Chicago’s defense put on a clinic in the first half of Sunday’s matchup with Cleveland, as the Bears hold a 14-0 lead over the Browns at halftime.
Cleveland managed just one first down in the half with 57 total yards. Most of Cleveland’s offense came from just one play, as Shedeur Sanders connected with receiver Isaiah Bond for a 42-yard deep shot in the second quarter.
Sanders finished the first half 4-of-10 for 54 yards.
The Bears scored touchdowns on their second and third possessions. D’Andre Swift ran one in from 6-yards out while Caleb Williams tossed a 3-yard touchdown to DJ Moore later in the first quarter to put the Bears up by a pair of touchdowns.
Williams finished the first half 12-of-18 for 190 yards with a touchdown. Williams did appear to limp off the field at the end of the second quarter.
Browns defensive end Myles Garrett got a step closer to setting the single-season sack record, bringing down Williams on third-and-goal in the second quarter. He now has 21.0 sacks this season, 1.5 off the record shared by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt.
The Browns will receive the second-half kickoff.
So far, the Bears are having little trouble with the Browns on a frigid day in Chicago.
With Caleb Williams’ 3-yard touchdown to DJ Moore, the Bears are up 14-0 late in the first quarter.
D’Andre Swift got the Bears on the board first with a 6-yard touchdown run. Chicago had great field position after a Cleveland three-and-out deep in its own territory.
Then the Bears got on the board again with a seven-play, 80-yard drive. The club faced third-and-2 and converted with a 24-yard pass from Williams to Colton Loveland. Then Williams found Moore on third-and-goal from the 3 to cap the drive.
Playing without receiver Rome Odunze, who aggravated his foot injury during pregame warm-ups, Williams is 5-of-7 for 83 yards with a touchdown so far on Sunday.
The Bills will be missing a key defensive piece as they try to keep the Patriots from clinching the AFC East in New England on Sunday.
Cornerback Christian Benford is inactive for the game. Benford was added to the injury report on Thursday with a toe issue and he missed practice on Friday before being listed as questionable.
Benford had a big hand in each of the Bills’ last two wins. He returned a fumble for a touchdown and had an interception to help them beat the Steelers in Week 13 and he returned an interception for the go-ahead score against the Bengals in the fourth quarter last Sunday.
Bills at Patriots
Bills: CB Christian Benford, LB Terrel Bernard, WR Gabe Davis, S Darnell Savage, OL Tylan Grable, DT Phidarian Mathis, OL Chase Lundt
Patriots: LB Bradyn Swinson, OL Marcus Bryant, DT Eric Gregory, TE C.J. Dippre, WR Efton Chism, QB Tommy DeVito
Ravens at Bengals
Ravens: WR Rashod Bateman, CB Keyon Martin, OL Joseph Noteboom, DT Aeneas Peebles, QB Cooper Rush
Bengals: WR Tee Higgins, QB Jake Browning, S PJ Jules, DT Jordan Jefferson
Jets at Jaguars
Jets: QB Tyrod Taylor, QB Justin Fields, WR Tyler Johnson, EDGE Braiden McGregor, DL Mazi Smith, TE Mason Taylor, LB Kiki Mauigoa
Jaguars: LB Yasir Abdullah, OL Walker Little, TE Hunter Long, DL Emmanuel Ogbah, DL Austin Johnson
Chargers at Chiefs
Chargers: WR Quentin Johnston, S Elijah Molden, WR Derius Davis, CB Nikko Reed, LB Kyle Kennard, OL Trey Pipkins, WR Dalevon Campbell
Chiefs: CB Trent McDuffie, WR Hollywood Brown, OT Jawaan Taylor, TE Jared Wiley, G Trey Smith, RB Elijah Mitchell, DT Zacch Pickens
Cardinals at Texans
Cardinals: CB Max Melton, WR Marvin Harrison Jr., S Jalen Thompson, S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson, OL Evan Brown, OT Paris Johnson, WR Xavier Weaver
Texans: OL Jarrett Kingston, WR Braxton Berrios, RB Nick Chubb, QB Graham Mertz, CB Ameer Speed, LB E.J. Speed, DE Solomon Byrd
Browns at Bears
Browns: CB Denzel Ward, RB Dylan Sampson, G Zak Zinter, G Wyatt Teller, T Jack Conklin, TE David Njoku, DT Adin Huntington
Bears: QB Tyson Bagent, RB Travis Homer, WR Jahdae Walker, LB Ruben Hyppolite, DE Dominique Robinson, DT Jonathan Ford
Commanders at Giants
Commanders: QB Jayden Daniels, DE Drake Jackson, OL George Fant, CB Jonathan Jones, OL Trenton Scott, RB Chris Rodriguez
Giants: EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux, WR Ryan Miller, P Jamie Gillan, OL James Hudson, WR Gunner Olszewski, DL Rakeem Nunez-Roches, QB Russell Wilson
Raiders at Eagles
Raiders: QB Geno Smith, CB Greedy Vance, RB Zamir White, OL Jordan Meredith, TE Ian Thomas, WR Alex Bachman, DL Leki Fotu
Eagles: LB Josh Uche, QB Sam Howell, CB Mac McWilliams, RB A.J. Dillon, OT Lane Johnson, DT Jalen Carter
The Bears may not have backup quarterback Tyson Bagent available for Sunday’s game against the Browns.
The team announced on Sunday morning that Bagent is considered questionable to play because of an illness. He was not on the injury report this week.
If Bagent is unable to play, the Bears will move Case Keenum up to the No. 2 role behind Caleb Williams.
Bagent signed a two-year extension with the Bears this summer. He has appeared in three games this season and is 3-of-4 for 47 yards in that action. Keenum has not played in a regular season game since the 2023 season.
Cornerback Kyler Gordon was ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Browns and the Bears won’t have him for any of their other three remaining regular season games either.
The Bears announced that they placed Gordon on injured reserve due to the groin injury he suffered in warmups during Week 14. Gordon will miss the final four weeks of the regular season, but the team hopes he will be able to return for any postseason games they may play.
This is Gordon’s second injured reserve stint of the year. He missed five games with groin and calf injuries during the first stint and he also missed the first four games of the season while recovering from a hamstring injury.
The Bears also announced that they have elevated running back Brittain Brown and linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.
