The Bears were engineering a potential scoring drive and had moved inside the Giants’ 20 before Trubisky uncorked an errant throw into the back of the endzone that was picked off by linebacker Alec Ogletree, whose athleticism on the play can not be overstated.
Things settled back down briefly and the two teams again exchanged a series of punts before Daniel Jones finally got things moving in the right direction for Big Blue, connecting with tight end Kaden Smith one a three-yard touchdown to cap off a six-play, 42-yard drive. It was Smith’s first NFL touchdown.
The Giants defense then forced Chicago to a quick three-and-out and Jabrill Peppers nearly broke off a touchdown run on the ensuing punt, but he was brought down by the last line of defense.
With momentum swinging in their direction, the Giants could have gone up two scores, but an ugly third down play (outside toss to Saquon Barkley, who looked like he wanted to throw) led to a 42-yard field goal attempt that sailed wide right as the result of a terrible Zak DeOssie snap.
Eight combined plays later, the Giants were back in field goal range, but for the second time on the day, an Aldrick Rosas field goal sailed wide. This time, the snap was better, but Rosas just pulled it left.
With 1:55 remaining in the half, the Bears finally pieced together a solid drive against a Giants defense that was playing prevent. And while they weren’t able to put the ball into the endzone, they did chip away at the lead, connecting on a 26-yard field goal to bring the game within 7-3 at halftime.
The Bears remained hot to open the third quarter, aided by great field position after Rosas booted the second half kickoff out of bounds. It took just 2:48 to capture their first lead of the game, capping off a five-play, 60-yard drive with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Trubisky to wide receiver Allen Robinson II.
After forcing the Giants to a quick three-and-out, the suddenly dominant Bears offense was back at it and they found a weakness to exploit — rookie cornerback Corey Ballentine.
Trubisky began to follow Ballentine pre-snap and made sure to throw to whatever receiver he was covering, eating up massive chunk plays time after time. However, this time around, Chicago’s offense stalled in the red zone and they were forced to settle for a short field goal, increasing their lead to 13-7 with 7:09 remaining in the third quarter.
On the very next play, Khalil Mack, who had been held in check, finally made his presence felt, skirting around Nate Solder for the strip sack of Jones. And the long-struggling Bears offense again came alive and made the turnover count, running three consecutive plays inside the 5-yard line, culminating with a two-yard touchdown run courtesy of Trubisky. However, Chicago missed the PAT after a bizarre series of penalties, leaving the score at 19-7.
Chicago was quick to get the ball back once again, forcing the Giants to a three-and-out (broken record, anyone?), but this time they weren’t able to put additional points on the board as Trubisky reverted back to his early season form, launching a ball down the middle of the field to no one in particular that was picked off by rookie Julian Love.
No matter, however. The inept Giants offense continued to be exactly that, turning the ball over on downs and once again supplying Chicago an opportunity to essentially put the game away.
But the Bears couldn’t get the job done — a theme of theirs all season — burning just 3:53 off the clock before punting the ball back to the Giants, who appeared poised to let time melt away before a miracle 4th-and-18 touchdown pass from Jones landed in the arms of wide receiver Golden Tate and breathed new life into Big Blue.
With the score 19-14, the Bears once again could have run the clock down and escaped with a win, but were denied when Markus Golden crashed through the line of scrimmage to stop a 3rd-and-1 giving the Giants one final opportunity to drive 94 yards for the win.
Almost immediately, the Giants were faced with another fourth down, but once again, Jones came through, connecting with Darius Slayton to move the chains. However, history would not repeat itself on the next fourth down attempt as Jones’ pass fell harmlessly to the ground, sending the Giants to their seventh consecutive loss.
In defeat, the Giants fall to 2-9 on the season. They will take on the Green Bay Packers at MetLife Stadium in Week 13.
