Caleb Williams throws for 3 TDs as Bears beat Steelers 31-28 with nemesis Aaron Rodgers sidelined
— Caleb Williams hoped he'd get a chance to chat with Aaron Rodgers. He got his opportunity after he led the Bears to yet another close win.
CHICAGO -- — Caleb Williams hoped he'd get a chance to chat with Aaron Rodgers. He got his opportunity after he led the Bears to yet another close win.
Williams threw for three touchdowns, and Chicago beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-28 in a matchup of division leaders on Sunday while Rodgers, the Bears' old nemesis, was sidelined with a broken left wrist.
“Right after the game, we ended up saying hello, get healthy and we'll go from there,” Williams said.
Rodgers is 25-5 against the Bears from his long tenure in Green Bay, counting the playoffs. He once famously turned to the crowd at Soldier Field and screamed that he still owns Chicago. But the four-time MVP didn’t get the chance to show if that’s still the case.
“I would have loved to play Aaron Rodgers,” said Montez Sweat, who sacked Rodgers four years ago with Washington in a loss at Green Bay. “I would have loved to get him again. Whoever’s out there, we got to do what we got to do.”
Rodgers, who turns 42 on Dec. 2, was hurt in the second quarter of a 34-12 win over Cincinnati last week. He wore a brace when he practiced Friday on a limited basis, but the Steelers (6-5) went with Mason Rudolph in his place and fell into a first-place tie with Baltimore in the AFC North.
“There's never been panic here,” Rudolph said. “We've been Pittsburgh Steelers long enough to know we've been behind, down in the division and up. It's a natural ebb and flow of the season. I'm very confident in our guys to keep fighting and end up on top.”
The NFC North-leading Bears (8-3) won for the eighth time in nine games. After rallying in the final two minutes the previous three weeks, they held onto a late lead this time.
Pittsburgh pulled within three when Rudolph found Pat Freiermuth for a 3-yard score with 6 1/2 minutes remaining to cap a 17-play drive. The Steelers had the ball near midfield in the closing minute when Jaquan Brisker tipped a fourth-down pass at the line, sealing the win for Chicago.
Williams, who was shaky at Minnesota last week despite setting a franchise single-season record with his fifth fourth-quarter comeback, found his rhythm in the second half after consistently overthrowing receivers in the first two quarters. He was 19 of 35 for 239 yards against a team that came in allowing a league-worst 261.7 yards passing per game. Williams was also strip-sacked by T.J. Watt in the end zone early in the second quarter, and the Steelers’ Nick Herbig recovered the fumble for a touchdown.
“Today in the beginning, it didn’t feel like I got into a good rhythm,” Williams said. “I was missing passes and it was kind of weird. I wasn’t too frustrated, like a couple weeks ago where I was missing passes and got extremely frustrated and things like that. I understood and I wrote on my notes to stay positive for myself but also for the guys. I think I did a solid job with that this week.”
DJ Moore had five receptions for 64 yards and two touchdowns after catching just one pass over the previous two games. He caught a 5-yard TD in the first quarter, and his 25-yard score early in the third gave Chicago a 24-21 lead.
Colston Loveland had a touchdown catch. Kyle Monangai ran for a score and Sweat had two sacks.
Rudolph, who returned to Pittsburgh for a second stint when he signed in March, found out Saturday that he would start. He settled down after throwing an interception on his first pass, when Nahshon Wright picked off a deep ball intended for DK Metcalf, and finished 24 of 31 for 171 yards with a touchdown.
Kenneth Gainwell, coming off one of the best days of his career, had 92 yards rushing, including a 55-yarder that led to a touchdown late in the first half. He caught seven passes for 81 yards and two touchdowns last week against Cincinnati and finished with 105 total yards.
DK Metcalf and Jaylen Warren each ran for TDs for the Steelers.
Injuries
Steelers: CB Joey Porter Jr. hurt his leg in the first half and returned to the game before exiting in the third quarter with a hip injury. ... Metcalf (ankle) hobbled to the sideline in the second and third quarters. ... OT Broderick Jones suffered a stinger in the fourth quarter.
Bears: LB Ruben Hyppolite (shoulder) and CB Tyrique Stevenson (hip) exited the game. Both were hurt in the first half. ... DL Dominique Robinson entered the concussion protocol in the fourth quarter.
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